"That’s not healthy for our sport": Auburn HC Hugh Freeze expresses concern following Nico Iamaleava drama

In an unexpected turn of events, Nico Iamaleava is no longer a part of the Tennessee football program. The quarterback was said to have attempted to renegotiate his NIL contract with the program, but the Volunteers weren'topen to that, ending his tenure.

There's been a lot of reactions to the fiasco across the college football landscape. Hugh Freeze is the latest to offer his reaction to another episode of NIL drama. On The Paul Finebaum Show, the Auburn coach expressed his concern about the current position of the landscape in terms of athlete compensation.

“I honestly did not hear about that until Saturday after our spring game because I don’t follow stuff like I used to,” Freeze said. “But, Paul, our game needs some change, for sure, as you know.

“I don’t know the specifics of that situation, and certainly wouldn’t comment on another school’s deals, but until we get some structure around us where there is some accountability to the contracts that are signed with collectives and schools, I think we’re going to be up for some of this that’s not healthy for our sport, truthfully.”

Nico Iamaleava was said to be earning $2.4 million annually in his NIL contract worth $8 million at Tennessee. The quarterback had reportedly demanded a review to the region of $4 million, but the Volunteers didn't see the value in that and opted against it.

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Hugh Freezes believes NIL needs a framework after Nico Iamaleava drama

The current NIL landscape is a delicate one with no regulation or framework on how it operates, which brings about a lot of fiascos like that of Nico Iamaleava. Hugh Freeze expressed hope that it will lead to changes in how agreements between schools and players are managed.

“Hopefully, that’s coming, where there’s some agreement in principle,” Freeze said. “If there’s a contract signed, and unless the school allows you out of it for some reason — if you’re going to another place, then there’s some type of buyout principle as we do as coaches.

“Hopefully, that will be part of the new world that we have that allows us to kind of know what our roster will look like from semester to semester.”

There's a significant push among decision-makers within the landscape to ensure that NIL becomes regulated in the near future, putting a stop to what Tennessee faced with Nico Iamaleava. A large contingent of leaders from the Power Four conferences were at Capitol Hill last week to lobby for regulation at the federal level.