Wayne Cook UCLA Spring Practice Update

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]Heat up here.

[00:00:31]Man, what is up? And welcome to a Sunday night edition of the Bruin Bible. I mean, you guys always asked for him. We had to get him back. Mr. Wayne Cook, the former quarterback for UCLA Bruins and current UCLA analyst. He's just getting off the golf course today. We're kind of talking some shop about golfing around the area. Wayne, I know you ended on a bad note, but you hit any good shots today worth mentioning here on the pot.

[00:00:57]>> Well, listen, I I shot a 79. I'm not I'm not proud of that. I I'm I double bogeied 18 and it was just stupid. I had a I had a pitching wedge in, left it short, the shortsided it, hit it too long on the chip shot, like three putted coming in. It was just, it was a horrible way to end the day, but it was very hit or miss. I played some very, very good holes. It was a very tough course. Anybody that's ever played Cross Creek down in uh Tmacula, it's hard, but played well. I'm ready to go. And I I started thinking about probably because I was thinking about coming on the Brew Bible. That's probably why I finished the week. I started thinking about college football.

[00:01:34]>> Man, we're close, Wayne. And we got the spring game next Saturday, which is going to be very, very exciting. You're going to be there, I assume, right?

[00:01:43]>> Yes. Yes. I I I will be there. And And listen, um I'm excited as well. And I I really don't know yet what to expect, but what I saw on Saturday and a and a lot of the team stuff when I was out of practice was I mean, they're hitting. I mean, they're they're they're trying their best not to do dumb stuff and go to the ground when they shouldn't. Uh, but there's a physicality of these practices. There's those those one-on-one competitions that hopefully and and and again, I don't have the structure in front of me. I don't know exactly how it's going to be, but there are these moments during practice where the whole team circles up and they're doing some sort of a drill. You know, it's one-on-one with an offensive lineman and a defensive lineman. And there's a there's a a winner and a loser every time. There's there's receivers blocking, you know, working on their blocking. Then there's a one-on-one.

[00:02:38]There's there's a running back and a linebacker going up against each other one-on-one. There's just so much.

[00:02:45]There's goal line one-on-one. There's so many opportunities to compete. And I and I kind of hope because I think with a little bit of a view in the stadium, you'll have a better opportunity to see what's going on because when everybody circles up, if you're on the same level, you don't you have to walk up and make sure you get a good view. But it's a blast to watch because you're watching some of the best players on the team compete. And then what's been fun and and I know we're gonna get to this in a little bit. Will I've enjoyed watching some of the players and I'm like, "Huh, I I this guy is is is is working his butt off and it's not necessarily someone we're talking about." I I always love those stories because UCLA has a history of football players that maybe are unexpected uh to become, you know, really, really good players. And I always try to like spot those guys early. You know, I'm not going to say that I saw Kate Madonna when he was a receiver and I knew he was going to be a very good football player.

[00:03:44]Like, but I'll go back to Jayon Brown.

[00:03:46]I'll go back to to >> Pat.

[00:03:50]Heck yes. I I love spotting these guys when they're young because it's just so fun. So, all of that stuff's fun because those competition things bring out the the best in people. And I I I like seeing the the young players or players that have been there for a while getting a chance to to shine because I think this coaching staff is is really giving everybody a chance to compete. I mean, there's so many people getting reps the way they were in practice and so you're seeing a lot of different guys uh get action. I want to start off with, you know, coach Chznney and, you know, everything he's done has been just impressive on nature and the Friday Night Lights practice. Like, I don't know how to call it other than a massive success. when you have 175 Southern California coaches rolling into the Wasserman Center to get acquainted with the UCLA staff make contacts with these people in the Southern California area, you know, and not to name any names. You know, one of the bigger complaints was some of the older coaches we've had around was the lack of effort they put into the recruiting pipeline, the lack of effort, you know, they got out there and try to connect with the community of Los Angeles. Because listen, if you can't recruit at UCLA, I don't think you can recruit anywhere. If I'm going to be honest with you, it is as fertile of a recruiting ground here in Southern California as anywhere you're going to find the country. Talk to me a little bit about Chznney and just being able to, you know, connect with all of these different voices and players and athletes like he's doing because the effort is not going unnoticed among UCLA fans. Well, I I I see one of our listeners is talking about how many fourstar commits we have already and and it's been incredible. It to me, um, he first of all, he's everywhere. When I'm at practice, I like to hover because I want to meet as many players as I can. I want to talk to every coach I haven't met yet. I want to I want to talk to the boosters. I want to talk to coaches. I I talk to, you know, recruits, parents.

