1. We all know by now. Nico is gone.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve already heard this news. Nico & his agent (his father) tried to leverage Tennessee for more NIL funds prior to the end of Spring Practice. He essentially asked for double his current rate, didn’t show up for practice without letting coaches now as a negotiating tactic, and was promptly kicked off the team.
It has all come full circle. Tennessee was the first to embrace NIL when they offered Nico a reported $8M NIL package to come to Tennessee back in 2022. Since then, NIL contracts have gotten more outrageous by the month. The Vols are now the first to finally put their foot down & let a player walk by not caving to their demands.
Nico is reportedly headed to UCLA where he will most likely make less money, and the Vols are on the search for a QB in the portal to come compete with Jake Merklinger (RS) Freshman and George MacIntyre (True Freshman).
2. Rick Barnes might have his next 5 star
To say that the men’s hoops team lost a lot this offseason from their Elite 8 Team would be an understatement. With the departure of Zakai Ziegler, Chaz Lanier, Igor Milicic Jr, Darlinstone Dubar, Jordan Gainey, and Jahmai Mashack, the Vols were left with only four scholarship players.
Coach Barnes has had a hot start to the portal window with the addition of point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie (Maryland) and power forward Jaylen Carey (Vanderbilt). The Vols are still missing some strong wing players, and UT just received a prediction from 24/7 writer Travis Branham to potentially land 5-Star forward, Nate Ament.
Ament is ranked as the 4th best player in the country. We will see if Coach Barnes can close this one out.
3. Possible QB Addition to Tennessee?
With the departure of Nico, Josh Heupel admitted he would be in the portal looking for a QB. Will it be a guaranteed starter or someone who brings playing experience but will compete with Merk & Gmac for the starting position? Nobody knows and this largely depends on who becomes available.
One time that has been floating around from the national media is Notre Dame RS Junior, Steve Angeli.
Angeli has spent three seasons at Notre Dame while redshirting his freshman year in 2022. He is listed at 6’3 205 pounds and was a former four star recruit (ESPN). While never having started a full season at Notre Dame, he has come in during some big moments & performed well.
Career stats: 58 of 80 passing (72.5%) for 772 yards, 10 touchdowns, and just one interception across three seasons. Had a standout performance in the 2023 Sun Bowl (15/19, 232 yards, 3 TDs in a 40-8 rout of Oregon State).
In the 2025 Orange Bowl, he replaced an injured Riley Leonard and went 6/7 for 44 yards to set up a critical field goal against Penn State to advance to the CFB Final.
Thanks for reading along & hope this filled you in at least (slightly) on some of the topics surrounding the Vols.