Weekly Answers, Pt. 5 | Inside UCLA with Jack Wang

Check out the latest batch of weekly answers…

1) DG stated when announcing the coaching search that UCLA would be looking to improve the facilities and to make football more of a priority; Jim Mora also said that he wouldn’t have taken the job if UCLA wasn’t “all in” with regards to football. Have you seen any changes yet? What would you expect to see changed in the next year? Five years? – PowderKegBlue
That’s a great question, but difficult to answer. Mora has constantly said that the facilities were “not that bad,” but some of them are, at least compared to some of the facilities in the Pac-12. It’s pretty easy to sway a 17-year-old kid with a nice lounge and cool gloves. I would expect at least some improvements to Spaulding Field, but I still think they should just use Drake Stadium. It’s a nice field.

2) At a recent holiday party, I couldn’t remember why I gave a shitake mushroom about Ucla football. Can you help me out? – localbruin
Being true to your school, and whatnot? I don’t know what to tell you brother. I’ll just say that a change was made for a reason, and every indication so far has that change being in a positive direction. From my vantage point, there has been better strategical decisions in terms of coaching hires, announcements and buzz, and the recruiting has started off well for Mora.

3) What’s the deal with Mazzone? The news sources seem to agree he’s coming to Westwood, but I haven’t seen anything said by UCLA/Mora or by him to indicate this. – anonymous
It’s as official as it can be without it being official. There is a method to their madness.

4) Do you think our players have their heads in the game for the bowl game? It seems like everyone (fans especially) are just talking about Mora, and next year, but no one seems focused on the game that’s happening in less than two weeks. – anonymous
This is what happens during a coaching search. When there are practices, I either do a daily feature or whatever’s relevant for the day. If something with the new staff takes precedence, it’s just the way it is. So that’s why players are talking less – because we’re asking fewer questions related to the game.

5) Can you give us more details on Dietrich Riley’s injury. It seems more severe than a “stinger”. – Spencer
They’ve been very, very quiet about the exact nature of the injury, but it was pretty scary. A fraction of an inch one way or the other, and some bad, bad stuff might’ve happened.

Anon

They use Drake Stadium as the home field for the (perennially national championship contending) mens and womens’ soccer teams. Football would tear the grass to shreds. They could put in turf and paint on football lines too, but turf is less desirable for soccer and football would have to practice somewhere else during the fall when soccer had games. Football and soccer each prefer to have their own facilities. More likely would be converting the IM field to a football practice area and letting the Rec Dept use Spaulding Field as the IM space (at least during football season and spring practices).
Danny Trevino

any word on a D.C.?
Anon

Just to add to my earlier comment, Drake is used in the Spring for Track and Field, so could interfere with Spring football practices as well. All in all, Drake is pretty heavily utilized at exactly the same time football would want exclusive use. You could move soccer to the IM field, but then you would need to build bleachers etc and that would be kind of crazy when Drake has stands built into the side of the hill and football doesn’t need stands anyway.
Anonymous

UCLA Recreation owns the land to the IM Field. Part of the UC Charter is that there is a certain percentage of land that is designated for the general student body recreation. You can’t just switch pieces of land without violating the original UC Charter. Spaulding is technically run by the UCLA Athletics. I not sure if its Rec or Athletics that runs Drake.
Anonymous

Soccer sometimes uses Drake and sometimes uses the North Athletic Field. Soccer seems to take up a large foot print if it can use those fields exclusively during the fall. Maybe the key is using the North Athletic Field exclusively for soccer or for football and the other gets Drake. The North Athletic Field may not have enough space for football though. Maybe they can push it out to part of IM field to make room without taking too much away from the IM field. Then, that would leave Spaulding for general student body recreational use.
Anonymous

Drake is smaller than Spalding (Spalding is shorter but much much wider). I dont see it as a real option.

But for what it’s worth, nobody tears up a football field like a soccer team. I used to play on the team and occasionally there would be soccer played on Spalding and they always tore the field up much worse than we ever did.
Anonymous

50-0
vik-the-k

Converting Drake for football use? No. Lousy idea. Bordering on asinine. That being said, it’s such a bad idea, I’d bet money that DG has placed it atop his To Do list.
Anonymous

How much revenue does the Mens and Womens soccer teams bring in vs the football team? I think that’s the point. If UCLA football is going to be successful it needs to have priority.