[00:05:47]Like, it's so much fun to walk around for the two and a half to three hours I'm there and talk to everybody. And when I look up, there's coach Chzi. He's he's And again, I know that you may think, well, yeah, he's supposed to do that.

[00:06:00]A coach's life is it's it never ends.

[00:06:05]Like, it never ends. And he he from each person he talks to. And it's not all the same type of people. It's it's constantly high energy. He knows who everybody is. He knows who he's talking to. He's done his homework. And I I think we can underestimate how valuable that is. Like when he talks to people, like he knows who you are. And if he doesn't know you are, he's going to shake your hand. He's going to look in your straight in the eye and he's going to remember who you are the next time he sees you. And it's it's absolutely incredible. And we saw early on he took the entire staff out to some of our best, you know, football programs in in California. He's been at these high schools. He's talking to these coaches.

[00:06:47]He's having the coaches clinic on Friday. He's doing all this stuff that for years we've wanted more of. Not to mention, he's he's allowing the media more access. I know it's never enough, you guys. I I know it is. I I know that the media wants more and more more. But there is there has to be some secrecy in college football. There has to be because coaches don't want everybody knowing everything they're doing. So, they have to limit stuff some. I mean, that's what all good coaches do it. that like you know UCLA is the only place that does that but he's given more access. He's doing all the stuff that we've asked him to do. Like every time I turn on my phone and I know it's a part of my algorithm.

[00:07:29]I'm seeing UCLA people. I'm seeing assistant coaches. I'm seeing players.

[00:07:34]I'm like it's it's so fun. And we've had that before. I know that. But it's just coach Chzn seems to get it and he's really working that hard. You're seeing the results in recruiting already. you saw what he you know all the players over the last week or two they talked about like why why UCLA like why did you come here and they all believe in what coach Chzn is selling and then here's I'll throw this out there too >> I have talked to so every time I talk to someone it literally we have conversations like I can't believe how much nonsense Nico got when he left Tennessee >> oh my god >> I can't I They people are like blown away with how wrong the narrative was.

[00:08:21]>> They're like, "He's always he's great in the film room. He's great on the field.

[00:08:27]He's the first guy to celebrate." Madden and Nico at at moment during practice both came up to me and was like, "Wade, good to see you here." like the players are so there's so much positive energy and if you don't have a quarterback room I I had a great conversation with with Tai who one of our new quarterbacks who I didn't even know went to Agora >> yeah who went to Agora which is right by where I grew up we used to play Agora every year we had a great conversation like the young men are are so fun to be around but there's just and but it starts at the top coach Chzn is setting the tone he's got He's just tireless, you guys. I I It's It's really really cool. It's what we've needed. And And again, I know we haven't played a game yet. And I actually love that coach said that, too. I don't know what interview it was the other day, but he said, "Yeah, we haven't played a game yet." I go, he's like, "I'm glad the alumni are happy with me. I'm glad that everybody's like feeling the positive vibe and all that stuff." But he knows it. They haven't played a game yet. And and it may not all be perfect. And we're going to get to that in a second. There's probably some positions that still are going to need to figure it out, especially when you play in the best conference in the country.

[00:09:40]>> Yeah.

[00:09:40]>> Right. Especially when you play in the best conference in the country. So, so like there's so much going on, but just one more time, his energy, his dedication, his how much he cares is all off the charts.

[00:09:52]>> Yeah. And it's been just so impressive to watch from afar and up close, you know, seeing what he's able to do with making these relationships. I mean, Wayne, we're getting guys from, you know, Modern Day and Bosow. Like, the big thing with Modern Day was that was a pipeline of the USC schools traditionally. Like, if you can strengthen those relationships and get, you know, for my money, maybe the two best, you know, high school football factories, not only in Southern California, but maybe the country. Yeah.

