UCLA Bruins News: Going to play in Spain, preseason honors and more

Here is the news you may have missed this week from UCLA athletic teams and their student-athletes.

Overall, it was a busy and successful week for current and past UCLA athletes. The Bruins had an impressive win on the soccer field, and they also had several players honored for their academic achievements, and a former Bruin is playing well in the NFL exhibition season. Fans and alums are excited to see what the UCLA players and teams can accomplish in the upcoming weeks to come.

Five UCLA Bruins football players were named to the 2023 Polynesian college football player of the year award watch list led by Laiatue Latu and Duke Clemens.

Since the award was introduced in 2014, no UCLA player has ever won the award but this may be the year a Bruin is named the Polynesian college football player of the year.

https://twitter.com/UCLAFootball/status/1692213236077400354

The No. 1 nationally ranked Bruin’s women’s soccer team defeated SEC opponent Georgia to start the season undefeated. 

UCLA next plays Portland on Sunday at 2:00 PM PT for their second regular season game and faces Cal Poly next Thursday as well.

Former UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson played the first half and got his first career pro start in the third exhibition game for the Cleveland Browns.

He has played well throughout the preseason and his next game is on August 26th against the Kansas City Chiefs. Thompson-Robinson is putting himself in a position to make the 53-person regular-season roster with his strong quarterback play this NFL exhibition season.

The UCLA basketball team begins exhibition play in Spain on Sunday as they play three games from August 20 through the 30th.

This is the first time that UCLA will have traveled to Spain for an exhibition tour since 2017. The trip is part of the NCAA’s foreign tour policy, which allows each program to take one foreign tour every four years.

The trip to Spain will be a valuable experience for the Bruins, as it will give them the opportunity to play against high-level competition. It will also be a chance for the team to bond and build chemistry ahead of the upcoming season.

https://twitter.com/UCLAMBB/status/1691875287284461842

Eight UCLA gymnasts have received the honor of being named to the Scholastic All-America team from the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association for 2023.

The gymnasts have to have a 3.5 or higher cumulative grade point average or a 3.5-grade point average for the academic year.

https://twitter.com/uclagymnastics/status/1692228495110468079

Dante Moore was named to the 247 Sports true freshman All-American Team.

The expectations are high for Moore as he has yet to be named the starting quarterback for week one but without a doubt, much is expected from the true freshman quarterback this season.

https://twitter.com/247Sports/status/1692175639099675053

For the sixth consecutive year, the UCLA men’s, as well as women’s soccer programs, have earned College Team Academic Awards from United Soccer coaches again entering the 2023 season.

The UCLA men’s program maintained a 3.40 GPA during the 2022-23 school year, allowing them to earn the much-deserved the team academic award.

https://twitter.com/UCLAMSoccer/status/1691944013308543340