Bruins coach calls out poor student attendance

By the Editorial Team · Wednesday, October 28, 2026

UCLA’s football team has started the season 7-0 and ranks No. 7 nationally, but home game attendance remains low, especially among students due to the Rose Bowl’s distance from campus. Despite efforts like free tickets and travel assistance, head coach Bob Chesney stresses the need for greater student engagement as the Bruins prepare for key upcoming games, including the high-profile USC rivalry.

UCLA’s football program is enjoying one of its best starts in more than a decade, yet the Bruins are struggling to generate robust attendance at home games. The team, currently 7-0 for the first time since 2005 and ranked No. 7 in the US LBM Coaches Poll, is among the last three undefeated squads nationwide and leads both the Big Ten and SEC in that regard. Despite this strong performance, the Rose Bowl has seen relatively low turnout, particularly among students.

Head coach Bob Chesney expressed concern about the sparse crowd in the student section during UCLA’s recent victory over Michigan State, calling attention to the slow arrival and early departures. “The student section was slow to get in there, and then felt like they left a little bit early,” Chesney said Monday. “I think that they got to do a better job too.”

One factor complicating student attendance is the physical distance between UCLA’s campus and the Rose Bowl stadium, located approximately 30 to 50 minutes away by car depending on traffic. This has historically posed challenges for filling the venue, which the Bruins reduce to about 65,000 seats by covering sections of the end zones. This season, the average attendance has hovered around 33,172 per game, with the crowd for the Michigan State matchup slightly above average at 33,757.

The university has made efforts to encourage attendance by offering free tickets to students and facilitating travel arrangements, but Chesney acknowledges that more engagement is necessary. “We all got to do a better job,” he said, emphasizing the need to foster a connection between the team and the student body beyond just game day. “We probably gotta just get a little bit more involved and make sure our guys in classes are talking about this with everybody, making sure they can connect a story and a face to this team, not just what this team is, but ultimately, the people on it.”

Looking ahead, UCLA will host Nevada on October 31, a game that could face challenges drawing a large crowd given the Halloween date and the opponent’s lower profile. The Bruins have two additional home contests remaining this season: Illinois on November 13 and the highly anticipated crosstown rivalry game against USC on November 28. That final matchup is expected to offer the best chance for a packed Rose Bowl, potentially drawing substantial student and fan engagement.

This article was reported by synthesizing coverage from multiple independent news outlets to present a balanced, unbiased account. Read about our editorial standards. Spotted an error? Let us know.