The Work Behind the Kick: How Mateo Orosco’s Journey Led Him to UCLA
There is a particular kind of silence that belongs to a placekicker. It exists in the seconds before the snap, when the crowd has not yet decided whether to hold its breath, and on empty practice fields where the only sound is the strike of a foot against a football. It lives in repetition: set the ball, take the steps, swing through, reset. Thousands of reps can happen without a crowd, without applause and without anyone knowing the work is taking place.
Then, sometimes, an entire game can come down to one swing of the leg.
For Mateo De La Rosa Orosco, that journey has taken him from San Diego to UCLA, from Del Norte High School to the Rose Bowl, and from the quiet, highly specialized world of kicking to the beginning of Big Ten football.
Orosco is a true freshman placekicker for the Bruins, listed at 6-foot-0 and 173 pounds. He wears No. 31, intends to major in economics and has already made one ambition clear: he wants to play in the NFL.
But the most important part of Mateo Orosco’s story may not be the dream waiting at the end of the road. It is the people who helped him get there.
Photo by: Alex Escobedo @alexephotography1
The People Behind the Kick
On UCLA’s 2026 roster bio, Orosco identifies his family’s work ethic as his “why.” That simple answer carries much of the story with it.
His parents, Michael and Gabriela Orosco, were there for the drives to practices, camps and the countless repetitions that came long before the headlines. His brother, Diego, played soccer at UC Davis, giving Mateo an early look at the demands of college athletics.
For Spanish Heritage Month, Orosco’s story is also a story about family, discipline and the values passed down at home. Michael and Gabriela built the foundation; Diego showed him what the college path could look like. Mateo is now carrying that example forward in his own way.
Earning a Place One Rep at a Time
Kickers rarely live in the spotlight. They can spend most of a game waiting, knowing their moment could arrive with little warning. The work is constant, even when the recognition is not.
Orosco earned his opportunity through the specialist camp circuit, where he was ranked the No. 12 kicker in his class by Chris Sailer Kicking. After his senior season at Del Norte High School, he was selected to play in the Polynesian Bowl, another step toward the next level.
But college football brings a reset. A freshman has to learn a new holder, snapper, operation and coaching system while competing for a role. At UCLA, Orosco is working behind veteran Mateen Bhaghani, who hit a 57-yard field goal against Iowa in 2025. For Mateo, it is another opportunity to learn, develop and stay ready for his moment.
Photo by: Alex Escobedo @alexephotography1
A 57-Yard Beginning at the Rose Bowl
Before Orosco played a college game at the Rose Bowl, he had already left his mark there.
During UCLA’s 2026 Spring Game, he hit a 57-yard field goal. He lists it as his top athletic highlight, and it is easy to understand why.
The Rose Bowl is not just another stadium. It is one of the most recognizable stages in American sports, a place filled with history, expectation and the echoes of generations of athletes. For a kid from San Diego, sending a football through the uprights there before appearing in a college game represented more than a statistic. It was a moment that showed the work he had put in was beginning to travel with him.
The kick itself lasted only a few seconds. The road to it took years.
It included the hours at Del Norte, the specialist camps, the family support and the private pressure that comes with competing for a place at the next level. Those are the parts a highlight cannot show.
A 57-yard field goal looks clean on film. It does not show the miss that came before it, the correction afterward or the next attempt taken when nobody was watching. It does not show the parents who kept driving, the brother who understood the college-athlete journey or the young kicker who continued working even when the next opportunity was not guaranteed.
That is where the real story lives.
Photo by: Alex Escobedo @alexephotography1
Choosing UCLA and Staying Ready
Orosco chose UCLA because he loved “the ambition of the coaching staff” and wanted to be in an environment where “it’s fun to play and everyone enjoys being in the building.”
The quote offers a glimpse into what he values. Ambition matters, but so does belonging.
The Bruins’ 2026 staff includes special teams coordinator Drew Canan and specialist coach Chris Monfiletto. For a young kicker, development is about more than leg strength. It requires rhythm, trust, technique, preparation and the ability to understand his role within a larger operation.
The UCLA spring football program listed Orosco among the team’s special teams newcomers. The roster also reflects the larger reality of his first college season: he is entering a room where every player has a job, and every job matters long before the crowd ever sees it.
His interests outside football offer another glimpse into the person behind the position. He plays soccer and pickleball, enjoys spending time with his dog and admires Cristiano Ronaldo. The connection makes sense—not because their sports are identical, but because both are built around preparation, repetition and an intense attention to the details that happen long before the spotlight arrives.
For a specialist, preparation is especially important. The kick has to be ready long before the pressure arrives.
Photo by: Alex Escobedo @alexephotography1
The Moment Before the Moment
UCLA’s Big Ten opener against Purdue at the Rose Bowl has now come and gone, but for Mateo Orosco, the bigger story is only beginning.
As a true freshman learning behind veteran Mateen Bhaghani, Orosco is still building his place at UCLA while carrying a dream shaped by years of work and the people who helped him get there.
The Rose Bowl may be where the kick becomes visible, but San Diego is where the story began. Behind every opportunity are the family, coaches, teammates, sacrifices and thousands of repetitions that made it possible.
For Orosco, the next chapter will be measured one rep at a time.
The kick may belong to Mateo.
The journey behind it belongs to all of them.
Special thanks to photographer Alex Escobedo @alexephotography1
Sources
- UCLA Athletics 2026 roster: Mateo Orosco player page
- UCLA Athletics 2026 Football Roster
- Daily Bruin, “2026 UCLA football position preview: Special teams” (Aug. 24, 2026)
- Chris Sailer Kicking: 2026 kicker rankings
- 247Sports: UCLA 2026 football roster and player profiles
- On3: UCLA 2026 football roster and player profiles
