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Pac-12 Football Media Day 2022: Pair of Vets Get Shot to Represent UCLA

Stephan Blaylock and Jon Gaines II are entering their fifth year with the Bruins, earning the spotlight Friday in Los Angeles.
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The Bruins are projected to be one of the top contenders in the Pac-12, with the annual preseason media poll slotting them comfortably into the No. 4 position in the conference.

If you ask the pundits who ranked them so high, most would cite the return of big names and watch list darlings like quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and running back Zach Charbonnet, or the arrival of high-profile transfers such as receiver Jake Bobo and linebacker Darius Muasau.

None of them were there to represent UCLA football at Pac-12 Football Media Day in Downtown Los Angeles on Friday, though. Instead, a pair of other fifth-year veterans got to take center stage – safety Stephan Blaylock and offensive lineman Jon Gaines II.

Coach Chip Kelly said he originally approached Thompson-Robinson to discuss being one of the team's representatives for the second year in a row. The team's incumbent starting quarterback, however, told Kelly he'd rather pass the spotlight along to someone else.

"He said 'I think it'd be really important for somebody else to go – I went last year.' That's kinda Dorian and his leadership role," Kelly said. "He told me 'You should bring Gainesy, he'd be awesome to talk to.' And we were on the same page that way."

Gaines arrived in Westwood back in 2018, Kelly's first year in town. After not seeing any game action in UCLA's first 11 contests, Gaines finally got some snaps in the regular season finale versus Stanford.

That started a streak of 32 consecutive games played for Gaines, who has started every game the past two seasons at either center or right guard. Gaines has managed to pave the way for top ball-carriers like Charbonnet, Joshua Kelley, Demetric Felton and Brittain Brown, while also improving Thompson-Robinson's pass protection.

Gaines reflected on his journey so far in a sitdown with the local media, highlighting the heights he's been able to reach thanks to the support the program has given him.

"I was a 250-pound offensive lineman from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, and through the guidance of my family, my coaches and my teammates, I'm here being able to represent them," Gaines said. "The same way that a lot of us, the guys that came in early like Dorian and Blay, we came in when this program was not on the best track. We've been catalysts in changing that, being a player-led team. Being here, it's an honor to represent the team and my brothers."

Now measuring in at 6-foot-4, 300-pounds, Gaines even earned a preseason All-Pac-12 honorable mention nod, right alongside Thompson-Robinson and Blaylock.

Blaylock joined the Bruins the same year Gaines did, but unlike the offensive lineman, the defensive back has been an everyday contributor since day one.

Next to defensive lineman-turned-offensive lineman Atonio Mafi, Blaylock is one of two players on the roster who has appeared in all 43 games since Chip Kelly took over in 2018.

Kelly was well aware of the fact that Blaylock can break the all-time record for most appearances in a UCLA uniform in 2022, should he remain healthy. Considering the coach follows the philosophy of availability being the best ability, Blaylock has done exactly what has been asked of him so far in his career.

"He's truly the captain of our defense," Kelly said. "He makes all the calls on the secondary, the back end. Having him at one safety and Mo Osling at the other safety ... makes you feel good."

With Quentin Lake and Qwuantrezz Knight leaving the defensive backs room for the NFL earlier in the offseason, Blaylock has been thrust into a more direct leadership role on and off the field. 

Blaylock said he's had to set an example for the younger players during summer workouts, especially, showing incoming freshmen how to study the playbook and get ahead of the curve without any coaches present. Capping off his final summer with the program with an appearance at Pac-12 Media Day only felt right, he said.

"Me showing up my last year, I feel like it's perfect timing, really," Blaylock said. "Knowing how everything has unfolded over the years and what I've accomplished with this team and for myself, I just want to say it's huge being here."

Beyond the dues that they've paid to reach this point, Gaines and Blaylock are, simply put, representative players for UCLA's current roster.

Both of them already have their undergraduate degrees, and they have 19 teammates who have done the same. In what could have been a rebuilding or transition year, UCLA managed to build out a roster of veteran players across the board thanks to extra COVID eligibility and the transfer portal.

That aged roster still does not have much postseason experience, though, with UCLA not playing in a bowl game since the 2017 campaign. Thompson-Robinson, Gaines, Blaylock and company nearly broke that streak last year when they guided the Bruins to an 8-4 record, but the Holiday Bowl against North Carolina State was called off just hours before kickoff due to a COVID-19 outbreak on the UCLA side.

"To be honest, I was hurt," Blaylock said. "When I heard the news, I was in shock, disbelief. I had to leave the team room and – to be honest – go back to my room and cry."

UCLA will open the season with four games in which it will be heavily favored, paving a very clear path towards bowl eligibility this time around. The two dozen or so players who are entering their final year of eligibility would, in that case, be able to go out in the postseason – something the last four classes of Bruins have not been able to accomplish.

From an intense focus on academics to leadership experience and other veteran tendencies, there are a lot of shared values going through the Bruins' locker room this season as they prepare to reach and exceed those heights. Blaylock and Gaines, as it turns out, personify those qualities best.

"I think those two guys kind of epitomize what we're looking for in football players and are great representatives at UCLA," Kelly said.

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