Michael Bartlett ’90

Meet Michael Bartlett ’90, the new Las Vegas Alumni Network President. For more than 40 years, he’s been coming to UCLA games as a child, college student and alumnus. He’s currently riding a 32 year streak of consecutive home games at the Rose Bowl; the last nine commuting from Las Vegas. In this interview we find out what’s behind his unwavering commitment and how his love for the blue and gold is uniting and exciting alumni in Las Vegas.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.
I am the West Coast Reporter for Credit Union Journal. It is a national, niche publication that is read by people who run credit unions, which are a consumer-friendly alternative to banks. Being sports editor of the Daily Bruin was the start of my writing career.

What makes you such a devoted Bruin?
When people ask how I came to be so devoted to UCLA, I say I was raised in a very Bruin family! My mom, Jeanne ᾿52, grew up in Westwood and went to UCLA. My dad, Ken, was President of the Ventura County Bruins even though he did not attend UCLA. One of my uncles and multiple cousins also went to UCLA.

My first UCLA Football game was vs. Cal, Oct. 27, 1973, when I was 8 years old. I will never forget walking out of the dark Coliseum tunnel into the sunlight and seeing those gorgeous, powder blue uniforms and gold helmets. Jimmy Allen ᾿74 returned an interception 108 yards for a touchdown, UCLA blasted Cal, 61-21, and I was hooked!

A couple months later I attended my first basketball game in Pauley Pavilion, a holiday tournament vs. Michigan. I was mesmerized by the student section doing 8-claps. I immediately thought, “I want to be there when I’m 18.”

Talk about your attendance streak.
My mom always talked about never missing a home game while she was in school. That seemed a pretty reasonable goal. After going to a number of games from 1973-78, my family went to fewer and fewer the next couple years largely because we did not like going to the Coliseum. But when UCLA signed the contract to play at the Rose Bowl in 1982, my dad immediately signed us up for season tickets. That was my senior year of high school. After that first year in Section 3, I spent the next several in the student section. I have had season tickets ever since I graduated.

I went to a total of 195 games in 32 seasons. This year’s game vs. USC will be my 200th consecutive home game!

How did you work around illness, conflicting schedules and other commitments?
The first time I had a close call was 1991, when there was a work conflict with a game in November. At that point it was a 9-year streak, and it was important enough to me to keep the streak going that I told my boss he should respect it and give me the night off. Didn’t work, I got fired! Oh well, I didn’t like that job anyway.

Luckily, I don’t get sick very often, so missing a game due to illness has never been an issue. The only other close calls both involved weddings. In summer 2001 my then-wife’s brother was planning a wedding for Sept. 14, 2002, which was a home game. I had her ask her brother to bump it to Sept. 28, which worked! Just weeks later a friend from my Daily Bruin Sports days – who should have known better! – scheduled his wedding in Simi Valley for Sept. 15, 2001, when we had a night game vs. Ohio State. I would have been very late to the game. The wedding, and the game, were postponed a week by the September 11 terrorist attacks. Kickoff was moved to noon, and I ended up having to leave the game at the start of the fourth quarter to make the wedding.

What’s it like commuting from Las Vegas the last 9 seasons?
When I bought my house in Las Vegas in 2005, I deliberately chose to live in the southern half of the city to be closer to California. Driving in for every game does take planning and dedication, of course, but those six Saturdays come first on my calendar. Although my dad died in 1999, my mom still goes with me to every game. (She has only missed four games in the last 32 years and this Nov. 1 we’ll celebrate her 85th birthday at the Arizona game!) I drive to her house in Ventura County on Friday night of game weekend, we go to the Rose Bowl on Saturday, and then it is back to Las Vegas on Sunday.

What keeps the steak going?
UCLA Football is not a chore, it is an entire day of fun with family and friends. I love tailgating. I love the walk up to the Rose Bowl. I love the band and the Spirit Squad. And I love the passion and excitement of college football. I have never considered not going to a game due to the opponent, or our team’s record, or anything else. I was raised that a faithful fan loves his team and supports it no matter what.

Tell us how the Las Vegas Alumni Network came to be.
When I moved to Las Vegas I found myself far from friends and family, and not knowing anyone. There was no UCLA Alumni Chapter so I volunteered to set up one, but back then there was no support. Thanks to the hard work of several people at UCLA, starting with Brooke Sanders, who got the ball rolling, Katherine Dureault ᾿87, and a bunch of great Bruins here in Vegas, the network finally, officially came together this year.

