The UCLA Bruins lost 28-21 to the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Week 11 of the college football season, dropping to 3-6 overall. The Bruins’ rally from 27-7 down in the third quarter fell just short as the home fans inside the Rose Bowl cheered their team on.
These cheers might die out in the coming seasons, as analysts highlight a different approach for the home team playing at the Rose Bowl.
Analyst Blasts UCLA’s Proposed $80M Move From Rose Bowl
On Sunday, 247Sports reporter Tracy Pierson revealed that the Bruins were planning to abandon the iconic Rose Bowl and play their games at SoFi Stadium starting with the 2026 college football season.
According to the report, the Bruins’ athletic department believes that the expected revenue from the luxury suites and premium seating will make the move financially worthwhile. The SoFi Stadium was opened five years ago and has a capacity of 70,240. It currently hosts the two local NFL franchises, the Los Angeles Chargers and the Los Angeles Rams, while the Bruins have played at the 89,702-seater Rose Bowl since 1982.
During Tuesday’s segment of the “Aaron Torres” podcast, analyst Aaron Torres blasted the Bruins’ proposed moves to SoFi Stadium due to the lack of a college football culture associated with the newer venue.
Torres said, “There is essentially no game day atmosphere to speak of at SoFi. It’s a beautiful place to watch a game, but there’s no tailgating scene. I don’t think that there is this huge collection of UCLA fans that are itching to go to UCLA games but just don’t want to go to the Rose Bowl.”
He then emphasized how it was not a stadium problem, but a mindset one. “I think they don’t want to go to UCLA games because UCLA stinks and I don’t think that moving to SoFi Stadium makes it more likely that they go to games if the team is not better,” he added,
Torres further pointed out why the Bruins should not be paying the reported $80 million to get out of their lease with the Rose Bowl, detailing their athletic department’s cumulative budget deficiency of $219 million over the past six years.
The program has a lease with the Rose Bowl Operating Company and the City of Pasadena that runs through 2044, which explains the expense of the buyout.
“Basically, you’re taking everything that teams love about going to games, you’re giving them none of that at SoFi Stadium,” Torres said. “You’re just banking on, ‘It’s closer, it’s new, people are gonna come.’ I don’t buy it.”
He then went on to explain what was wrong with the entire situation here: “This is a terrible idea, and it’s made worse by the fact that they’re gonna have to pay $60-80 million to get out of this lease. It is criminal for this specific athletic department that is operating at a deficit ($51.84 million), bringing the total deficit over a six-year period to $219 million.”
According to Pierson, a lawsuit was filed on Oct. 29, 2025, by the City of Pasadena and the Rose Bowl Operating Company against the Bruins’ proposed move to SoFi Stadium. According to the lawsuit, the move would cause up to $1 billion in damages. And being ranked 35th in the PFSN’s College Football Offense Impact does not make situations any better for the team.
