When Pole Moala was considering reclassification from the 2028 to the 2027 class in recent weeks, UCLA was not much of a factor in his recruitment.
Ole Miss and USC were pushing it hardest for the new Rancho Santa Margarita (Calif.) Santa Margarita Catholic four-star safety but over the weekend, Moala made his commitment to the Bruins and they won out after others worked to get him reclassified.
It was a master stroke by the new UCLA coaching staff under Bob Chesney as Moala took a visit over to Westwood recently, fell in love with what was going on and according to a source, the Bruins “prioritized him” as a significant NIL factor was involved as well, just like with every top prospect.
“When I decided to reclass, I won’t say UCLA was always there but it was mainly Ole Miss,” Moala said.
“When I went through the process, UCLA made a really strong push for me. To only come see one practice and the energy I saw there, flipped my mindset on if I wanted to stay home.”
Moala is excited about the future in Westwood. So are so many other prospects.
At the Under Armour Next Camp outside Los Angeles on Sunday, lots of top prospects were talking highly about the Bruins, not just in a complimentary way after taking visits but seriously considering UCLA in their recruitment. The Bruins are battling Oregon, USC and others for elite players.
Four-star defensive lineman Marcus Fakatou from Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon has Oregon at the top spot with USC surging among others heavily involved but after a trip to UCLA over the weekend, he’s also serious about the Bruins.
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