[00:10:19]>> And that's just a recipe for success long term. You know, >> just just quick before we move on, uh I know that whenever you're out there and you run into people that played during certain eras, I mean, Donnie, you had a role in where he was recruiting at a very very high level. Like we were we were top 10 quite often and if not that, we were top 15. And we had classes where I mean if you go back to the 80s and how well they did, you go back and you look at the the the Troy Aman teams and then you look at my teams through through Kate's teams which pretty much took up the whole 90s. We recruit high level, but then you throw in some some some uh some Jim Bora years and you throw in we we had some recruiting classes. I don't think it's been sustained the way it should and and then it's slipped a little bit lately, but I I just will always argue UCLA will always have really good players. It's what I'm liking about what I'm seeing and and not necessarily at every position yet because remember the co the coaching staff did everything they could. There is enough competition at defensive back for example. I mean, I haven't practiced and Scooter and and and and Rodri are not are not actually doing and other people are like looking really really good, >> but we know that Scooter and Rodri are really really good on on one of the best units that we had last year. So, there's so many players that are going to have to compete. We've already talked about the running backs. Like a player that probably we haven't mentioned that much in the past. when I go out to practice and I watch Troy uh Liieber out there uh and again Troy if I said your name wrong I've met you a couple times now and I appreciate it it's either Ling or Lee Liieber I'm not sure but I'll figure out how to pronounce it but he's an athlete and he's a hard runner so like you might see him getting some action in short short yardage type stuff but but in front of him you've got you know you got Wayne Knight and you got Javian Thomas and you got Anthony Woods and then Troy and then Cox and And there's so many different running backs leads out there like and you're seeing all these guys get a ton of reps and you're you you see things about them that you're impressed with. So when I see groups like that, when I see the defensive backs, I see a bunch and and really the group I was a little worried about and and I know you're going to want to talk about this in a second. I'm starting to feel better about the receiver position.

[00:12:48]>> Oh yeah. I think I I think some things are becoming clear >> and and I'm really like but I love that even though I may see some, you know, front runners. I don't think the guys that aren't in that maybe first or second unit are just going to sit back and say, "Hey, we're we're just we're doomed." I think they're going to keep fighting. And and that's what I love. I just I I love that there's competition at these positions because that's what makes football teams good. Yeah, it's it's the competition and you know that's a question I'm going to file away because that was actually one of the questions I had on schedule to ask you.

[00:13:25]But first and foremost, you were at the practice on Saturday once again. Talk to me about the sights and sounds, who you saw that impressed you that stood out to you and maybe some of the storylines as we're getting closer and closer to the spring game action here. I've been dying for an opportunity to meet uh to meet Landon Ellis and and and Brian Row Jr.

[00:13:48]and I I really I I've been I've been trying, you know, sometimes I have to practice these guys are so tireless that as soon as practice is over, they're out on the jing machine or they're working on routes or they're doing extra work and I don't really want to bug their workouts because that's not my job. My job isn't to be walking around and get in people's way. So I I try to wait for the right opportunities. I did end up having an opportunity to say hi to Landon and I, you know, I I kind of did one of those like it's it's like you're on a first date and and you don't always say the right thing. Hey, hey, Landon.

[00:14:18]You know, I love the way you play, man.

[00:14:20]And I and he kind of looked at me and I'm like, I I just I like the way you move in space because he's just got this natural ability. He's very smooth there.

[00:14:30]There's nothing um I'm going to use a horrible term here, but he's not herkyjerky at all. He's just everything he does is very very smooth. And I just I love the way he plays. So I I I worded that a little awkwardly, but but I think he's he forgave me and so we said hi and got to know each other. And then uh right after that I went up to Brian Ro Jr. and I I said hi to him. And man, what a cool personality that young man has. Um I just and and so is Landon.

[00:14:58]Landon's just more like I don't know how to explain it, but when I played with with with Kevin Jordan and JJ Stokes, they were the most mildmannered receivers that you could imagine. Then I had, you know, Shan Chappelle who was kind of like like Vanilla Ice, like he was like this this bigger than life personality.

[00:15:16]And I and I I loved them all for different reasons, but but Brian has that he had a really really cool personality. First impression was fantastic. He looks like he's having fun playing football, but the more I watch him, you guys, he had another fantastic practice. He's just starting to look like like like like right now I I would argue that those two that I'm talking about are are X and Z like if the season would start tomorrow. Um and and I would be really happy with that. And but then and again I'm gonna I'm gonna go Newbury Park. My guy Shane Rosenthal had a really good practice on Saturday.

[00:15:55]>> He had like a 30 yard catch or something >> and it was a catch that that most people don't make. I I was lucky enough to watch Shane in high school and he's a guy that's not gonna impress you with necessarily his build, >> but he fits into that slot receiver mold that it looks like he's he's trying to climb his way up into where Mikey and um uh Mikey and and Sage Morgan are, but I think he's right there. And when you watch him play, he caught several practice caught catches in practice, but the touchdown that he caught, it looked like it was overthrown and he just found that other gear and he went out caught it with his fingertips. And anybody that watched him played in high school will remember he was in he's the number one receiver in the history of California football.

