University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Friday, September 12
Pasadena, CA
7:00 PM (PT)
UCLA
vs
New Mexico
QB Nico Iamaleava
Photo by: Isabella Serafini
Football Hosts New Mexico at the Rose Bowl Friday Night
September 09, 2025 | Football
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Rose Bowl Stadium (Pasadena, Calif.)
Kickoff Time: 7:10 p.m. (PT)
Television: Big Ten Network
TV Talent: Carlo Jimenez (play-by-play), Brock Vereen (analyst), Drea Avent (sideline)
Local Radio (UCLA Bruins Audio Network): AM 790 (LINK)
Local Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Matt Stevens (analyst), Wayne Cook (sideline), Nick Koop (pre/post-game host)
SiriusXM: Ch. 106 or 195
Game Notes: PDF
Live Stats: LINK
ย
THE MATCHUP
The UCLA football team welcomes New Mexico to the Rose Bowl for a Friday night contest at 7 p.m. (PT) in Pasadena. The second-ever meeting between the Bruins (0-2, 0-0 Big Ten) and Lobos (1-1, 0-0 Mountain West) will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Fans in the greater Los Angeles region can listen live on AM 790, the new home of the UCLA Bruins Audio Network.
ย
UCLA defeated New Mexico, 27-13, in its only other matchup, occurring on Christmas Day at the 2002 Las Vegas Bowl in Sam Boyd Stadium. The Bruins, led by interim head coach and future UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Ed Kezirian, broke through with a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown by Craig Bragg to open the second half. True freshman safety Jarrad Page added a 29-yard interception return for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, and Tyler Ebell made it 27-6 with a one-yard scoring run with 10:40 left.
ย
LAST TIME OUT
UCLA's second-half surge came up short against UNLV last week, falling 30-23 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday, Sept. 6. Redshirt sophomore Nico Iamaleava threw for 255 yards on 29-of-41 passing and accounted for two touchdowns (one passing, one rushing). Including his team-high 59 rushing yards, Iamaleava recorded 314 yards of total offense, marking the third time in his career he has crossed over the 300-yard mark. UCLA dominated the second half with 318 yards of total offense compared to UNLV's 101. The Bruins were 2-for-3 on third down in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 points in the final frame.
โข Sophomore wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer was Iamaleava's top target, hauling in a career-high eight catches for 87 yards. His 87 yards were the second most in his young career. Two of Gilmer's catches came on UCLA's final drive of the fourth quarter for 34 yards, helping put the Bruins at the UNLV 24 yard line.
โข UCLA scored on five straight possessions across the second and third quarters. The last time the Bruins accomplished that feat was in a 56-7 home win over N.C. Central in Week 3 of the 2023 season, when they scored on seven straight possessions to open the game.
โข Four different UCLA players had a run of 20-plus yards (Jaivian Thomas [32], Nico Iamaleava [30], Anthony Woods [20], Thomas and Jalen Berger [20]). UCLA had most recently achieved this feat against N.C. Central in 2023.
ย
KEY NOTES ON UCLA
โข Quarterback Nico Iamaleava has averaged 195.5 passing yards per game on 40-of-63 passing (63.5%), including two touchdowns, over the first two starts of his UCLA career. He has led the Bruins in rushing yards in each of the first two contests of the season (106 total rushing yards).
โข Linebackers Isaiah Chisom (13.0) and JonJon Vaughns (12.5) rank first and fourth in the FBS in total tackles per game, respectively. Vaughns has opened his final campaign in Westwood with the first two double-digit tackle performances of his career.
โข True freshman Noah Fox-Flores recorded the first catch and touchdown of his career on a four-yard pass from Nico Iamaleava at the 7:48 mark in the third quarter at UNLV (Sept. 6). Fox-Flores is the first UCLA true freshman tight end to record a touchdown since Thomas Duarte in 2013.
