
Tennessee Titans draft Oluwafemi Oladejo: 5 things to know about the edge rusher
The Tennessee Titans traded their original second-round pick (No. 35) to the Seattle Seahawks for two picks (No. 52 and No. 82) in the 2025 NFL draft.
With the first of those two picks, the Titans selected UCLA edge rusher Oluwafemi Oladejo at No. 52.
The Titans have a ton of needs and could have gone in any direction with this pick, but they decided to take an edge to help boost their pass rush.
Three-star college recruit
A former three-star recruit from Cosumnes Oaks High School, he was accomplished on both sides of the ball before settling in as an inside linebacker at Cal. He flashed the athleticism that allowed him to transition to edge after transferring to UCLA.
Culture
He carries his heritage with him all the time, with both of his parents being born in Nigeria. His name Oluwafemi means "God loves me" in their native Yoruba language.
Outstanding Senior Bowl week
After an outstanding season, Oladejo flashed at the Senior Bowl as one of the more consistent and disruptive edge players on hand. This performance was huge in his evaluation and showcased his upside in his rapid development from inside linebacker to edge.
Experienced yet inexperienced
Although he has shown tremendous upside as an edge, he is raw and relatively inexperienced at the position. Though he has played in 27 games and racked up 238 tackles and 6.0 sacks during his college career, split between Cal and UCLA, the majority of them were at inside linebacker. He has only 10 starts on the edge.
Dedicated on and off the field
He transitioned to edge at UCLA and broke out with 13.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2024 en route to being named the Kenny Clark Award as UCLA's top defensive lineman. He also excelled in the classroom, where he earned spots on both the Big Ten Academic Honor Roll and UCLA Athletic Director's Honor Roll.
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Yahoo
9 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Nico Iamaleava says that transfer to UCLA from Tennessee was about being closer to family, not money
Nico Iamaleava sought to downplay the significance of NIL money in his transfer to UCLA at Big Ten media day on Thursday. The former Tennessee QB said that he had always wanted to play closer to his home in California and didn't feel comfortable after 'false reports' had emerged at Tennessee this spring. 'Just false reports that made me not feel comfortable in the position that I was in,' Iamaleava said. 'But in the back of my head I always wanted to come back home. And be closer to my mom, closer to my dad. And you know, just have my family, their support at our games. In our Samoan culture we're always together and I think that's the main thing for me, the driving factor for me to come back home.' In an immediate follow-up about the 'false reports' that Iamaleava referenced, he said they were about an alleged NIL dispute with the school. 'Just false stuff about whether it was a financial thing or not,' Iamaleava said. 'My driving factor to come back home was my family and I hope every Tennessee fan understand that. That it was really one of the hardest decisions that I've had to make. But I had to do what was best for me and my family and ultimately I wanted to come back home and be closer to my family." Iamaleava sat out portions of Tennessee's spring practices amid reports that he was looking to redo his name, image and likeness deal with the school. His father disputed the idea that Iamaleava was looking for more money and the QB entered the transfer portal on April 12. As Iamaleava entered the portal, Tennessee coach Josh Heupel said after his team's spring game that 'there's no one that's bigger than the Power T. And that includes me.' Iamaleava's appearance at media day on Thursday led to his first public comments about his transfer to UCLA. The former five-star recruit chose the Bruins after his younger brother de-committed from Arkansas to go to UCLA. Iamaleava's transfer then led to UCLA QB Joey Aguilar's departure for Knoxville. The former Appalachian State QB transferred to UCLA earlier in the offseason with the goal of being the Bruins' starting QB in 2025. Once Iamaleava arrived, Aguilar left for Tennessee as the Vols were suddenly in need of a starting quarterback. In his lone season as Tennessee's starter, Iamaleava was 213-of-334 passing for 2,616 yards and 19 TDs with just five interceptions. Eleven of those 19 TD passes came in Tennessee's four non-conference games. He had eight TD passes and three interceptions over eight SEC gams and the College Football Playoff. In UT's loss to Ohio State in the first round of the playoff, he was 14-of-31 for 104 yards.

