High School

Top California QB, UCLA commit denied eligibility to play senior season

Madden Iamaleava, a top quarterback prospect in California committed to UCLA, was denied eligibility after attempting to transfer midseason.

Tarek Fattal

Madden Iamaleava, a 2025 UCLA commit, has been deemed ineligible by the CIF Southern Section after attempting to transfer from Warren to Long Beach Poly.
Madden Iamaleava, a 2025 UCLA commit, has been deemed ineligible by the CIF Southern Section after attempting to transfer from Warren to Long Beach Poly. / Tracy McDannald/X

One of the most notable high school quarterbacks in California is likely not to see the field again at the prep level.

UCLA commit Madden Iamaleava, ranked the No. 10 QB in the nation by 247Sports, and the No. 2 signal caller in California for the 2025 class, was denied eligibility by the CIF Southern Section office on October 4 after attempting to transfer from Warren High to Long Beach Poly.

The news of the decision took off publicly on October 7 when SBLive reported it on Twitter/X, first.

Madden is the younger brother of current University of Tennessee standout quarterback, Nico Iamaleava.

STORY: UCLA commits Madden Iamaleava, Jace Brown transfer midseason

The Southern Section website doesn't explain why the decision was made, but shows the following info:

"Denied athletic eligibility in all sports at Poly/Long Beach or any CIF high school until October 1, 2026."

Madden played in Warren's season opener against Hawaii Kamehameha on August 23 (a 31-20 loss) and never played for the Bears again this season. He threw for more than 3,000 yards and 43 touchdowns as a junior.

The transfer status of former Warren teammate Jace Brown, a standout wide receiver also committed to UCLA who transferred to Long Beach Poly with Iamaleava, is currently unknown.

According to CIF rules, student-athletes need to serve a sit-out period after transferring schools without a valid change of residence (moving). Student-athletes only get one sit-out period (SOP) in their four years.

The most common way to be granted eligibility immediately is by moving, or as the CIF coins it: a valid chance of residence (VCR). The other way is via hardship, but those are rarely approved.

Iamaleava was at Warren High since he was a freshman, which means he's still eligible to use an SOP, but it appears his attempt for immediately eligibility by way of valid change of residence wasn't successful.

The decision can be appealed, but that takes time. The high school football season in California has just four weeks remaining in the regular season. The final game of the season is November 1 which will conclude Week 10 before the postseason begins.

Long Beach Poly is currently 2-4 with its only wins coming in Moore League competition against Long Beach Jordan and Lakewood High. The Jackrabbits recently lost to Mission Viejo 49-14 at SoFi Stadium on Friday, October 4.

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Tarek Fattal, SBLive Sports
TAREK FATTAL

Tarek Fattal has been covering high school sports since 2015 in Southern California and primarily in Los Angeles, covering notable athletes such as Bronny James, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Alyssa Thompson. He was with the LA Daily News for eight years, which included being the beat reporter for the UCLA men's basketball team. Tarek can be seen on TV regularly on CBS/KCAL as a sports analyst with Jim Hill.

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