He’s the face for the Asian population at UCLA.
Redshirt junior Robert Chai, the lone Asian American on the UCLA
men’s football team, has made the most out of his season this
year. In the past two games, center Mike McCloskey has been
sidelined with a sprained right shoulder. Enter Chai, who has done
a commendable job on the offensive line.
The Daily Bruin recently sat down with Chai to delve
deep into his interests as well as to discuss what it’s like
being recognized as an Asian athlete on the football
team.
Daily Bruin: So I was checking out Facebook and I saw the
Robert Chai Fan Club. It says your nickname is Panda. How did they
come up with that?
Robert Chai: I think it’s just a name that a couple of
guys on the O-line came up with. Probably just because of my Asian
descent, I guess they think that I look kind of like a panda.
DB: What do you think of the picture of your head on a
Panda’s body?
RC: I think it’s funny. It’s just for laughs.
DB: If you had the opportunity, would you like to have as
many friends as Maurice Drew on Facebook? Because here’s your
chance to advertise it if you want to receive a lot of friend
requests after people read this.
RC: Yeah I guess so. That’d be pretty cool to have random
people ask me to be their friend.
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DB: You went to Newport Harbor High, the same high school
that’s the setting for the show “The OC” Are you
a fan of the show?
Robert Chai: Oh, big time. I love the show. I watch the show
every week: Thursday at 8. I have “OC” parties
sometimes and I invite many of my teammates to come watch it with
me.
DB: Who usually comes to watch?
RC: Usually Andrew Baumgartner comes and watches it with Brian
Ruziecki. It depends because each week is different, sometimes
people have things to do, but those guys are usually with me.
DB: If you could be anyone on that show, who would you
be?
RC: I’d probably be Ryan, just because, I don’t
know, I think Marissa is pretty cute, good-looking and I’d be
able to be with her.
DB: Is there anyone on “The OC” that really gets
under your skin who you’d like to lay the smack down
on?
RC: There’s this new girl on it who went to rehab with
Kirsten. I don’t know what she’s up to, but me and my
friends, we always want to try to get her out of the show but we
don’t know what she’s trying to plot right now.
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DB: What is it like to be the only Asian on the team and do
you feel you have to represent by holding it down on the
field?
RC: I think it’s cool. It gives me a lot of extra
character. It makes me different from other people, not in a bad
way, but in a good way. A lot of people I talk to are like,
“˜Way to represent for the Asians. We need more Asian football
players out there.’
DB: What do you feel about the chance to start now that
McCloskey sustained an injury?
RC: It feels good just to be back in the mix again and start
playing again. Just playing football. Being out there in front of
sixty or seventy thousand people, it’s just awesome.
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DB: What’s your favorite sport to play other than
football?
RC: I used to love basketball. I used to play before I got to
high school and I actually wanted to play basketball more than
football. I didn’t really want to play football until high
school.
DB: Who’s your favorite basketball player?
RC: Probably Shaquille O’Neal. Oh wait, actually Yao Ming.
Because he’s out there representing too, but second would
probably be Shaq.
DB: In terms of sporting events here at UCLA, are there any
you enjoy attending more than others?
RC: I like watching basketball because it’s really fun.
I’ve been to a couple of gymnastics meets which were pretty
cool. Those are exciting to see.
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DB: What CD is currently in your car or what’s the
most recent album you’ve been bumpin’ to?
RC: I actually have this Chinese CD. It’s Jay Chow and
it’s his newest album. It just came out the other day.
Someone in my class actually burned it for me.
DB: What’s your favorite kind of music and who’s
your favorite musical artist?
RC: I listen to all kinds of music. I pretty much listen to
everything but I don’t listen to country. All of my friends,
like Drew Olson and those guys, are trying to get me to convert to
listening to country. Every time they get in my car, they try to
turn it to the country station and I always try to ban that. But my
favorite … I like 50 Cent a lot. People don’t like me
because, well not that they don’t like me, but they just
kinda hate because I like 50 Cent. G-UNIT!
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DB: When you’re not competing on the field, do you and
any of the other guys hang out together?
RC: Oh yeah, all the time. Sometimes we’ll all go out to
Olive Garden on Thursday nights because they have all-you-can-eat
pasta and we try to see who can eat the most. Pat Cowan so far is
the top with seven bowls.
DB: Who are you the closest with of them?
RC: I’m really close with Drew Olson. I lived with him for
two years. I mean we’re all really close. We don’t
really segregate ourselves; we hang out all the time.
DB: Let’s say you and a few teammates were to roll to
a club or a party. What type of girl would you be after and who
would be your main competition for the one talking to her?
RC: I’d first go for an Asian. I think Asian girls are
really good-looking and they get wild. I think I’d look for a
girl that dresses nicely, likes to take care of herself, has a good
personality. My competition. Wow. Let’s see. I would probably
say (a guy who) stopped playing this year. Me and him both have a
thing for Asian girls.
Interview conducted by Ajaybir Behniwal, Bruin Sports senior
staff.