UCLA Hall Of Fame Inductees Jose Lopez
Hall of Fame Class of 1993
In 1993, Jose Lopez became the first-ever soccer player inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame. Lopez was a four-year letterman from 1970-73 and a two-year team captain who led his teams to the NCAA Championship games in 1970, 1972 and 1973 and to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 1971. His 1970 and 1973 teams held undefeated regular season records, and his teams never lost a home game in his four years as a Bruin. After earning two all-conference honors and being selected to play in the 1973 Senior Bowl, Lopez became the No. 1 draft choice in professional soccer by the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League in 1974. In his rookie season, he helped the Aztecs win the NASL title, and in his second year he was selected the Aztecs’ Midfielder of the Year. Lopez has played with and against soccer legends like Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and George Best. Lopez also played three years on the Bruin baseball team and was a placekicker on the 1969 freshman football team. The 1973 graduate (B.A. in Spanish) was a volunteer assistant coach for the Bruins from 1995-2007 and had previously aided the program with videotaping from 1987-1994. He taught AP Spanish Language and Literature at Santa Monica HS for many years.
Paul Caligiuri
Hall of Fame Class of 1997
Cobi Jones
Hall of Fame Class of 2002
One of the all-time greats in UCLA and U.S. soccer history, Paul Caligiuri was inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame in 1997.
Perhaps the most recognizable figure in U.S. Soccer, Cobi Jones went from walk-on freshman in 1988 to UCLA Hall of Famer in 2002.
Caligiuri was a two-time NSCAA All-American (1985 and 1986) and the 1986 Soccer America Player of the Year. He led UCLA to the 1985 NCAA title, the program’s first-ever in soccer.
Jones eventually won a scholarship with his outstanding play and blossomed into one of UCLA’s all-time greats. He was a catalyst to UCLA’s 1990 NCAA Championship run and was selected by the NSCAA as a second-team AllAmerican in 1991 after setting a UCLA record with 18 assists. The three-time All-Far West performer was twice named UCLA’s Offensive MVP (1989, 1991) and finished his career with 23 goals and 37 assists. His 37 assists rank second on UCLA’s career list.
Caligiuri followed his successful collegiate career with a legendary career as a member of the U.S. National Team. In the 1990 CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying Tournament, he scored the historic goal against Trinidad & Tobago that earned the U.S. a World Cup berth for the first time in 40 years, a goal that is known as “The Goal Heard Round The World”. Caligiuri played in the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, as well as the 1988 Olympics, and logged 114 caps with the U.S. National Team. A trailblazer for American soccer players, Caligiuri was the first U.S.-born player ever to play in the top-flight division in Germany, playing with SV Meppen and then St. Pauli in the German Bundesliga. He returned to the U.S. in 1996 and played six seasons with the Columbus Crew and Los Angeles Galaxy before retiring in 2001. In his last professional game, he and the Galaxy won the 2001 U.S. Open Cup title. Caligiuri was the head men’s soccer coach at Cal Poly Pomona from 2002-08. He was elected into the U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame in 2004 and the AYSO Hall of Fame in 2002.
Since leaving UCLA, Jones has enjoyed a successful professional and international soccer career. He became the youngest player to reach 100 caps for the U.S. National Team and was one of only two players to play in every game of the 1994 and 1998 World Cups for the United States. Jones, who has a team record 164 National Team caps, also played in the 2002 World Cup. After playing professionally in England and Brazil, Jones returned to the U.S. to play for Major League Soccer in the league’s inaugural season. After playing in the league with the Los Angeles Galaxy for 12 seasons, Jones retired in 2007 a nine-time MLS All-Star and 2002 and 2005 MLS Champion.
Brad Friedel
Hall of Fame Class of 2003
Brad Friedel, who is recognized as one of the best goalkeepers in the world, entered the UCLA Hall of Fame in 2003. Friedel played keeper for three seasons (1990-91-92) on UCLA soccer squads that amassed a record of 50-8-7 during his tenure. As a freshman, Friedel was named the Soccer America Freshman of the Year, first-team All-Far West and UCLA team MVP while leading the Bruins to the NCAA Championship. The following season, he was named All-Far West and AllAmerican. In 1992, Friedel received a myriad of awards, including All-Far West and All-America honors, UCLA team MVP, ISAA Goalkeeper of the Year and the prestigious Hermann Trophy, given to the nation’s top collegiate soccer player. Friedel, who still holds UCLA’s school record for career goals against average (0.60), recorded 82 international caps for the U.S. National team before retiring from international play in 2005 and has participated in two Olympiads (1992, 2000). In 2000, he started all six games to help lead the U.S. to a semifinal appearance, its highest ever finish at the Olympic Games. Friedel has also been a member of three U.S. World Cup teams (1994, 1998, 2002) and played a major role in leading the 2002 U.S. World Cup team into the quarterfinals, its best showing in 72 years. Friedel twice earned Man of the Match honors in the first round of play, including a 2-0 shutout of Mexico. Friedel’s stellar play led to his selection as the 2002 Chevy Male Athlete of the Year for U.S. Soccer. Professionally, Friedel has played with Columbus of the MLS and for Liverpool, Blackburn, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League. In 2002, he became the first American player picked for the English Premier League team of the year when he was voted the top goalkeeper by his peers. He was also selected the MLS Goalkeeper of the Year in 1997. Friedel is the co-founder and director of Premier Soccer Academies, the first full-scholarship youth soccer academy in the United States.
33
Fall 2021 UCLA Men's Soccer
