UCLA football adds ‘winning mentality’ with early signing class – Daily Bulletin

Coach Chip Kelly and the UCLA football team saw 13 of its 14 high school prospects sign on the first day of the early signing period for the class of 2023.

Quarterback Dante Moore from Detroit King High headlines the class as a top five 247sports consensus quarterback.

Moore announced his commitment to the Bruins on Monday, after flipping from Oregon.

“I think as they had a coaching change (at Oregon) he reached out to us and we just picked up where we left off with him (from two years ago),” Kelly said. “We got a chance to visit with him at his house in Detroit and then they came in for a visit about two weeks ago. … We are excited to have him be part of this class.”

With fifth-year starting quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson exhausting his eligibility, Moore will have the opportunity to compete for the starting role.

The Bruins’ class also featured three-star quarterback Luke Duncan of Orinda Miramonte High.

Moore is one of six players in the class to win a high school championship in their senior season. The other five prospects all won CIF State championships in California.

“There is a certain winning mindset that attracts you to a lot of these prospects and the fact that so many of them were a part of state championship operations is a big deal,” Kelly said. “When you look to evaluate prospects you want to see if they help make their teams better and in all of those cases they did.”

The UCLA to Bosco pipeline appears strong after the Bruins added a pair of defensive backs, Ty Lee and RJ Jones, who won the CIF State Open Division Championship this month.

Lee credits the Bruins’ inside linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr., the “beautiful campus” and the highly touted academics for helping make UCLA the best fit for him.

“It’s a place I want to be,” Lee said. “It’s where champions are made. … I think I’ll be able to bring my winning mentality and my championship mentality to UCLA and set a trend where we are champions.”

The duo helps replenish depth in the Bruins’ secondary which will lose Mo Osling III and Bosco alumnus Stephen Blaylock.

“I pay attention to (Blaylock),” Jones said. “Most of the time I’m watching UCLA football, I am watching him to see what he does.

“Coach (Brian) Norwood compares me a lot to him because of our mindset for the game and the mental aspect of it. Watching him play, I can see myself doing it as well.”

Chula Vista Mater Dei Catholic’s receiver Jeremiah McClure, linebacker Tre Edwards and Liberty defensive lineman Grant Buckey from Bakersfield were the other players coming off championship seasons.

Kelly also credits some of UCLA’s recent success as a factor in how well the recruiting process has gone. The Bruins have put two winning seasons together after finishing below .500 during the first three years with Kelly at the helm.

“It’s always a positive when you can get anybody that’s coming in from a winning program and we got some guys that have won a lot of football games at the high school level.”

Three of the Bruins players were listed as athletes prior to signing day but the graphics released on social media revealed what position two of them are expected to play.