Finally got on the horn with Carson OL Wade Yandall, who verbally committed to UCLA over the weekend during his official visit.

The No. 54 guard in the country (click here for his Scout.com profile), Yandall is an athletic big man who has played football just two years and only started lifting recently.

Yandall gives UCLA three offensive line commits as the Bruins continue to shore up a unit that was much improved in 2009 but still has a way to go.

With a family of UCLA fans, what was their reaction to the news?
“They all got excited and said now there’s really a reason for them to come to the game. It feels good because I was kinda leaning toward them in the beginning but I just wanted to give everybody a chance. I started to lean toward ASU and being a Christian I had to pray about it – go not only where I want to be but where He wants me to be – and he told me UCLA is where he wants me to be.”

Why the decision to enroll in March for spring ball?
“Going in early will be good for me. Last year was really the first year I started lifting. It will be good for me to get a headstart on the lifting and get the transition done before anybody else. I want to get used to it before everyone else comes in.”

Is playing early a major factor for you?
“If they need me to play early – I’ve already talked to Coach Palcic and Coach Neuheisel, and he’d like to redshirt me – but if they need me to play, they need me to play. Neuheisel said it’s totally on me if they’d like me to redshirt. But they said I could come in early and that’ll give me a huge advantage.”

As someone who had his mind made up about USC for a long time, do you think the USC coaching situation is going to be as big a deal as people think for UCLA?
“I think so. Since Pete Carroll is gone, a lot of people are going to start looking at UCLA. We’re going to start getting the big recruits now. When Neuheisel wants someone, he’s going to go after them. In a couple years, we’ll be top-25, God-willing. It will be real big. It’s crazy because I never wanted to go to school there – it’s not that I don’t like the school or the players – I’ve just never had interest.”

With your level of familiarity about UCLA, what did the official visit provide?
On the official I had to get a lot of questions answered, especially about the strength and conditioning – I talked a lot with Coach Mike (Linn) to see what we can do to get me to be the best in my football career. Just on this visit, it definitely answered all the questions.”