UCLA AD Shuts Down Talk of Early Big Ten Struggles

Martin Jarmond had time at Big Ten Media Days.

Sep 10, 2022; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins athletic director Martin Jarmond reacts against the Alabama State Hornets in the first half at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Just a year ago, as UCLA was preparing to enter its first season in the Big Ten Conference, the university came in with plenty of doubts about how athletics would adapt in a stronger conference. But UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond didn't want to hear all that.

At last week's football Big Ten Media Days, Jarmond shut down all that "struggle" talk by stating the facts in an interview with UCLA's Wayne Cook and Nick Koop.

"Look at it from this perspective," Jarmond said. "A year ago, we were here at the Big Ten football media days, and all the questions we got were, 'Is UCLA ready for the travel? Are they gonna be able to compete in the Big Ten?' There was more questions. And I think winning 10 conference championships -- the most in the Big Ten, seven Big Ten championships, three MPSF championships, one national championship, two runner-ups, two national individual championships...

"Trivia question: Who was the only school in the country to have softball and baseball in the College World Series? Another trivia question: Who's the only one that had both softball and baseball in the College World Series and both men's basketball and women's basketball in the NCAA Tournament? That's us.

"So, we were more than ready. We win championships at UCLA. Excellence. And that's what we did. I am so bullish on our future right now, all across the board."

Jarmond Didn't Stop There

Jarmond then went on to point out the success UCLA had in this year's recruiting and transfer windows across all sports, highlighted by football acquiring quarterback Nico Iamaleava and basketball landing point guard Donovan Dent.

Mar 23, 2025; Cleveland, OH, USA; New Mexico Lobos guard Donovan Dent (2) dribbles in the second half against the Michigan State Spartans during the NCAA Tournament Second Round at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

"Think about this," he said. "Both in men's basketball and football, we got arguably the number one transfer[s]. [They] chose UCLA. Think about that. Men's basketball and football, top transfer, wanted to be a Bruin. You look at baseball; College World Series, probably gonna preseason No. 1 in the country. Arguably got the best player in the country. Roch [Cholowsky] is amazing. But it's a team, it's the whole team. We got almost all the starters back, and they got the number one recruiting class.

"Speaking of No. 1 recruiting class, men's soccer has the No. 1 recruiting class. Gymnastics: top-four recruiting class in the country, and Jordan Chiles is coming back. Women's basketball: Final Four, reloaded, Cori [Close] has done an outstanding job.

"Across the board in our sports, we have excellent, talented student-athletes. We got great coaches. And we're in a chaotic time in college athletics, and the one thing that you can control is the people you do it with, and the excellence that you can recruit and retain, and I love our coaches and what they've done."

It took Jarmond all but four minutes to silence a year's worth of doubt. And yet, despite running the table in its first year in the conference, UCLA has yet to reach its ceiling.

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