The UCLA Bruins are set to include a pair of mega-veterans on their roster for the 2024 NCAA season.
How mega, you ask?
So mega they qualify for this “Tommy Boy” joke:
They’re also called very lucky athletes, David Spade.
Per Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times, first-year (and first-time) head coach DeShaun Foster revealed to attendant reporters during UCLA’s Tuesday spring practice session that the program anticipates both ex-Oregon Ducks transfer Bryan Addison and incumbent Bruins linebacker Ale Kaho will be allowed to play for, yes, their seventh seasons of collegiate eligibility. Kaho was shelved for all of the team’s 8-5 2023 season, Chip Kelly’s swan song as head coach, due to an injury. The team expected him to partake in practice later this week.
Can they contribute much on the field this year? That remains to be seen.
Kaho was a five-star prospect coming out of high school in Reno, per 247Sports. He started his career with Nick Saban’s storied Alabama Crimson Tide program in 2018, eventually transferring to the Utah Utes in February 2021… before changing his mind and transferring to UCLA in March 2021 instead. The 6’2″, 230-pound redshirt senior played in 11 games during his first season with the Bruins, including two starts. He missed the entire 2022 season due to an injury, and all but one 2023 game as a result of another injury.
Addison, a 6’5″, 198-pound Gardena native, played sparingly in 2023 for the Ducks. He enjoyed his most productive season in 2022, notching 30 total tackles (19 solo), five pass deflections, two interceptions and one forced fumble that year.