Richard, a Bruin alumnus and long-time UCLA Football season ticket holder, is one of my seatmates at the Rose Bowl. I just recently found out that on March 13 Richard suffered serious brain injuries as a result of striking his head on the ground when he was hit by a car while riding his bicycle.

All you need to know about Richard is this statement from his blog: "I am the luckiest man in the world because I was immediately transported to the UCLA Trauma Center where I have been receiving great care on my path to recovery." A true-blue Bruin.

After spending 10 days in the ICU at UCLA then additional stays at another couple of hospitals, Richard is presently at a transitional rehab center. He has received tremendous care and support from an array of physicians, nurses, physical and speech therapists, support staff, and most of all his friends and family, especially his brother and sister (both Bruins). As his brother says, there were a lot of peaks and valleys, but Richard is making extraordinary progress and is expected to make a full and complete recovery Obviously, I've left out a lot of details. Suffice it to say he is lucky to be alive.

But what does this have to do with the UCLA Football Team?

Sky (another Bruin), my wife, and I attended the Spring Scrimmage. Sky had a great idea: after the game, let's see if a few of the players would be willing to allow us to record them giving get-well wishes to Richard. Okay, I'm game. With my wife acting as spotter identifying prospective players and Sky as spokesperson, we managed to create this video:

Wow. What a bunch of classy guys. Despite the time constraints and vying for attention with all the other fans, we were able to get those 21 players on the video. Every player we approached was incredibly gracious and happy to help, switching gears from having just played the spring game to giving words of encouragement to a fellow Bruin. We are impressed with the many thoughtful and sincere sentiments expressed. I'm sure that had we had the time, we'd surely get the same from every member of the team.

Richard expresses his deep appreciation to the players as it really made his day and says he will definitely be at his regular seat at the Rose Bowl in the Fall to cheer on these great student-athletes.

Sincerest Thanks to:

Go Bruins!