Jim Mora wants to leave a ‘legacy’ with UCLA football

On Thursday morning, UCLA announced that Jim Mora and his family had given a significant donation to the Bruins’ new football facility, one that stood as the most ever by a sitting head coach.

Later that afternoon, the fourth-year coach talked about why he and his family decided to invest their own money into the program, and what it signaled about his commitment to UCLA.

“I would hope that it would put out any of those silly rumors that our opponents are using against us that I’m leaving,” he said. “I don’t know what more I can do to prove that I’m not leaving.” Continue reading “Jim Mora wants to leave a ‘legacy’ with UCLA football” »

Jim Mora’s donation is the largest ever by a sitting UCLA head coach

Jim Mora, left, has made what UCLA calls the largest donation by a sitting head coach in school history. (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff)

Jim Mora, left, has made what UCLA calls the largest donation by a sitting head coach in school history. (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff)

Jim Mora and his family have made a personal donation to UCLA’s new football facility, which is good news for the Bruins in the way that additional money usually is.

But that this is a head coach putting in his own money — rather than a major booster — is a tremendous PR boost for the Bruins, who have endured offseason after offseason of speculation that their head coach could bolt for the NFL.

Mora and his wife Shannon made what the school called on Thursday “the largest donation by a sitting head coach in UCLA history.” Even if it doesn’t come close to matching some of the other figures poured into the project, it’s an easier sell for those unconvinced of the 53-year-old’s future in Los Angeles. Continue reading “Jim Mora’s donation is the largest ever by a sitting UCLA head coach” »

Troy Aikman donates $1 million to UCLA’s new football facility

Former UCLA and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman has made a $1 million donation to the Bruins’ new football facility project, pushing total fundraising to more than $54 million.

The Wasserman Football Center, which is budgeted at $65 million, will now include the Troy Aikman Strength and Conditioning Center in honor of his contribution. The facility is scheduled to break ground this fall.

“UCLA holds a very special place in my heart,” Aikman said in a statement. “As you go through life, it is common to be defined by the company you keep. I’ve been fortunate to be associated with two outstanding institutions. In many eyes, I’ll always be a Dallas Cowboy, and I’m extremely proud of that.

“By making this contribution to UCLA Football, It’s clear that I am, and always will be, a UCLA Bruin as well. My time at UCLA helped mold me into the person I am today, and I want the Bruin student-athletes that come after me to have the same opportunity I had to achieve their boyhood dreams.”

Donation pushes UCLA’s football facility fundraising to $53 million

An eight-figure donation has pushed UCLA’s football facility fundraising $3 million past its original goal — but $12 million behind its new target.

The athletic department announced on Monday that Jim and Carol Collins had donated $10 million toward the new football facility, bumping the fundraising total to more than $53 million in cash and pledges.

The Wasserman Football Center, scheduled to break ground in fall 2015, was budgeted at $50 million when the project was announced in September 2013. After receiving its latest donation, UCLA athletic department stated that it has set a new goal of $65 million in private funding — a “phase two” that it said “will allow for first-rate finishes, furniture, branding and technology.” Continue reading “Donation pushes UCLA’s football facility fundraising to $53 million” »

New UCLA football facility named Wasserman Football Center

wasserman football center-page-001

Sports agent Casey Wasserman’s big donation ensured that UCLA’s new football facility will be called the Wasserman Football Center. Several naming opportunities are still available (see above), including the chance to name — wait for it — the team barbershop for $500,000. You can see the full floor plan here.