an hour ago
Now at UCLA, Iamaleava tries to move beyond the drama and focus on football
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'It's unfortunate, the situation, and where we're at with Nico.' Before he'd even enrolled at Tennessee, Iamaleava was causing his share of turmoil. It was his NIL deal with the Vols that triggered an NCAA investigation and a lawsuit by the attorneys general of Tennessee and Virginia in January 2024. The NCAA settled that lawsuit, and though there aren't as many questions about who makes the payments to the players (the colleges can do it themselves now), recriminations that flowed when Iamaleava enrolled at Tennessee kept flowing after he made his move to UCLA. Asked about what triggered his move and exactly when it happened, Iamaleava said it came around the time 'false stuff about whether it was a financial thing or not' started coming out that made him "not feel comfortable in the position I was in.' Then, in a revelation that not everyone appears quite ready to accept, he said moving closer to where he grew up, in Long Beach, California, about 30 miles from the UCLA campus, was the biggest piece of the puzzle. 'My driving factor to come back home was my family, and I hope every Tennessee fan understands that,' he said. "It was really one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make.' He will not delve into finances, though most of the reporting has shown that Iamaleava will make about as much, or just barely more, with UCLA than he was making at Tennessee. 'All that stuff is for my business team and my agents to handle,' he said. 'I just focus on football.' Among the other questions consuming college football, and that Iamaleava's saga reflects as well as anyone's, is how a player who makes more money and generates more hype than anyone else in the locker room can possibly fit on a team that is still, at its core, filled with teenagers whose football lives will end in college. UCLA's second-year coach, DeShaun Foster, said he scouted that part when the prospect of Iamaleava coming to Westwood became real. 'He's a team guy and a family guy,' Foster said. 'It just felt good that we were getting the right kind of quarterback.' From a pure talent standpoint, hardly anyone argues that. Iamaleava was considered one of the country's top prospects coming out of high school. He threw for 2,616 yards and 19 TDs last year in leading the Vols to the playoffs. But, as one of the theories about his departure goes, he and his family were less than thrilled about Tennessee's ability to protect him. None other than ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit dove into the mix when he said he'd heard Iamaleava's dad had gone to Heupel in December and said 'like, hey, listen, you've got to get better at offensive line, better at receiver.' Speaking not so much about that specific story, but to the realities of football, Foster said he knows keeping things clean in the pocket for Iamaleava will be key to his success. 'If he stays upright, things are going to go the right way," Foster said. And if they do, there's at least a chance Iamaleava could be a one-and-doner at UCLA. He is widely thought to have NFL talent if he improves his mechanics and accuracy — two areas that will be helped by better protection. During his back-and-forth with reporters, the quarterback brushed aside questions about pro football. He also said he pays no mind to the billion-dollar questions swirling around the college game every day — all revolving around money, freedom to transfer and other issues that have turned UCLA's quarterback into a villian in some places, a hero in others, and a player to watch everyhwere. 'I love college football," he said. "Everything that goes on with my name, that's not going to change my love for the game. Obviously, everyone has to move on. I'm excited about what's next for me. But I'm where my feet (are), and right now, I'm a UCLA football player and I'm excited to go to camp.'


Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
The Sports Report: Lincoln Riley says he does want USC to play Notre Dame every year
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Swaps runs the course in 2:38 1-5. 1956 — Jack Burke Jr. defeats Ted Kroll 3 and 2 in the final round to win the PGA championship. 1976 — In Montreal, Edwin Moses of the United States sets an Olympic record in the 400 hurdles with a time of 47.63. 1982 — Janet Anderson wins the U.S. Women's Open golf title, her first tournament victory. 1999 — 86th Tour de France: Lance Armstrong wins 1st of 7 consecutive Tour de France titles but is later disqualified for drug cheating. 2004 — Copa América Final, Estadio Nacional, Lima: Brazil beats Argentina, 4-2 on penalties; 2-2 after extra time. 2007 — Michael Rasmussen, the leader of the Tour de France, is removed from the race by his Rabobank team after winning the 16th stage. Rasmussen is sent home for violating (the team's) internal rules. The Danish cyclist missed random drug tests May 8 and June 28, saying he was in Mexico. 2010 — Alberto Contador wins the Tour de France for the third time in four years. 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The play goes 8-3-5, a combination of outs not seen since 1884, as with runners on first and second in the 3rd, CF Michael Harris II catches a fly ball hit by Triston Casas of the Red Sox and fires to 1B Matt Olson to retire Adam Duvall, who had misjudged the force with which the ball was hit. Olson then fires to 3B Austin Riley to nab Masataka Yoshida, who had tagged up and was trying to advance while the Braves were busy attending to the other runner. In spite of the triple killing, Boston wins the game handily, 7-1. Compiled by the Associated Press That concludes today's newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you'd like to see, email me at To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.