[00:16:38]>> Like Yeah. And >> not an accident, you know.

[00:16:40]>> And it's not an accident. And the dude was a stunt at defensive back, too, which which tells me that he was just a ball player. like he's just he knows how to go get the ball. So like I like seeing guys like that fit into the mix and getting a lot of reps with some of the you know especially with the twos.

[00:16:58]But even some he's out there when Nico's out there too. And so like I like that because you've got a younger player who most likely red shirted. I didn't even ask him. I think he did last year who's got all this time to play that's that's really fighting like crazy to earn reps and to get in there and and when he gets his chance he's doing a good job.

[00:17:19]>> Yeah. No, those two guys have been highlighting the practice reports thus far and making big plays all over. I've got a different type of question. You know, we love people that want to compete and make plays, but Wayne, we kind of, you know, at certain positions, it feels like we have an embarrassment of riches when you're talking about the running back room and all those players we've mentioned. Like Troy Liieber is making plays. I don't even know if he's a top four running back in the rotation right now, >> right? You know what I mean? That's just that's how deep we are. you look at the defensive back room, you know, Dante Love it making plays and some of these newcomers and we don't even have Pleasant or Scooter Jackson out on the practice field as it stands right now.

[00:17:59]Um, you know, competition is one thing, but when you have that many dudes in a room, Yeah. I was wondering if you can relate to that as a player back in your playing days and what is the psychology these guys need to kind of get out of, you know, the the the hurt, if you will, because it is a crowded room with a lot of talented guys on both those sides. I didn't even bring up Eugene Brooks isn't even running with the ones right now on the offensive line, but I know it's early, so we'll see about that.

[00:18:28]Well, he he looks very much in the mix.

[00:18:31]I'll say that. Eugene's Eugene will be fine. He's he's he's very And I I think and I I'll say this without saying anything. Um there's been it's been a good rotation. coach co coach is doing a great job with the offensive line and they're trying to find the best group of guys that and and whether that means there's there's five guys that absolutely win the job and those are the five guys we're going to go with and you hope they stay healthy and they become a unit or there's six, seven, eight guys that are going to be a part of it where they're going to where they're going to get a play. I I I I do believe that certain players will find a way to separate themselves if they belong on the field, but but it's good to have that problem when you have two or three other guys that are right there that are absolutely right there because because I'm telling you, it's healthy.

[00:19:22]>> Um, as far as like when I was a player, I mean, I was recruited in the same class as Tommy Maddox and and Bird Emanuel and Tommy Maddox was as big of a recruit as you can get. Um, Bert Emanuel was one of the best athletes I've ever been around. He, matter of fact, he played a long time in the NFL as a receiver and he was a quarterback in high school because he transferred. I again, Bert, I love you and I haven't seen you in a million years, but I still love you. I remember you as a player and I sometimes my jaw would drop at how good of an athlete you were. But he left, you know, I was going to win the job after Tommy left and Bert went and transferred to Rice. Um, and he he did, trust me, he he made he made a ton of money and had a great career, but there was three big-time quarterbacks, me being probably the least of the big- time quarterbacks were that that were in that one class.

[00:20:13]You got to compete. You have to I mean, I I I can honestly say this and I don't care what anybody says. If if you put me even when I got cut in the NFL, I was sitting there in the locker room and I'm going, I could I'm better than these guys. Like I believe that I play golf today and I'm like I I'm not going to lose. Like I'm I'm a competitor.

[00:20:32]>> So like I I want all these guys to be like that. I I want that. You have to have that belief. Like I I don't like ultra cocky quarterbacks that'll walk around with a stick up their butt and act like they're better than everybody else. And I know a lot of you out there don't understand what I'm talking about, but there are more than one type of quarterback. They're the ones that are like all about themselves. They're not about their teammates. They're the me me guys. and and a lot of times they come across as a leader because the way they talk to people or yell at people and it's totally fake. It's all about them.

[00:21:03]Then there's people that are like absolute just you know that you're in a fight with them. That's the quarterback I want to go into battle with. And sometimes talent may look good and you got another guy that doesn't look as good, but they're going to they're going to win you football games. They're going to do anything and everything it takes to win a football game. And and again, you obviously want talent, but you have to have that other other side, too. And and players find out real quick if you're a leader or not. Like you, you know, the locker room, you you if you have a close quarterback battle, for example.

[00:21:36]>> Yeah.

