UCLA Football Top 30 Players Countdown: No. 19

One of the top needs for the Bruins to rebuild during the offseason was at linebacker.

In the transfer portal, UCLA lost two key linebackers in Isaiah Chisom and Benjamin Perry, as well as losing JonJon Vaughns to graduation. Perry was a good depth player, while Chisom and Vaughns were the two leading tacklers for the Bruins last season.

May 2, 2026; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins coach Bob Chesney reacts during the spring game at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While Chesney was able to rebuild the linebacker room through the portal, he also retained key pieces from last year's Bruins team. One of those players was Jalen Woods, who was a top-three player on the Bruins defense last season. With Woods coming back, the linebacker room will surely improve and will be much more experienced heading into next season.

Woods Coming out of High School

The past few players we have talked about were prospects who were either unranked or ranked outside the top 1,000 in their recruiting classes.

Jalen Woods was a homegrown 3-star recruit from St. John Bosco in Bellflower, California, and was a leader for the Braves. Woods was a fringe 4-star player, ranked 574th in the 2022 high school class, the 55th-ranked linebacker, and the 42nd-ranked player in the state of California according to 247Sports.

In his senior season with the Braves, Woods was a standout player on the Braves' defense. Woods would have a total of 71 tackles, with 46 being solo tackles and 11.5 tackles for a loss. Woods would also prove his ability to rush the passer, recording a career-high 6.5 sacks.

Playing for a program as highly decorated as St. John Bosco and being one of the leaders for the defense, Woods would have plenty of colleges to pick from. Woods would be recruited from high-level programs such as Miami, Kansas, Arizona State, Boston College, and Oregon. Woods would ultimately choose to stay home and play for UCLA.

Woods' Early Years With the Bruins

Jalen Woods UCLA — Nov 30, 2024; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins linebacker Jalen Woods (17), defensive back Jaylin Davies (6), linebacker Carson Schwesinger (49), and UCLA Bruins defensive back Bryan Addison (4) tackle Fresno State Bulldogs tight end Jake Tarwater (87) during the third quarter at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

During the 2022 season, UCLA was led by Chip Kelly, who was coming off his best season as the Bruins' head coach, with an 8-4 record in 2021. Heading into the 2022 season, UCLA was unranked, but it would finish with an even better season, posting a 9-3 record and peaking as the ninth-best team in the country.

With the Bruins having so much success, Woods didn't see much playing time during his freshman season. Woods would appear in just two games for the Bruins as a reserve. In those two games, Woods would have six total tackles, with five being solo tackles and a tackle for a loss.

While appearing in just two games, Woods showed promise as a tackler and run stopper, using his speed to keep up with running backs and bring them down.

Woods would see much more playing time during his redshirt freshman season with the Bruins. He played in all 12 games for the Bruins in a reserve role, but made a big impact, recording 11 total tackles (six solo) and two tackles for loss. Woods would have three games with more than two tackles, against San Diego State, NC Central, and Cal.

Turnover for the Bruins

UCLA was having a great stretch, with three seasons of eight or more wins, and now, potentially with another year of Dante Moore at quarterback, the future looked bright.

However, Dante Moore entered the transfer portal after the regular season ended and committed to Oregon, where he has now thrived and is considered a top selection in the 2027 NFL Draft.

It wouldn't get much better for the Bruins, as just a couple of months later, head coach Chip Kelly would step down and take the offensive coordinator position at Ohio State. Kelly stated the reason for stepping down was the role a head coach is put in in the NIL era of college football.

After Kelly’s departure, UCLA would spend little time looking for a new head coach, hiring former star player and assistant coach DeShaun Foster.

Woods' Next Two Years at UCLA

With Chip Kelly gone and DeShaun Foster as the head coach, Woods decided to stay at UCLA and wanted to be part of Foster's vision for the program.

In his redshirt sophomore season, Woods would have an improved year, with even more playing time and his first career start in the Bruins' rivalry game against USC.

Woods would finish the season with 22 tackles, 15 solo tackles, two tackles for a loss, and his first career sack against Nebraska. Woods would have multiple games with four or more tackles against Nebraska, USC, and Cal, with his best game of the season against the Cornhuskers, when he recorded four tackles (two solo), one tackle for a loss, and a sack.

The next year, Woods would be a standout player for the Bruins in an overall tough year for the program. UCLA would finish the year with a 3-9 record and would fire head coach DeShaun Foster just three games into his second year, finishing with an overall record of 3-9.

Jan 31, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head football coach Bob Chesney is introduced during the basketball game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Woods would be a full-time starter for the Bruins and would also have multiple career highs in every statistical category. Woods would have 47 total tackles with 28 being solo tackles, 4.5 tackles for a loss, and would tie the team high in sacks with 1.5, and also had four pass deflections.

Final Year for Woods

May 2, 2026; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins coach Bob Chesney reacts during the spring game at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Woods will now play under his fourth head coach, Bob Chensey. Chesney needs a leader from last year's team to help guide the many incoming transfers to help get organized in Westwood, and Woods is that player.

Woods has gotten better and better every season at UCLA. He is a great tackler who can be the captain and have the dot on his helmet to call defensive plays for the Bruins. Overall, Woods is a proven leader on the field and will be known for sticking with the Bruins through all the change, which is becoming rarer in the new era of college football. Woods has the game and skill set to be a major part of UCLA's success in 2026.

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