UCLA students no longer have a common excuse to skip out on reveling in the excitement surrounding their football program.
New Bruins athletic director Tim Harris, a longtime Los Angeles Lakers executive who replaced a fired Martin Jarmond on Aug. 31, announced Wednesday that admission to all regular-season home football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball games is now free for UCLA students.
“Our students are the heartbeat of UCLA,” Harris said in a statement. “Their passion, energy and pride create an atmosphere that makes a difference for our student-athletes and coaches.
“We want as many students as possible experiencing UCLA Athletics, supporting their fellow Bruins and helping us build one of the best home environments in college sports. We need our students to show up, be loud and make a difference.”
“Our students are the heartbeat of UCLA,” Harris said in a statement. “Their passion, energy and pride create an atmosphere that makes a difference for our student-athletes and coaches.
“We want as many students as possible experiencing UCLA Athletics, supporting their fellow Bruins and helping us build one of the best home environments in college sports. We need our students to show up, be loud and make a difference.”
The policy goes into effect on Saturday, when the Bruins will host the Purdue Boilermakers on the gridiron at the Rose Bowl. UCLA is 2-0 under first-year head coach Bob Chesney.
Chesney has rejuvenated a program that won a combined eight games over its first two seasons in the Big Ten. The 2026 Bruins can match their 2025 win total with a victory over Purdue this week.
The 49-year-old Chesney has won at every level he’s served as a head coach, from Division III Salve Regina to Division II Assumption to FCS Holy Cross to James Madison, whom he guided to the College Football Playoff last season. He brought several JMU staffers and playmakers with him to UCLA, and the transition’s off to a seamless start so far.
That said, the Bruins could use more support. The announced attendance for last week’s home opener, a 28-10 win against San Diego State, was 31,973 fans. The Rose Bowl, which has been the home of UCLA football since 1982 in addition to housing one of the sport’s most iconic postseason games, has a current seating capacity of 91,136.
While idyllic, the stadium is a ways away from UCLA’s Westwood campus. Students can bus to the Rose Bowl on gamedays, although they still will have to pay for that transport, as stated in the department’s release on Wednesday. Single-game passes for The Rooter Bus are available for $15, and a season pass is $60.
Beginning on the Monday of every week there’s a home football game, eligible UCLA undergraduate and graduate students can claim complimentary tickets through their student ticket account, per the release, which also notes that students who purchased a 2026-27 “Den Pass” — a pass that gave UCLA students access to all home football and men’s basketball games — will receive an automatic refund by Sept. 25.
Such passes are common at schools, as are other kinds of student-ticket packages. But UCLA is eliminating that cost under Harris.
“We have an exciting team led by Bob Chesney and a lot of momentum surrounding UCLA Athletics,” Harris said in his statement.
“Now it’s time for our students to help set the standard. Arrive early. Be loud. Be relentless. We can’t wait to see a sea of Bruin Blue at the Rose Bowl this Saturday.”
Harris, a UCLA alumnus and former soccer player, doubles as the “CEO” of the school’s athletic department. He took over for Jarmond on a pro-bono basis after spending more than 35 years with the Lakers.
Harris specializes in business operations and has the difficult task of navigating the Bruins through a significant financial deficit. While Wednesday’s policy doesn’t directly improve the school’s standing in that regard, it could indirectly, with potentially increased buzz for a football program possibly on the brink of a head-turning season.
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