Matt Ware wants to super-charge UCLA’s Rose Bowl crowds – via the school’s iconic hand signal.
In a video he posted to his social media accounts, the former Bruins and NFL defensive back asked fans to mimic a new gesture in which he and his family members thrust four fingers into the air while repeatedly saying, “Fours Up!”
“Bruin Nation,” Ware says in the video while wearing a UCLA basketball jersey, “we have a brand-new coach, we need to start some new traditions. … We’ve got to get the fans involved.”
Ware wants fans to unleash the hand signal and accompanying “Fours Up!” chant before the team comes out of the tunnel before the game, during the opening kickoff, on third downs and other big plays.
The hope is that the chant could catch on like Florida State’s tomahawk chop or Alabama fans yelling “Roll Tide!” While Ware can’t be at every home game because he lives in Queen Creek, Ariz., his brother Aaron – a former UCLA running back – and Aaron’s wife Caity – a former Bruins yell leader – are planning to get it started at the next home game against Wisconsin on Oct. 17.
“It will grow just like the wave,” Ware told the California Post in an exclusive interview, adding that he wanted to energize home crowds after watching the yell leaders struggling to get fans’ attention.
Seeing the school’s eight-clap being performed “way too fast” during recent home games, Ware realized that most of the fans at the Rose Bowl weren’t around to learn the proper cadence from legendary yell leader Geof Strand, who hasn’t performed in more than a decade.
“I was thinking, man we don’t have to get rid of the old chants, they definitely have their place,” Ware told the Post, “but to get a more cohesive and enthusiastic chant from the crowd would be awesome and keeping it nice and short with the Fours-Up helps the people from the TikTok era.”
That definitely doesn’t include Ware, who will turn 44 in December. Ware made eight interceptions during his three seasons at UCLA from 2001-03 before spending seven seasons in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.
The Fours Up hand signal – four fingers on each hand extended with the thumb tucked in – originated in 2013 as the creation of defensive backs coach Demetrice Martin – whose son Cole is currently on the team – and defensive back Jaleel Wadood.
“’Coach Meat’ and Jaleel Wadood started something that is used everyday in social media, so why not transfer it to the stadium experience?” Ware said. “I want this to take the energy to a 100 whether the crowd is 45,000 or 85,000.
“Point-blank, it becomes a one-city, one-team family mentality – short and powerful. Conversely, after doing the Fours Up chant, it will make transitioning into anything else like the eight-clap easier because everyone is already engaged.”
And that’s exactly the point.