[00:21:37]>> The locker room will tell you who the starter is >> because they all know the players know who the starter is.

[00:21:43]>> And so, like, that's what I always wanted. I wanted to be I I know the coaches chose me, but like I wanted the players to choose me, too. And I think that matters. And I think the same thing applies for most of these other positions. People know who the best players are at the positions. They know who deserves to win the job. And so, um, that to me is I I think that's just so important when you have this competition that they can you have really good athletes fighting like crazy. It's hard.

[00:22:08]It's frustrating. Shoot. I mean, after I blew my knee out after my very first start, Coach Donnie looked me straight in the eye. He goes, "Wayne, you've blown your knee out in two straight games you played it. you're going to have to come back and earn the job again because we don't know if you can stay healthy. And so I was always fighting.

[00:22:27]Like I knew I was the best quarterback, but I still had to prove to everybody else in the team that I could stay healthy. So it was hard. It's hard. But you know what? I wouldn't change any of it because that's what makes it more rewarding because you have to fight so hard for it.

[00:22:41]>> Yeah. you know, the tougher roads often read, you know, give you the the sweetest fruits of victory, you know what I mean? And yours is a prime example of that, fighting for that job.

[00:22:52]And, you know, a lot of these kids who are going to earn their starting spots are going to be in the same scenario we're talking about right here.

[00:22:58]>> Hey, Will, I I'm going to do something right now. And again, everybody, I'm sorry for doing this because this is going to be about about me. I just said, don't the quarterbacks are team players.

[00:23:06]I'm gonna brag a little bit. the Kurt Warner who I I I I really I loved him as a quarterback and he posts stuff about quarterbacks a lot and he makes people angry and stuff like that, but I I really think he's really smart when he talks about the quarterback position.

[00:23:20]And he made a comment the other day. He goes he goes, "I really like it when a when I have a a a quarterback that I'm evaluating that has to miss a game or two." And he said, "The reason why is that in a 10, 11, 12 game season, if they miss one or two games, what did the team look like when he was out?"

[00:23:39]>> Yeah.

[00:23:40]>> Like, "How did they perform?" And I was like, "That is such a great point." And and again, I I this is going to be obvious, but go back and look at the 1993 season and and look at what we were scoring all year. And we we yes, we lost our first two games, but we we I was a quarterback in eight straight wins. I missed the Arizona State game. We had games where we scored over 60, over 50, over 34. We scored three against Arizona State.

[00:24:08]>> Yeah.

[00:24:09]>> Three. Three. It was It was way I mean, we scored more than that against Nebraska that played for a national championship. We scored three and we were averaging 30 something. So, like I look back this, well, look at all the people around you. I'm like, well, they were still playing. I wasn't. So, quarterback does matter. So that's when I kind of get when I like I get a little like it does matter. Like good players impact the game. Like when you're missing your superstar safety safety, you notice it. When you have a great linebacker that's not in the game, you notice it. When your lock down corner is out, you notice it. Like sometimes within within a game, how many times have we seen it in the NFL when a backup corner comes in and the other quarterback immediately goes after that guy and you notice a big gap? Well, if you don't notice a big gap, then that guy's gonna make some money because he just proved that he can play and he and he's a really good player. So, anyway, I'm just I I just thought I'd throw that in because we're I just I think it it matters because we want to have really good players that matter to their team like like we we want them out there on that field.

[00:25:16]>> Yeah, man. And it looks like we're well on our way to, you know, establishing some of that from the spring practice reports and, you know, like your Brian Rose if you will, your Nico's coming back, Sahir West on the defensive side of the ball. We got a lot of those dudes out there, which we're really, really pumped about. Segue here, Wayne. Um, one of the cooler things that Bob Chzn has done from the outside perspective is he's brought his dad back in the building to kind of help coach out the team. and his dad was a longtime ball coach and you know I know your pops was too Wayne you got his you know jersey on the back wall right now.

[00:25:53]>> What is it like growing up as a coach's kid and you know the the toughness and you know different areas of life they enhance for a kid like yourself because you know it's I just think it's such a cool story. Everyone wants to work with their dad at some point. And to have him out there at his age, you know, aiding, you know, a Bob Chzni, I think it's such a beautiful thing for sports fans to watch like, you know, you and me.

[00:26:19]>> It's awesome. And and again, I I didn't get a chance to to meet Mr. Chzn. He was too busy getting the players pumped up.

[00:26:26]I mean, he's walking around getting them hyped, throwing out great coach sayings.

