UCLA has placed six walk-ons on scholarship ahead of the team’s season-opener against Bowling Green on Saturday.

Head coach Chip Kelly told reporters on Wednesday that wideout Josiah Norwood, defensive lineman Dovid Magna, linebacker Carson Schwesinger, defensive back Alex Johnson, kicker/punter Nicholas Barr-Mira, and long snapper Jack Landherr IV have all been placed on scholarship.

Schwesinger, Barr-Mira, and Landherr all landed on the two-deep released earlier this week by the Bruins.

Barr-Mira and Landherr are both starters on special teams. Barr-Mira is in his fourth season with the program and the third as the team’s primary kicker. He connected on six of seven field goal attempts in 2020, then made 14 of his 21 attempts last season. This season, he’ll also take over starting punter duties for the Bruins, replacing Luke Akers, who averaged 43 yards a punt last season.

Landherr is in his fourth season as the team’s primary long-snapper. He handled field goals and extra points for nine games in 2019, then did the same for all seven of UCLA’s games in 2020. In 2021, he added the punt team to his list of duties.

Schwesinger will open the season as the No. 2 inside linebacker behind Darius Muasau. A 6-foot-2 native of Moorpark, California, Schwesinger is in his second season with the program. 

Johnson has played in 29 games in four years for the Bruins, mostly on special teams. He has nine career tackles. Norwood started once last year while making appearances in 10 total games. The 5-foot-8 fifth-year senior has four career receptions for 32 yards. Magna has seven career appearances in three seasons with the Bruins.

The team begins the new year on Saturday against Bowling Green, with kickoff scheduled for 11:30 a.m. PT on the Pac-12 Network.