The “8-clap” is a traditional UCLA fight song that rings loud on Saturdays in the Rose Bowl. For assistant football coach Adrian Klemm, however, the “8-clap” or “#8clap” has an entirely different connotation.
Klemm is part-time offensive line and running game coach, part-time ace recruiter who tweets “#8clap” every time the Bruins secure another high school athlete’s commitment to the football team.
He has a way with kids that resulted in him being awarded Pac-12 recruiter of the year last year despite being named to the staff just a few months before signing day. He also serves as a mentor to the young offensive line he coaches that includes multiple freshmen.
When coach Jim Mora arrived in Westwood last January, Klemm was one of the first people he sought out to fill the positions on his staff.
“He just asked if I would be interested in coming back home and I said, “˜yeah.’ I was out here a few days later,” said Klemm, a native Angeleno. “This is a place that I wanted to be, I wanted to be back home and he afforded me the opportunity to do that so I just jumped right at it.”
In a matter of months, Klemm, along with fellow new UCLA staff members Steve Broussard and Demetrice Martin, were able to hit the ground running on the recruiting trail. Broussard and Martin had been scouting the L.A. area for Arizona State and Washington respectively, and after Klemm was appointed to the same staff they became a triple threat.
“It was like, “˜Hey, these are the three guys that been recruiting me from three different schools now they’re all at the same school,'” Klemm said.
Klemm takes pride in pitching UCLA in living rooms to potential recruits around the country.
“Well, it’s one of the finest academic institutions in the country. … It has a rich tradition in terms of athletics. … It’s a great environment, a beautiful city. … It’s a great place to live,” Klemm said. “The connections they make ““ a strong alumni base ““ there are a number of different things that you can sell about the school but it sells itself. Our thing is if we can get a kid on campus we can get him.”
Compiled by Gabriel Basayne, Daily Bruin radio reporter. To listen to the rest of the story, visit dailybruin.com/radio.