You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
malibusurfsidenews.com sports<br />
Malibu surfside news | June 13, 2019 | 27<br />
Magna has<br />
something Bruin<br />
Malibu lineman is<br />
preferred walk-on<br />
for nearby UCLA<br />
Joe Coughlin, Publisher<br />
All Malibu’s Dovid Magna<br />
needed from a college<br />
experience was happiness.<br />
He didn’t have to go<br />
far to find it, as one look<br />
inside the athletic facilities<br />
at UCLA provided<br />
all the joy he was looking<br />
for.<br />
“It was one of the craziest<br />
things I have ever seen,”<br />
Magna said. “My jaw kind<br />
of dropped, because of<br />
what I’m used to for training.”<br />
An All-League lineman<br />
for Malibu High, Magna<br />
was searching for a place<br />
he could earn a quality<br />
education. If he got to<br />
play football, too, all the<br />
better.<br />
And at 6 feet 4 inches<br />
and 265 pounds, Magna<br />
caught the eye of multiple<br />
collegiate programs. One<br />
of them was UCLA, a university<br />
to which Magna had<br />
already applied.<br />
He was awaiting an acceptance<br />
letter when UCLA<br />
football coaches contacted<br />
him about joining the team<br />
as a preferred walk-on.<br />
A campus visit sealed the<br />
deal.<br />
“The goal for me was to<br />
play and be truly happy,”<br />
Magna said. “Not many<br />
schools have the balance of<br />
both football and education<br />
that UCLA offers.”<br />
Magna and his family<br />
came to Malibu just two<br />
What’s this?<br />
Going Places is a<br />
summer feature series<br />
that profiles a local<br />
college-bound studentathlete.<br />
If you have<br />
questions or want<br />
to recommend an<br />
athlete, email editor@<br />
malibusurfsidenews.<br />
com.<br />
years ago from the East<br />
Coast.<br />
His first year with the<br />
Sharks Magna was named<br />
the team’s top defensive<br />
lineman. A year later, he<br />
played on both sides of the<br />
ball and was Citrus Coast<br />
All-League honorable<br />
mention.<br />
As the Sharks largest<br />
player, Magna played on<br />
the interior of the line on<br />
defense. At UCLA, a Division<br />
I program in the<br />
prestigious Pacific Athletic<br />
Conference, or Pac-12, he<br />
will not hold the “largest”<br />
title and said coaches are<br />
looking at him as a defensive<br />
end.<br />
That being said, Magna<br />
still hopes to put on some<br />
weight to compete for playing<br />
time and play among<br />
the nation’s best.<br />
Magna thinks he has<br />
what it takes and not just<br />
because of his size.<br />
“I’ll train just as I’ve<br />
done in the past, take the<br />
advice of my coaches and<br />
teammates, learn everything<br />
I can and use it to my<br />
advantage,” he said. “I’m<br />
a hard worker, dedicated.<br />
I persevere, I’m not going<br />
down without a fight.”<br />
Dovid Magna (54), who played two years for the Sharks, stands with family members on Malibu High’s senior night in<br />
2018. Surfside News File Photos<br />
Go time is coming soon<br />
for Magna, who will report<br />
to UCLA June 23 for orientation<br />
and soon after begin<br />
training with the team.<br />
UCLA’s roster is filled<br />
with scholarship athletes,<br />
and Magna will have to<br />
outperform some of them<br />
to earn a spot on the field<br />
— and maybe a scholarship<br />
eventually.<br />
He’s ready to get started.<br />
“I’m definitely looking<br />
forward to it,” he said. “It’s<br />
going to be a lot of fun. I love<br />
the competition and love the<br />
challenge, and I’ll build my<br />
way up from there.”<br />
RIGHT: Magna (54),<br />
pictured paving the way for<br />
running back Dane Kapler,<br />
played both ways for a<br />
shorthanded 2018 Sharks<br />
squad.
Change language