[00:26:31]I just love it. I love the fact that coach Chznney allows coach Chzn senior to be out there and do that because one of the things I've noticed is that the the staff that coach Chesn has put together it's it's yeah there's some youth there's tons of energy but there's there's age too I I feel like coach Chzn gets that like there's some wisdom that come from the older generations like sometimes I listen to people in their 30s talk about college football and for people in their 50s it's like I have a different perspective because I played in a different era like you know what I mean it's like it's it it's just it's different sometimes and and it's it's good to have that because there's some good and bad probably with all of it and to have that experience to have not only family but to have that experience and someone that you admire so much like I know for me that my dad's always been one of my heroes like I would never like I I people that want to know like well like I've always felt like I just kind of understand football. I don't always know all the terminology because it changes and it's not always the same as it was when I played, but I understand the game. I can see the game. Like I I see the field really well. But I was watching film with my dad and some of the great coaches that he coached with in high school. When I was a little kid, I would sneak in the room and and and you know, I'm sure the coaches weren't trying to cuss in front of a little kid, but man, I was just like against the wall, listen to the coaches talk, and I was sneaking popcorn because they were eating popcorn. And I just I grew up watching game film. I mean, we were watching film on the old reels where they actually had where you put the reel on and had to watch the film that way. I have great memories of that. And then I started going to practice and being around locker rooms when I was when I was little. I mean, I grew up on a football field because that's where my dad was and I would be like, "Dad, can I come to practice? Can I come to practice?" I went to every high school football game that my dad coached up until I played. And I was always off to the side going up to the older kids like, "Hey, let's see who can throw the ball for." I still remember going to two two three years older than me and I'd be like, "I'm going to kick your butt right now because you have no chance of beating me." And I got probably beat up more than I should have or pushed around by the older kids, but I I I wouldn't change that for anything. Those memories all come from my dad being a head football coach for a couple of decades.

[00:28:58]And I I wouldn't change it. My dad retired basically when I started playing when I started playing in college because he wanted to be able to watch me and travel around. But it it it was incredible. And I could tell when you talk to coach Chzn and you listen to him talk about his dad, it matters a ton to him to have that. And it sounds like pretty much his whole family's been coaches forever. So that's awesome.

[00:29:19]>> Yeah. I mean, one of the cooler parts of the introductory press conference was him and Garm's interaction where it's like, you know, the uncle's the receivers's coach and the neighbor across the streets breaking down film.

[00:29:30]It was a collective unit. Like, you know, it feels like it took a village to raise Bob Chznney to be where he's at right now. And it's so cool to see him, you know, kind of reach a new level of coaching for that family and to do it at UCLA is awesome. We got some uh questions in the chat. Uh this guy is from our guy Taj. Uh which new player or defensive player will have the biggest impact on the season in your opinion?

[00:29:57]>> It's a great question and and I'll I'll start this. I talked to um and I'm gonna say his name right because because I asked him how to say his first name and his last name is West.

[00:30:07]>> So it's it's Sire, not it's Sier. And I and again I I I might have to be corrected again, >> but I think that was right. So Sier West and he he's just he's got this energy, but he's kind of nasty. Will I feel like I feel like I feel like he's he wants to kind of beat you up on the football field. He wants to win really bad. And then he's got the biggest smile and he's the nicest guy when you talk to him after practice. And so that's kind of guy I want on my defense. So, I think he's going to have a huge huge impact.

[00:30:42]I've already talked about Taylor Johnson. I I just love what he did at at uh at Utah. I think he has a chance to have a huge impact. Like I love like Cole Martin's in the mix a ton out there. He's got an unbelievable energy.

[00:30:59]Um we already talked about Scooter and Rodri. I think those guys could be really really good. I think Dante's gonna be really good. But the linebacking core just makes me like smile. Uh again, I when I see Scott Taylor, who I talked to after practice and what a great guy, >> Sammy again, >> oh, Mosgo, he he is. And And then Jaylen Woods, I'm just saying Jaylen Woods is so athletic and so good. He had a pick six in practice that was just like, yes. And those three are are together a lot. And when you see those three athletes that are big and strong and can come up and hit you, all it makes me think about is, and I've mentioned this with you before, day tackle.

[00:31:51]We got to find a way to be because that is a question I have. We have to find a way to be solid at tackle. If we could be solid at DTackle and we can have guys that occupy blocks, you don't want to have linemen go into one of our DTackles and get to come off of them and go up to the next level. You want to make them double team you because then it's going to free up it's going to free up those linebackers to make plays. And so if we can do that, I feel like the secondary, like I said, there's more there there's so many good players in the secondary.

