Yesterday was a day that ended with a Y. Surely that means there was more UCLA athletics drama. Not only did the Rose Bowl request a restraining order against UCLA due to the university nearing a deal to host football games at Sofi Stadium, UCLA donors are going on X (formerly Twitter) to bag on Bruin athletic director Martin Jarmond.
Getting torched online is nothing new for Jarmond, but when it’s coming from donors who help keep the Bruins football program afloat, it must sting just a little bit more. It appears if UCLA is blatantly breaking their lease by discussing stadium deals with other Los Angeles County stadiums but rather than re-negotiating their deal with the Rose Bowl, Jarmond is content to burn some bridges and then take whichever one doesn’t go down in flames.
College football insider Mark Schipper was discussing UCLA’s mess on Twitter/X on Monday and UCLA donor Christopher Rising chined in his two cents on the situation.
“Not like @MartinJarmond has cared about donors who gave to the @RoseBowlStadium, never even bothered to come by our suite over the years. @UCLAchancellor has made no effort to engage the donors who were asked to give to the Rose Bowl on behalf of UCLA over the years. It’s absolute betrayal of all donors. I was actually told by UCLA that the football program’s poor performance was due to playing at The Rose Bowl. What a joke and typical of not owning their own problems,” Rising posted.
While Jarmond and UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk may be able to tune out most of the Bruins fanbase, they can’t afford to ignore donors, not when UCLA football’s NIL collective is among the lowest in the Big Ten.
“Not to mention the fact that they blatantly violated their lease and the clause that said they would have no discussions with venues in LA County until 2044. They only potentially make more when they figure out how to sell another 30 suites they cannot sell at the Rose Bowl. Oh, and that’s after donors to the Terry Donahue Pavilion and the Rose Bowl Legacy sue for fraud because they were asked to give money to UCLA through their Rose Bowl Legacy donations. The administration really needs to read their lease, sad they declared a move before looking beyond a pro forma provided by self interested SoFi.” Rising added in another reply.
UCLA has lost enough on the football field, they can’t lose their donors too.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: UCLA donors aren’t impressed with how school is handling potential stadium move
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
