The Bruins picked up their biggest commitment of this recruiting class last week, with the announcement that safety Tony Jefferson out of East Lake HS (Chula Vista, CA) would be wearing the blue and gold in 2010.



Jefferson is the highest rated commit so far this year for the Bruins. He also was long rumored to be a USC silent commit, but after USC picked up two safeties already, Jefferson decided to drop the Trojans.

Not only is Jefferson an outstanding athlete, playing on both sides of the ball. He is also versatile on defense, where he will most likely be playing in college. Jefferson is a safety/linebacker hybrid with speed. He is also graduating from high school in December, so he can enroll in school early and compete in spring practice next year.

As a junior Jefferson recorded 89 tackles, two interceptions, two sacks, a pair of fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. As a running back on the offensive side, he ran for 1,322 yards and 26 touchdowns and earned All-State Underclass honors.

Thursday is Pac-10 media day in LA. Coach Neuheisel and Defensive captain Reggie Carter will be there to represent the Bruins. You can follow the coverage here. Neuheisel is scheduled to speak at 10:15.



Lastly, Colorado transfer Josh Smith is hoping that academics don't keep him out of UCLA. If he is cleared for admittance he will be a Bruin.

After a slow summer week of UCLA football, with little news to report, I thought I would pass along a few links to good reads regarding the Bruins.

Here is a look at the Bruins Receivers for the upcoming year.



ESPN Pac-10 Blogger Ted Miller gives his reason for hope and concern for the upcoming season.

Senior cornerback Alterraun Verner seems to be an interesting guy. Check out his blog Verner's Views.



Freshman athlete Dalton Hilliard is having surgery to remove a "loose body" in his knee.



The season opener against SDSU gametime has been set.

Former Bruin great Troy Aikman is being enshrined into the Hall of Fame.



The NY Times has UCLA ranked at no. 52 to start the season.

In case you hadn't heard, four-star juco defensive tackle Brandon Warner, who had originally committed to the Bruins, is now headed to New Mexico State to play for Dewayne Walker.



Well, that seems to be all the big news for now. If anything breaks today I will report it.

Well with practice still about a month away, 7-on-7 passing drills have become a normal sight at Spaulding. And with most of the new recruits on campus, now is the first chance to see them playing at UCLA. While not a lot can be taken from the skill shown at 7-on-7s, it is a good chance to see how big some of the guys have gotten during the summer lifting period.


Rahim Moore


Terrence Austin


Ryan Moya


Kevin Prince


Randall Carroll, Coleman Edmund, Morrell Presley, Jayson Allmond


Milton Knox


Aaron Hester


Freshman fullback Jayson Allmond


Richard Brehaut


Freshman offensive linemen Xavier Su'a-Filo


Reggie Carter


Christian Ramirez

One interesting development out of 7-on-7s is that Coleman Edmund, a member of the UCLA track team, is trying to play football this year too. He is a receiver and apparently has looked pretty good during his time out at Spaulding.


Coleman Edmund

UCLA also picked up it's sixth commitment of the summer this week. JC defensive end Marquis Jackson from College of the Canyons and former high school teammate of Milton Knox and Donovan Carter, decided not to follow his brother Malik to USC and instead gave his oral commitment to Coach Neuheisel. Jackson was a JC All-American last year, and I had the chance to cover him when he played against Glendale City College. All I can say is I am very excited about this commitment. Jackson was an unblockable force in that game. His quickness off the snap of the ball was also impressive. He should be an immediate contributor to the Bruins.

Lastly longspapper Christian Yount made history recently when he was named the first ever longsnapper on the annual Playboy all-America team. With football becoming a more specialized sport, the Playboy all-American team decided to include a longsnapper this year, and according to pro scouts, Yount is the best there is.


Christian Yount

The attrition in Westwood continues. Two weeks ago I gave a list of seven athletes that were leaving the program. Six transfers and one retirement. Well an addition has been made to that list. Offensive linemen Sonny Tevaga, younger brother of former offensive linemen Shannon Tevaga, has left the football program and is exploring his options. The reason that Tevaga is no longer with the program is due to academic issues and even if he clears those issues up, he will not be with the team in the fall.


Sonny Tevaga (55)

Despite our need for offensive linemen, this is actually not a bad thing. Tevaga never was able to distinguish himself, even when given the opportunities. His departure from the program opens up another vital scholarship and allows some of the highly touted freshmen linemen coming in a chance to compete.

After announcing his intention to transfer, safety EJ Woods has made a decision where he will be going. Woods will attend Santa Monica City College for a year before transferring to another Pac 10 school. The odds on favorite to land Woods is USC. In a recent LA Times article Woods mentioned that his style of play would probably be best suited for the Trojans. Despite the coaching staff asking Woods to stay and compete for a starting position, Woods will be moving on and opening up another scholarship.


E.J. Woods

Last week I mentioned that tight end Joseph Fauria was looking to transfer away from Notre Dame, and that UCLA was a possible destination for him. Well this week Fauria gave coach Neuheisel a non-binding oral commitment to transfer to Westwood this year. The 6-foot-7-inch 250 pound Fauria would have to sit out a year due to transfer rules, but would be a redshirt sophomore for the 2010 season.


Joseph Fauria

Also, there is supposedly a scholarship offer on the table for Josh Smith, the wide receiver from Colorado who is also looking to transfer. If Smith transferred in he would also have to sit out a year and would be a redshirt junior for the 2010 season.


Josh Smith

Lastly, UCLA picked up its fifth commitment this past week. Safety Earnest Thomas from St. Mary Prep School in Orchard Lake, Michigan gave his commitment to come play for the Bruins. From the looks of his tape, Thomas looks like a big, hard hitting safety with speed. The fact that he comes from the mid west also means that Coach Neuheisel is doing a good job with the out of state prospects. Look for recruiting to heat up even more over the next few weeks.


Earnest Thomas (7)