[00:32:29]They're going to be fighting for minutes. So, I'm feeling solid there.

[00:32:32]Linebacker, feeling solid there. And I even think we could go deeper than the three I mentioned, right? There's other good linebackers.

[00:32:39]It And I talked about Sire West. Uh I I think I want to see what's what's up front in the middle. I think that's going to be a big thing for me.

[00:32:50]But if they can show up and I don't care if it's a bunch of rotating, I don't care. I don't care if there's four or six, whatever. If we can get solid DTackle play, I think we're we're we're we're we're good everywhere else. I really do.

[00:33:04]>> Yeah. I feel almost confident that I think the defense is going to be better than the offense this year. And I think we're our offense has a chance to be pretty dang good. You know, D Park wanted to say, "Has the offense been struggling as bad as the media is saying?" I'm not going to phrase it that way. They're learning a new offense, a lot of new bodies there. But what have you seen from the offense that you know has been an improvement over the past few weeks since you initially started watching their practices?

[00:33:30]>> So, anytime I'm going to do this, anytime you put in a new offense, you're going to be behind the defense. And again, sorry defensive guys, but it's a lot easier to learn your position than it is ours. It's just there's so there's so much more to offense. Defense, yes, I get it. It can be complicated. It can be whatever, but it's it's it's not it's not offense. Offense is a lot.

[00:33:51]>> There's there's a lot more to it. And I'm not saying again, I'm not defense has its nuances and it's difficult.

[00:33:57]Don't get me wrong.

[00:33:58]>> It's very hard to play, by the way. You want to I I go quarterback and then I go straight to corner.

[00:34:04]>> I think corner is the second hard hardest position on the football field behind quarterback. I I just think it's you're on an island a lot and it's it's just such a hard position. So, ton of respect for defensive guys, but it is hard. Um, also when you have a team that wants to run the football, um, it's it's hard to tell when you're th and you're not going to the ground like the success of run plays because because there is run after contact, but when guys aren't taking you to the ground, it's like, is that a real 20 yard gain or was that really two yards? You know, there there's there's some stuff going on. And then I'll throw into the mix that if you're if you're a quarterback and you're and you're learning a new system again and all these quarterbacks are doing this and receivers that are new to the system because there's always adjustments that you have to make within the play. You have to make it split second and the timing is not always what it should be. But like for example, if you get a corner blitz in practice and the quarterback gets to it late and because the corner doesn't hit the quarterback, they throw a pass and it's complete and looks like a touchdown.

[00:35:09]It was really a sack. You you were late.

[00:35:12]And there's little things that you learn like a corner is never going to blitz or at least usually not unless someone behind the corner is sliding over to where they can cover the receiver. But if you get rid of the ball quick enough, like it a hot route, whatever you side adjust, whatever you want to call it, it it's it's an easy pass and catch.

[00:35:31]Problem is is that corner blitzes don't happen that often, so you're not always looking for them. So, it could be tricky. But what if you're a quarterback that's learning a new system?

[00:35:41]>> Yeah.

[00:35:42]>> Now, you're probably really not going to see that because you're not so comfortable with what's going on. He's looking pre- snap, read, these are all my routes. And from what I understand, I mean, the players on offense are really starting to to learn this, but learning it and having it be like second nature where you're, you know, it's just everything's fast and and you get it and it's I don't know if they're quite there yet. There has been inconsistencies in and it that that in a real game lead to punts.

[00:36:15]There's been that that's you know you miss a passing queue you should hit. You try to throw downfield into coverage but you have a guy in the flat that's wide open. Like you know I had a conversation with one of the quarterbacks after practice and again I don't want to coach but I you know I I always tell people like if you have the best feet and you throw the ball on time you're you're going to be better than most of the quarterbacks that are out there right now. So so many people don't have good feet. It's it's the seven on seven football problem. They they they don't have good feet. They don't step into their throws. They don't know how to shuffle and step into their throws.

[00:36:49]Everybody's doing the sidearm stuff and all the stuff that looks cute, but they're not doing fundamentally sound football, which is why we have so many quarterbacks that are fizzling out as they get older. Um, but but if you have good feet and you can complete the layups, take the easy passes, complete the passes that the defense is giving you, you put so much stress on the defense, especially when you have a team that can run the football the way we should be able to run the football.

