It started as the same unremarkable sequence that materializes dozens of times a season on UCLA’s football practice field, a coach lingering to speak with reporters and engage in the usual give and take.
Questions were asked about simplifying the defense and putting more pressure on the quarterback. Answers were given about accountability, attention to detail and putting the right defenders in position to make plays.
Then the coach started blinking tears, his voice catching, his words a chore. Everything routine about the exchange transformed into something else entirely.
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“You know, I love this defense because I feel like part of them,” defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe began Tuesday, still holding it together.