UCLA Football’s offensive lineman Raikwon O’Neill told reporters after a fall camp session Sunday morning. O’Neill explained why he was drawn to Westwood after deciding to leave Rutgers University, how he aims to balance young and old voices when trying to become a leader, and actually the most We talked about where we get a lot of work and how we’re starting to adapt. Southern California lifestyle.
Welcome to Westwood
Thank you for calling me. i love it here So far, so good. I love it here, especially since I’m from the East Coast. It’s a big change for me. I mean, her four years in Jersey really helped me transition and I really liked it here.
How did that transition take place?
It’s a hiring process and I’ve reached out to both parties and feel this is the best fit for me.
How was UCLA?
It was development inside and outside the field. Especially for what I want to do after football, this is the best path for me after football, because I want to do something in the media and on television. I was thinking about football alone, but also about life after football.
What are you studying?
Currently, I am involved in business and entertainment.
are you studying us?
Yes Yes Yes. I want to do what you are doing.
What’s your experience so far?
i love it here Everything I’ve been through is getting better every day. I want to be 1% better every day. That’s the goal. It’s about coming here, flying, flying, and doing everything at full speed. We make mistakes, but that’s part of life. You make mistakes, but you make mistakes.
Take others under your wing?
Yes, I am also learning from young people. Because it’s part of being a leader. You can also learn from young people. We have experience, but they teach us things we don’t know, so we learn from each other.
what are you learning from them?
I think it’s about reading tech and defense, especially since I haven’t seen it and neither have they.
Did you laugh when you heard UCLA moved to the Big Ten?
I laughed. My phone was exploding. My phone didn’t stop ringing. come on big ten I was like, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
What would it be like for these people to travel to New Jersey?
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I mean, it should be a good experience for them, right? You don’t always get the chance to go to the West Coast or the East Coast, so it would be a great experience for both sides.
Rutgers home game in late November?
compared to here? hey you It depends on what you get, you might get cold with strong winds or you might get cold with snow and wind.
Have you ever played a game of Snow Bowl?
Oh, it’s a snow game, not a snow bowl. Maybe there was a lot of snow that week, but it was really, really cold in that game, so yeah, so it’s a different experience here in LA or on the West Coast where you’re always in the sun.
Have you been to LA before?
I was here once for vacation and that’s it. Just once.
how do you adjust? Are you following the lead of your teammates?
So yeah, just trying to pick up on what they’re doing, all this around, my environment, really adapting. i love it here
beach day?
no. I’m not really a beach guy. Spend more time unloading playbooks in the movie room.
More left tackles than right tackles?
I play left tackle and we are versatile, learning and preparing for every position.
DTR and Charbonnet?
I love it. Not just them, but our entire team. Not just the two of us, but our entire team. We are balanced as a team.
How does Rutgers compare to UCLA?
My experience here has been wonderful. It was love in both places. It was love both places and it was love here. It’s a really strong culture in both places and I love it.
Impressed that Mafi lost 70 pounds?
yeah yeah. I am really impressed and really happy with him. I am amazed to hear about it. I’ve seen it before too, so it’s really impressive how we big guys can do it and keep it up. Prove it wrong.
DiGiorgio is a young man fighting over snaps without Ryan and Anderson, but what did you see from him?
I was really impressed with him. Not just him, but all of our young guys come here to work in the cinema room, study extra, get extra work. I was really impressed, not just by one, but by all the young men there.
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