[00:37:14]>> Oh, yeah. And if you have a quarterback that can run the way that our quarterback can run, if you get really good at getting the ball out on time, being accurate, and and making all your layups, take all the easy ones, the ones that you should hit, then yeah, you're going to miss some downfield. You're going to miss some of the intermediate.

[00:37:35]That's why the percentages get worse the further downfield you get. Um, but I saw I mean talking about Brian Row, I I I mean Nico threw a beautiful beautiful touchdown to Brian who had three steps. Now it should have been completed, but it was perfectly in stride, great route. It it a huge energy moment in practice, but it has to be I mean that's got to be consistent. So, I I just think that's been the biggest issue has been the inconsistency with with the way the offense is running.

[00:38:08]Other than that, I think I I noticed and I noticed this stuff because I'm I'm I'm stupid with football. They all look more comfortable to me. That's to me to me that's a huge step forward because again I've been going on Saturdays the last three weeks so I'm missing the in between.

[00:38:25]>> But each week I'm seeing a more comfortable team and and that makes me happy because now imagine you have all summer and then you come into fall and we have fall practice. I just think they're going to keep getting more comfortable and then this offense is going to really kind of find its rhythm >> completely. And we got to factor in guys, we've got seven new receivers, a bunch of new offensive linemen. It takes a while to build chemistry there. And like you said, the defensive side of the ball, I'm not saying it's not complicated because it is complicated to have a great defense at the college football level. You know, whether you're incorporating stunts and blitzes and, you know, different coverages and schemes like that. But a lot of the times it boils down to C ball, hit ball, beat offensive lineman, get to the back field or just deflect the ball or pick it off as a corner. For offense, you have to know 300 plus plays in the system. Make sure everybody's in the right place at the right time. It's a lot easier if you've worked with these guys two years and you have the same offensive coordinator. With a new OC, it's going to take some time. And uh guys, we just want to thank you guys for coming out. 120 people in this chat on a Sunday night. We love to see that, man.

[00:39:36]And we are brought to you guys by the great people of FanDuel. Uh, check us out. UCLA LFB at FanDuel. You guys are going to get hooked up with some great things. And Wayne, we got to say it.

[00:39:47]Next Saturday, May 2nd, 12:00 noon. I'm going to be there. You're going to be there. We got the spring game. Let's get these people out at the Rose Bowl and have a great time on Saturday cheering on the new staff.

[00:40:00]>> Yeah, you guys. Listen, everybody here, I bet you guys, if you can't make it, you know, that's okay. But if you can make it, get your butt there. It's going to be fun. We need to We need a show, not just LA, but the rest of the country. I'm tired of seeing, and again, I hate the people that do this. They post the videos probably at the wrong time, and they say, "Look how empty it is." Screw that. We have a great fan base. We have amazing people. Uh, for everybody that loves defense out there, trust me, I'm not anti-defense. I I'm glad you said this, Will, but I I'm going to add to it. I'm going to add to it because I don't want to get in trouble.

[00:40:34]>> There's so much technique to defense, special teams, shoulder, you use, leverage, >> it it is it is it is hard. I'm not saying it's not hard. I I just think that the call you you worded it well with the number of plays and all that stuff that you have to learn to be an offensive player. It's just a it's just different. They're they're both hard in their own ways. Um but yeah, get your butt to the Rose Bowl. I can't wait.

[00:40:57]I'll be there. I'll be roaming the field. I don't think I have any official duty as of yet. U I can't believe we're not doing this on radio, but but but we will in the future. We're gonna we're going to make it we're going to make it something where you can hear the broadcast team doing that doing the doing the spring game. But either way, we'll still be out there cheering them on. I'm sure you'll be able to get autographs and stuff like that afterwards. So, it's it's going to be a great day. And by the way, it's great to get to go to the Rose Bowl, right, Will?

[00:41:23]Just being there is a great experience.

[00:41:25]Nothing better in the, you know, granddaddy of them all, if you will. The greatest college football stadium there is to offer. We'll see you guys out there, man. But for now, make sure you guys are hitting that like and subscribe button, guys. We want to keep doing this as long as we can. We are trying to get to that 4,000 subscribers mark before the season starts. So, make sure to hit a subscribe button if you've liked anything we've done. And thank you guys for tuning in to Wayne and I. We're gonna have a lot more content coming this week. Stay tuned. We may even have a pretty big big guest coming this week, so stay tuned for that. Uh, nothing but love to this Brewing fan base. Stay strong, guys. I hope you guys have a great rest of your weekend.