โข Chisom's 17 tackles in his UCLA debut versus Utah (Aug. 30) are tied with Carson Schwesinger (at Washington, 2024) and Jayon Brown (vs. Colorado, 2016) for the most by a Bruin over the last 10 seasons. Vaughns' 15-tackle performance against the Utes more than doubled his previous career high of seven set against Colorado in 2022.
โข Running back Anthony Woods scored UCLA's first touchdown of the season on a 19-yard reception versus Utah in the second quarter during his Bruins debut. The score marked the second receiving touchdown of Woods' career and first since 2023 as a sophomore at Idaho. Woods finished the game with a team-high and career-high 48 receiving yards.
โข Twenty-five players made their UCLA debuts during the Bruins' season opener versus Utah in Week 1.ย
โข UCLA's 2025 roster lists 59 new names (37 transfers, 22 true freshmen) for its most since at least the 2012 season. Of the Bruins' 22 starters on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball against Utah, nine of them were incoming transfers.
โข The Bruins' offseason was highlighted by the transfer portal addition of redshirt sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava who spent the previous two seasons at Tennessee. The Long Beach, Calif. native returns home after leading the Volunteers to an 11-3 record as the starting quarterback and a College Football Playoff (CFP) appearance in 2024. Iamaleava finished last season completing 213-of-334 passes (63.8%) for 2,616 yards (201.2 yards per game) and 19 touchdowns with five interceptions. Iamaleava ranked second in the Southeastern Conference with six 50-plus-yard completions last season.
โข N. Iamaleava was tabbed to five preseason watch lists in anticipation of his first game as a Bruin: Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year, Davey O'Brien Quarterback of the Year, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and Polynesian Player of the Year.
TICKETS TO UCLA HOME GAMES AT THE ROSE BOWL
Various ticket packages, including season, mini-plan and single-game tickets, for the Bruins' inaugural Big Ten season are now available. Fans can clickย HEREย or contact UCLA Athletics Sales and Service at (310) 206-5991 or via emailย at tickets@athletics.ucla.edu for more information on personalized ticket options.
Sign up for UCLA Athletics emailsย HEREย to stay up-to-date on inside information, ticket deals and more.
ย
Venue: Rose Bowl Stadium (Pasadena, Calif.)
Kickoff Time: 7:10 p.m. (PT)
Television: Big Ten Network
TV Talent: Carlo Jimenez (play-by-play), Brock Vereen (analyst), Drea Avent (sideline)
Local Radio (UCLA Bruins Audio Network): AM 790 (LINK)
Local Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Matt Stevens (analyst), Wayne Cook (sideline), Nick Koop (pre/post-game host)
SiriusXM: Ch. 106 or 195
Game Notes: PDF
Live Stats: LINK
ย
THE MATCHUP
The UCLA football team welcomes New Mexico to the Rose Bowl for a Friday night contest at 7 p.m. (PT) in Pasadena. The second-ever meeting between the Bruins (0-2, 0-0 Big Ten) and Lobos (1-1, 0-0 Mountain West) will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Fans in the greater Los Angeles region can listen live on AM 790, the new home of the UCLA Bruins Audio Network.
ย
UCLA defeated New Mexico, 27-13, in its only other matchup, occurring on Christmas Day at the 2002 Las Vegas Bowl in Sam Boyd Stadium. The Bruins, led by interim head coach and future UCLA Athletic Hall of Famer Ed Kezirian, broke through with a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown by Craig Bragg to open the second half. True freshman safety Jarrad Page added a 29-yard interception return for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, and Tyler Ebell made it 27-6 with a one-yard scoring run with 10:40 left.
ย
LAST TIME OUT
UCLA's second-half surge came up short against UNLV last week, falling 30-23 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday, Sept. 6. Redshirt sophomore Nico Iamaleava threw for 255 yards on 29-of-41 passing and accounted for two touchdowns (one passing, one rushing). Including his team-high 59 rushing yards, Iamaleava recorded 314 yards of total offense, marking the third time in his career he has crossed over the 300-yard mark. UCLA dominated the second half with 318 yards of total offense compared to UNLV's 101. The Bruins were 2-for-3 on third down in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 points in the final frame.
