It’s orientation time. Many of you are on this campus for
the first time since you officially decided to enroll at UCLA.
Many of you are sports fans who are wondering how to get
involved with UCLA sports, why you should root for the Bruins or
what sports to root for.
Basically, you ask yourself, “What should I know about
UCLA sports?” and “Why should I care ?”
Here are some numbers to give some information about all kinds
of UCLA sports.
Four ““ Not the number of games the men’s basketball
team won last year (although it seemed that way) ““ but the
number of star recruits coach Ben Howland signed. If the players
live up to the hype, Bruin fans won’t be subjected to 11-17
and 10-19 seasons.
You will probably never have to see UCLA lose to USC in
basketball again ““ or Washington State for that matter. Good
times at Pauley Pavilion are on the horizon.
Six ““ Believe it or not, the UCLA football team actually
won six games last year. With all the gloom and doom coming from
the program at last year’s end, you’d have thought the
team was horrible. The Bruins aren’t that bad.
And don’t let that USC score fool you ““ it’s
just that USC is really that good.
Wait, you mean to tell me that several players left the program
early? And that several of the team’s key players on defense
graduated?
Well, even if the Bruins are bad, they do have a fairly weak
schedule this year and underachieved at times last year, so they
should at least do OK. The Rose Bowl’s a fun place to go,
also. Just plan for six hours of traffic, two hours of defense and
one five-minute UCLA scoring drive.
Four (yes, I’ve used it twice)Â ““ The number of
NCAA championships won by UCLA teams last year. Gymnastics,
women’s golf, softball and women’s track and field all
won NCAA championships in the spring.
That may be impressive, but it’s even more impressive when
you consider that three UCLA teams finished second, and three
others were ranked No. 1 for part of last season.
The most fun sporting events I have attended at UCLA
haven’t been basketball or football but some of the
lesser-known sports ““ volleyball, softball, baseball, tennis
and water polo have all been enjoyable to watch.
If you are a big UCLA sports fan, I recommend you go to a couple
of these events. They play at a high level (some of these teams
have Olympians) and they’re free for students. You’ll
have a blast. And you won’t be alone ““ student support
for these teams is slowly growing.
And for you real athletes:
Four (so what if I have a fascination with this number) ““
It’s the number of games in a typical intramural season.
Intramural sports are entertaining and often even competitive.
The sports are improving, too ““ two years ago, the
Intramural Field was a construction zone. Now you can play real
flag football (it used to be four-on-four) and real IM softball
(they used to use something called an Incrediball, which
wouldn’t fly anywhere).
Other perks include playing IM games at Pauley Pavilion, on the
same court many great players have played on (although none
recently ““ yes, that’s a cheap shot), and the Los
Angeles Tennis Center, where so many tennis greats have played (the
Mercedes-Benz Cup is played there every year).
And please don’t be one of those people who is talented
enough to play at the A level of IM sports but plays at the C level
to get easy wins. I hate those people.
What I’m trying to tell you sports fans is: Get involved
in some way. Go to games. Join a club sport. Play IM sports.
Do something ““ you need it, and you’ll like it.
E-mail Quiñonez at gquinonez@media.ucla.edu.