UCLA Football Facility To Be Named After Wasserman

The UCLA Athletic Department announced today that the new football facility will be named the Wasserman Football Center due to the support of the Wasserman Foundation and UCLA alum Casey Wasserman.

The Wasserman Foundation also provided support for the renovation of Pauley Pavilion.

It's very clear that Casey Wasserman understands how important athletics, in general, and football, in particular, is to UCLA.

In a UCLA Athletics press release, Wasserman said:

UCLA's athletics are an anchor to this university, both for students and alumni. It is a privilege to be involved in the development and legacy of the new Center, and I am grateful to Coach Mora for his dedication to his team, and to Dan and Gene for stewarding a commitment to build the best facility for UCLA athletes and students.

Coach Mora also knows that Casey understands the importance of UCLA football and UCLA athletics:

Casey understands what a special place UCLA is. He knows first-hand that this is where dreams are cultivated and foundations for remarkable achievements are laid. What he has done is ensure that generations of student-athletes will walk through the doors of the Wasserman Football Center and have the opportunity to pursue greatness. I hope others will help make a very real difference for both our program and our student-athletes.

With the commitment from the Wasserman Foundation, the Athletic Department has now received $43 million in cash and pledges in a year since the facility was announced. It would appear that the goal raising more than $50 million in private funds for estimated construction and finishing costs before ground is broken in the Fall of 2015 will easily be accomplished.

That said, plenty of naming opportunities remain. For a mere $250K, you can name the Coaches' Kitchen after yourself or in honor of your favorite website for UCLA fans.