I have heard that Tennessee is now being projected as the frontrunner for Nico Lamaleava by at least 1 and possibly multiple recruiting sources after his visit this past weekend. I have also heard the reports of a 2023 player inking a 8 million $ NIL deal and the speculation that it may be Nico. Can anyone provide context or factual information to help me understand how this developed so rapidly and why he is being projected to UT so strongly by some? I don't mind hearing opinions, but would appreciate if anyone who posts an opinion can provide the information that helped them develop said opinion. The situation seems very strange to me, not saying Nico committing to UT would be "unbelievable unless he got paid," be any means, but I agree with some who find it odd that UT is supposedly the frontrunner for him after 1 visit and the news of a huge NIL deal put together for a mystery 2023 recruit. I have a hard time believing that an 8 million $ NIL deal being inked before a recruit has even signed an LOI to a school will not end in a scandal or cause serious scrutiny that leads to some sort of regulations for NIL. I also wonder how fellow recruits will feel in comparison when they aren't being offered any money to come to the same school whose boosters paid $8 million for whoever this mystery player is.
