UCLA coach Bob Chesney grades Bruins on effort not perfection

UCLA football coach Bob Chesney wasn’t looking for star performances during the Bruins’ first spring practice Thursday. Instead, he wanted his players to focus on the responsibility of doing their best.

“We’re talking about the mirror test. Don’t worry about what your coach says, don’t worry about what your other teammates say,” Chesney said. “Go look in the mirror. He’s really the only guy who will know, isn’t he?”

There was excitement and intensity but we didn’t expect perfection. For the new head coach, it was a question of whether the fundamentals UCLA worked on throughout the winter will be retained, he said.

“As I look at this here, the things that don’t require skill, the things that don’t require good genetics, are the things I wanted to focus on today more than anything — effort,” Chesney said.

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava stretches with his teammates at Spaulding Field on Thursday.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

“We’ll watch the film and figure out the rest, but I didn’t think it was a bad day.”

Chesney said he plans to build on each practice and that his coaching staff will set a standard that will trickle down to the players. He said there would always be something to improve on and something to build on.

Ta’Shawn James, a defensive back who transferred from Iowa to UCLA, showed strength during drills — an encouraging sign early in his progression.

“This is the first day, this is the first time we’ve run full speed, this is the first time we’ve seen people here redirect, what his makeup speed looks like,” Chesney said. “When he makes a mistake, how quickly can he recover? What’s his range in the open field? What’s the speed differential? All those things are things we look at on almost everyone.”

Running back Wayne Knight followed Chesney from James Madison and adds to an already stout group of running backs that could become one of the team’s deepest units.

“I don’t want to name names, but they’re all physical, they’re all downhill players. They protect the football well. Their bodies are phenomenal,” Chesney said. “…There are things in this room that are just a little different right now, so we have to keep them healthy, make them play downhill and do what they do.

At right tackle, the competition is wide open.

“A lot of guys, we’re not really able to sort that out yet. Give me a few more days. But, right now, there’s a lot of guys shooting in a lot of different places,” Chesney said.

As spring practice begins, it’s not about individuality, Chesney said, but about identifying and correcting mistakes.

“Dwelling on the past, if it was bad, won’t get you anywhere. Getting too high on the good times won’t get you anywhere,” he said.

Chesney wants his team to play without any limitations or hesitation.

“You set those standards, you hold those standards, you hold them accountable to those standards, not just the coaches and the players, but everyone who is a part of that program.

UCLA coach Bob Chesney leads the Bruins through their first spring football practices Thursday.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

“It starts to build confidence within the team,” he added.

UCLA social media accounts highlighted Chesney’s efforts throughout the offseason to preach personal responsibility and serving others, doling out a mix of life lessons from John Wooden and Ted Lasso.

Chesney reiterated at the start of the next chapter — spring football practices — that he wants his players to continue striving to be great people. If they hope to succeed on the field, Chesney says, they must first succeed off it.

“You can only be one degree of separation from how you live your life,” he said. “…We don’t have bad guys who are bad students, who are bad teammates, we don’t have any of that, we have really good guys so they have a chance to be great at football.”

Alumnus donates $10 million

UCLA alumnus Angelo Mazzone III has committed $10 million to the football program to help maintain the infrastructure needed to compete at the highest level.

“For him to be as generous as he is and willing to help us, I think that’s a big deal,” Chesney said. “It just speaks to the investment and confidence that people have in this program right now and rightly so.”