UCLA’s Jim Mora shows off his air game, visiting recruits’ games by helicopter

Jim Mora brought something with a lot more swag than a winning record on his latest recruiting excursion. He arrived in a helicopter.

Airing it out allowed the UCLA coach to attend four high school football games last Friday. It also impressed recruits such as Redlands East Valley High defensive end Jaelan Phillips, who posted video of Mora’s helicopter circling the stadium.

“Nothing better than your future coach doing a flyover on the way to your game,” Phillips tweeted.

Because of recruiting rules, Mora would not mention which prospects or games he went to see, but he said he used the same helicopter that former Lakers star Kobe Bryant once used to get from his Newport Coast home to Staples Center. Mora said it took only 12 minutes to ride from downtown Los Angeles to Redlands.

“I felt it was a little pretentious, getting in a helicopter and zipping around from game to game,” Mora said, “but it was the most effective way to get out.”

The landings were the trickiest part. Mora said that by law, the pilot couldn’t just set the helicopter down in a high school parking lot or baseball field, requiring him to find the closest airfield or properly equipped parking structure.

Mora said he texted one player and asked if he wanted a flyover. The response was predictable.

“He was like, ‘Yeah, that would be so cool,’ ” Mora said. “So I gave him one of those ‘Hey, look up,’ and he could hear us coming in and we did a lap or two around and he took video of it and posted it. Everybody thinks it’s a really neat deal that you would go to that length to show how important they are to you.”

Mora said UCLA’s struggles during a four-game losing streak that threatens to leave the Bruins (3-6 overall, 1-5 in Pac-12 Conference play) with their first losing season since 2011 have not led to a downturn in recruiting.

“I don’t think things like this affect most recruits,” Mora said. “They’re looking at a bigger picture.”

Not playing around

UCLA defensive lineman Takkarist McKinley has received recognition for forcing a fumble. (Rick Bowmer / Associated Press)

(Rick Bowmer / Associated Press)

UCLA has not had a Pac-12 player of the week on offense, defense or special teams 10 weeks into the season, but the Bruins received a consolation prize of sorts Thursday.

The Pac-12 Networks recognized Bruins defensive end Takkarist McKinley for making the “fundamental play of the week” against Colorado on Nov. 3. The play involved McKinley sacking Buffaloes quarterback Sefo Liufau while forcing a fumble that was recovered by UCLA linebacker Jayon Brown.

Pac-12 analyst Yogi Roth noted that McKinley used his hands to get his offensive counterpart away from his body before bursting toward Liufau and sacking the quarterback without the use of his head. McKinley then bounced up after the fumble and assisted with a block on Brown’s return, helping him bring the ball back 49 yards.

In honor of the play, USA Football’s Heads Up Football program will award a $4,000 equipment donation to Southern California Jr. All American Football & Cheer.

Tweet sorrow

Donald Trump’s upset presidential victory sparked lots of activity from the Bruins on Twitter.

And then there was this from John Molson, the father of kicker J.J. Molson and a Montreal native who has a family stake in the Molson Coors Brewing Co. and the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens.

“Accepting all dissatisfied Americans who want to make Canada even greater,” Molson tweeted, “beer and hockey tickets thrown in.”

ben.bolch@latimes.com

Twitter: @latbbolch