Nate Iese accepts invite to NFLPA Collegiate Bowl

Tight end Nate Iese. (Photo by Micah Escamilla/The Sun, SCNG)

Tight end Nate Iese. (Photo by Micah Escamilla/The Sun, SCNG)

UCLA tight end Nate Iese accepted an invitation to play in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl on Monday, making him the seventh confirmed Bruin senior who will play in an all-star game in January.

Iese was a midseason addition to the watchlist for the John Mackey Award, which is given to the nation’s top tight end. In his first year at the position, the fifth-year senior had 25 catches for 400 yards and four touchdowns.

Other UCLA football links:

  • Pro Football Focus has Eddie Vanderdoes going No. 21 to Houston and McKinley going No. 22 to Tampa Bay in its mock draft.
  • PFF also ranks McKinley’s performance against Utah and Vanderdoes’ performance against Texas A&M among the best in the Pac-12 this year.
  • It didn’t take Ronald Rudd III long to find a new home. Just two days after decommitting from UCLA, the JUCO offensive lineman committed to Louisville on Tuesday.

Brown, McKinley, Quessenberry named to AP’s All-Pac-12 first team

Linebacker Jayon Brown runs drills at practice in San Bernardino. Photo by Rachel Luna/San Bernardino Sun

Linebacker Jayon Brown runs drills at practice in San Bernardino. Photo by Rachel Luna/San Bernardino Sun

Linebacker Jayon Brown, defensive end Takkarist McKinley and center Scott Quessenberry added AP first-team All-Pac-12 selections to their postseason award hauls on Friday.

UCLA’s pair of defensive stars were unanimous first-team selections.

The trio of players also earned All-Pac-12 first team honors as voted by the conference’s coaches while Brown and McKinley were also first-team all-conference selections by Pro Football Focus and ESPN.com.

Tight end Nate Iese was named to AP’s All-Pac-12 second team. Iese, who was voted second team All-Pac-12 by the coaches, was third on the team with 25 receptions and 400 receiving yards for four touchdowns in his first year at tight end.

Here is a full list of the selections: Continue reading “Brown, McKinley, Quessenberry named to AP’s All-Pac-12 first team” »

Video: Mike Fafaul and Nate Iese

Quarterback Mike Fafaul talks about preparing for Colorado with or without Josh Rosen, how he’s been working on cutting down turnovers and his Tom Brady calendar.

Tight end Nate Iese talks about his confidence coming off a career-high eight catches against Utah, how tight ends coach Rip Scherer has helped him develop and why he finds confidence in Fafaul.

Video: Eddie Vanderdoes, Nate Iese, Conor McDermott

Defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes talks about the dangers of the Washington State defense and staying focused at a critical time of the year.

Tight end Nate Iese talks about his confidence in Mike Fafaul and how he can make life a little easier for the back-up if Fafaul starts this week.

Offensive lineman Conor McDermott talks about trying to break through on offense and what he’s seen from Fafaul this week.

Video: Josh Rosen, Kenny Young, Nate Iese after Stanford loss

Quarterback Josh Rosen talks about his game against Stanford, rebounding for next week and operating while the running game struggles.

Linebacker Kenny Young talks about the defense giving up the game-winning touchdown with 24 seconds left, matching Stanford’s physicality and finishing a game.

Tight end Nate Iese talks about his five-catch game against the Cardinal, working with Rosen and the loss to Stanford.