โข Sophomore wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer was Iamaleava's top target, hauling in a career-high eight catches for 87 yards. His 87 yards were the second most in his young career. Two of Gilmer's catches came on UCLA's final drive of the fourth quarter for 34 yards, helping put the Bruins at the UNLV 24 yard line.
โข UCLA scored on five straight possessions across the second and third quarters. The last time the Bruins accomplished that feat was in a 56-7 home win over N.C. Central in Week 3 of the 2023 season, when they scored on seven straight possessions to open the game.
โข Four different UCLA players had a run of 20-plus yards (Jaivian Thomas [32], Nico Iamaleava [30], Anthony Woods [20], Thomas and Jalen Berger [20]). UCLA had most recently achieved this feat against N.C. Central in 2023.
ย
KEY NOTES ON UCLA
โข Quarterback Nico Iamaleava has averaged 195.5 passing yards per game on 40-of-63 passing (63.5%), including two touchdowns, over the first two starts of his UCLA career. He has led the Bruins in rushing yards in each of the first two contests of the season (106 total rushing yards).
โข Linebackers Isaiah Chisom (13.0) and JonJon Vaughns (12.5) rank first and fourth in the FBS in total tackles per game, respectively. Vaughns has opened his final campaign in Westwood with the first two double-digit tackle performances of his career.
โข True freshman Noah Fox-Flores recorded the first catch and touchdown of his career on a four-yard pass from Nico Iamaleava at the 7:48 mark in the third quarter at UNLV (Sept. 6). Fox-Flores is the first UCLA true freshman tight end to record a touchdown since Thomas Duarte in 2013.
โข Chisom's 17 tackles in his UCLA debut versus Utah (Aug. 30) are tied with Carson Schwesinger (at Washington, 2024) and Jayon Brown (vs. Colorado, 2016) for the most by a Bruin over the last 10 seasons. Vaughns' 15-tackle performance against the Utes more than doubled his previous career high of seven set against Colorado in 2022.
โข Running back Anthony Woods scored UCLA's first touchdown of the season on a 19-yard reception versus Utah in the second quarter during his Bruins debut. The score marked the second receiving touchdown of Woods' career and first since 2023 as a sophomore at Idaho. Woods finished the game with a team-high and career-high 48 receiving yards.
โข Twenty-five players made their UCLA debuts during the Bruins' season opener versus Utah in Week 1.ย
โข UCLA's 2025 roster lists 59 new names (37 transfers, 22 true freshmen) for its most since at least the 2012 season. Of the Bruins' 22 starters on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball against Utah, nine of them were incoming transfers.
โข The Bruins' offseason was highlighted by the transfer portal addition of redshirt sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava who spent the previous two seasons at Tennessee. The Long Beach, Calif. native returns home after leading the Volunteers to an 11-3 record as the starting quarterback and a College Football Playoff (CFP) appearance in 2024. Iamaleava finished last season completing 213-of-334 passes (63.8%) for 2,616 yards (201.2 yards per game) and 19 touchdowns with five interceptions. Iamaleava ranked second in the Southeastern Conference with six 50-plus-yard completions last season.
โข N. Iamaleava was tabbed to five preseason watch lists in anticipation of his first game as a Bruin: Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year, Davey O'Brien Quarterback of the Year, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and Polynesian Player of the Year.
TICKETS TO UCLA HOME GAMES AT THE ROSE BOWL
Various ticket packages, including season, mini-plan and single-game tickets, for the Bruins' inaugural Big Ten season are now available. Fans can clickย HEREย or contact UCLA Athletics Sales and Service at (310) 206-5991 or via emailย at tickets@athletics.ucla.edu for more information on personalized ticket options.
Sign up for UCLA Athletics emailsย HEREย to stay up-to-date on inside information, ticket deals and more.
ย
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