LOS ANGELES — Nico Iamaleava spent much of his first season at UCLA trying to catch up. A year later, the Bruins quarterback finds himself in a much different position as UCLA moves through training camp under head coach Bob Chesney.
Instead of simply learning the offense and finding his place within the program, Iamaleava is now being counted on to bring others along with him.
Following Friday’s practice, Iamaleava said the benefit of going through an entire spring in UCLA’s offense has allowed him to enter training camp with considerably more confidence in what he is seeing and doing at the line of scrimmage.
“I’m definitely more comfortable on offense,” Iamaleava said. “I feel like I got a good grasp of it now. And, you know, making checks and stuff like that, so definitely feel more comfortable on offense.”
Iamaleava said that comfort is particularly noticeable compared to this time last year, when he was attempting to get up to speed quickly. Having spring practice behind him has given him a foundation he didn't have before.
“That spring's important and I was glad I got to get that under my belt,” Iamaleava said. “Here we are in fall and I feel way more comfortable on offense and, you know, I'm still progressing as it goes too.”
The progression isn't limited to Iamaleava's understanding of the offense.
Defensive back Rodrick Pleasant, who has known Iamaleava for years, said one of the biggest differences he has noticed in the quarterback is his willingness to take responsibility for the players around him.
“He's bringing people with him,” Pleasant said. “That's been the most impressive thing about it. He's bringing guys along, making guys better day in and day out, and he's holding dudes accountable.”
Iamaleava sees that responsibility as one of his most important jobs this season.
“My job this year is to lead, lead a group of young men,” Iamaleava said. “I'm just trying to get better myself at that every day and elevating other leaders that are on our team to be more vocal out there.”
That leadership was on display before Friday's practice when Iamaleava was selected to bring the energy during the team's pre-practice routine. Pleasant said Iamaleava “brought the juice” and helped set the tone for a competitive practice.
The energy and competition have become defining characteristics of Chesney's first training camp at UCLA.
Iamaleava said the competitive atmosphere has remained consistently high since Chesney arrived, with players feeding off the coach's energy in meetings and on the practice field.
“I think just the energy he brings every day, it's infectious, and we feed off that,” Iamaleava said. “He comes in with high energy into each team meeting and gets us ready to go practice.”
Pleasant has seen the same thing on the defensive side of the ball.
“It's been good,” Pleasant said of the opening days of camp. “Exciting to be back out here. The competition level is great. The team atmosphere is amazing and the morale is there. So I'm excited about this season, excited about what we're going to do here. And this place is special.”
Pleasant is particularly excited about UCLA's secondary, which he believes has the depth and versatility to become one of the strengths of the team.
“We're super deep this year,” Pleasant said. “It's an amazing unit. The coach is doing a great job with us. … The unit is special. I'm excited about what we can do.”
The Bruins have emphasized football intelligence in the secondary, with Pleasant saying the defensive backs are being taught not merely to react to plays but to understand what is coming before it happens.
“Knowing the game, working the game, not playing the game,” Pleasant said. “He's wanted us to be more intelligent, be out there, know what's coming, when it's coming and how it's gonna come.”
Pleasant said the versatility of UCLA's defensive backs should also allow the Bruins to be flexible with their coverages and personnel.
“The guys are interchangeable and we can do things,” Pleasant said. “That's what's gonna make us special in the back end.”
That secondary gets the benefit of competing every day against Iamaleava, who enters the season as one of the most closely watched players on UCLA's roster. Iamaleava said his approach to the expectations surrounding him is to block out the attention and remain focused on his teammates.
“I think just staying grounded,” Iamaleava said. “It's not hard to exit out all the outside noise and really just be here with my teammates. We're striving to get better every day. So I think really just keeping my mind on my team and trying to get better every day.”
Part of that improvement has involved evaluating his own preparation. Iamaleava said one of his biggest lessons from last season was recognizing the importance of consistency throughout the week, not simply on Saturdays.
“I think just being more consistent with my gameplay,” Iamaleava said. “Week in, week out, whether that's my preparation, whether how I eat, how I sleep, I think taking that next step this year.”
He's also working on protecting himself better when he leaves the pocket. Iamaleava's dual-threat ability remains an important part of his game, but he acknowledged that reducing the number of hits he takes is an emphasis this season.
“Definitely being more protective over my body and taking less hits was definitely — it's a main emphasis every year — but this year definitely want to emphasize on not taking so many hits,” Iamaleava said.
Don't necessarily expect that to mean a sudden influx of quarterback slides.
“I'm not a slider,” Iamaleava said with a laugh, explaining that baseball was never much of a fit for him growing up. “I'm not a great slider, so you guys will see me just get down.”
Iamaleava has also been encouraged by the development around him. He said UCLA's reshuffled offensive line is coming together despite the Bruins continuing to experiment with combinations, while wide receiver Aidan Mizell has emerged as an intriguing deep threat who has worked to expand his complete route tree. Iamaleava also sees significant possibilities in UCLA's use of 12 personnel with two tight ends, believing it can create matchup and substitution problems for opposing defenses.For Pleasant, the optimism surrounding UCLA isn't limited to one position group. He believes the Bruins are developing the chemistry needed to bring together a roster featuring new players and a new system.
“We've been gelling,” Pleasant said. “The chemistry is there, it's exciting, and it's like we've been here. A lot of dudes are on the same page together. So that's what I'm really excited about.”
Pleasant also believes he made the right decision to remain at UCLA through the coaching transition. Asked what he would tell himself if he could go back six months, his answer was simple.
“You made the right decision,” Pleasant said. “Just trust the process.”
Now the Bruins are trying to turn that trust into results.
With the season approaching, Iamaleava said the excitement for the opener is growing, but the message inside the program is to avoid looking too far ahead.
“Our job is to stay where our feet is and take it day by day,” Iamaleava said, “and execute the days when we go out there.”