How is your passion for UCLA Football related to your decision to get involved as a volunteer?
My passion is not just for UCLA Football, I believe UCLA is the greatest school in the world. Its combination of academics, research, history, location, campus beauty, championship athletics and student life is incomparable. I want to do anything I can to keep alumni in the area connected, and also to establish a pipeline of well-qualified scholars from Nevada heading to Westwood to continue our tradition of Bruin excellence. My hope is the Las Vegas Network will grow to the point that we, along with visiting California Bruins, can put a dent in the huge fan advantage Arizona has had the first two years of the Pac-12 Tournament. And just to plant a bug in everyone’s ear now: UCLA Football plays at UNLV Sept. 12, 2015. Let’s dominate Sam Boyd Stadium with blue!

What advice would you have for anyone who wants to start an alumni network in their town?
Know that starting an alumni network is a long process. For us it took more than a year from initial interest meetings to actually having officers. Start by organizing game-watching parties for UCLA Football and Men’s Basketball. Or, don’t be afraid to have an event that has nothing to do with school, such as meeting for happy hour, going to a play or even a picnic at a park. Work with the Alumni Association to identify Bruins in your area, set up an event, then send out an email. The first few events might not get much traction, but keep trying. Facebook groups are easy to set up and a great way to spread the word.

Name your top 10 games at the Rose Bowl.
10) 2012 UCLA 66, Arizona 10, buoyed by beating Arizona State on a last-second field goal in Tempe the week before, the Bruins dominated from start to finish before a raucous night crowd. Jonathan Franklin broke Gaston Green’s career rushing record on a 37-yard TD run less than 3 minutes in, as UCLA led 21-0 after one quarter and 42-3 at half.

9) 1982 UCLA 38, Stanford 35, in a battle of senior quarterbacks who were high school rivals in the San Fernando Valley a few years earlier, Tom Ramsey passes for 314 yards (back when 300-yard games were not a dime a dozen), outdueling John Elway.

8) 1993 UCLA 39, Washington 25, the No. 12-ranked Huskies were three-time defending Pac-10 champions, and raced to a 15-0 lead. It appeared UCLA would be shut out in the first quarter, but a defensive penalty on UW gave the Bruins one untimed down with 0:00 on the clock. J.J. Stokes took a short slant from Wayne Cook and raced 95 yards for a TD to start the Bruin comeback (and 20 years later, it’s still the longest pass play in UCLA history!).

7) 1984 Rose Bowl, UCLA 45, Illinois 9, the Illini were 10-1 and ranked No. 4, but the Bruins showed their 6-4-1 record was a result of an absurdly difficult non-conference schedule (at Georgia, at Nebraska, home BYU with Steve Young at QB). Future Bruin coaches Rick Neuheisel and Karl Dorrell hook up on 2 TD passes.

6) 1988 UCLA 41, Nebraska 28, the No. 5 Bruins blank the No. 2 Cornhuskers, 28-0 in the first quarter as Troy Aikman sets himself up to be the No. 1 pick of the 1989 NFL Draft.

5) 2012 UCLA 38, USC 28, a game that may end up higher on this list as years pass. Redshirt freshman QB Brett Hundley shows Trojan fans their glory days have ended. And who will ever forget Trojan QB Matt Barkley being planted in the rain-soaked Rose Bowl turf by Anthony Barr?

4) 2006 UCLA 13, USC 9, an amazing Bruin defensive effort shocks the No. 2-ranked Trojans, keeping them out of the BCS Championship Game. Eric McNeal intercepts John David Booty late as UCLA shuts out USC in the second half.

3) 1992 UCLA 38, USC 37, often called the “John Barnes Game.” The former sixth-string walk-on has the game of his life, passing for 385 yards, and hits J.J. Stokes for a 90-yard TD late. After a USC touchdown pulls the Trojans within one point, Nkosi Littleton knocks away Rob Johnson’s two-point conversion pass.

2) 1982 UCLA 20, USC 19, in what may have been college football’s first unofficial “overtime” game. After a USC touchdown with no time remaining, Karl Morgan sacks Scott Tinsley on a two-point conversion to send UCLA to the 1983 Rose Bowl Game.

1) 1996 UCLA 48, USC 41, double overtime. The Bruins are down by 17 points four different times, including 38-21 with 6:30 left, but rally to tie the score in the final minute of regulation, then block a USC field goal try at the gun. Skip Hicks scores the game winning TD in the second OT, breaking seven tackles on a 25-yard run.