When the opportunity arose for Owen Schwartz to join the Bruins as a graduate student, he took the chance to follow in his parents’ footsteps.

“It’s been a dream come true,” Schwartz said.

More than 30 years after his parents received their graduate degrees from UCLA – Kathleen Morrison in the public health department and Michael Schwartz in the chemistry department – Owen earned his own master’s degree in education in June and finished his playing career in the 2023 season.

“It was kind of surreal because he is my youngest child. I can’t believe he has a graduate degree,” Morrison said.

Owen was an American history and economics student at Brown from 2019 to 2022, where he played in 48 games across three full seasons as a stalwart on the Bears’ defensive line.

Once his time at Brown ended, he entered his name into the transfer portal and received a call from UCLA.

“One of the assistant coaches here reached out to me a few weeks after the season ended,” Owen said. “As soon as he reached out, I knew this was the place to be.”

Owen’s mom said he was also recruited by Duke, Northwestern and Southern Methodist University for his graduate year, including full-ride MBA scholarship offers from the first two.

But once UCLA called, Owen left all of that behind.

“From the get-go, he met RJ (coach Ryan Jorden) and PK (then-assistant coach Paul Killian) and Andres (assistant coach Andres Ochoa) and was like, ‘I want to be here. I’ve always wanted to play here,’” Morrison said.

Owen said the alumni at UCLA – some of whom he met while participating in his first alumni game in the spring – have shown incredible support toward him. And beyond the alumni’s legacy, Owen said Jorden has had an impact on him.

“His knowledge of the game and understanding of the tactics around the game has been super illuminating for me. He’s a phenomenal coach,” Owen said. “I would put him at the top of the ranks of college soccer.”

Morrison added that Owen’s transition into the team was seamless.

Owen started in 15 of 18 games last season, providing a steady presence on the back line as the Bruins’ most consistent center back.

During the season, Owen said the defenders worked well together.

“As the year has gone on, we’ve grown chemistry together in the back line,” Owen said in October. “I think we understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and I think we can play to that.”

The Bruins’ defense maintained a one goal per game stat line and allowed just 10 goals in Pac-12 play, conceding two goals through five games as the team clinched the conference championship.

In the classroom, Owen earned his master’s degree in transformative coaching and leadership – a program focused on melding teaching and coaching – and relished the opportunity to network with other student-athletes in the program as he pursues a career in sports management.

“Being able to hear athletes’ experiences and desires gives me an understanding of managing a team or organization, thinking about how to put athletes in the best position to succeed,” Owen said.

UCLA always had a presence in the lives of Owen and his siblings.

Living in Mill Valley, California, Owen and his family would attend games at California or Stanford when they hosted UCLA.

“When my kids were little, anytime we went to LA we went to UCLA. I took them around campus – they were really familiar,” Morrison said. “So I kind of brainwashed them, and they always felt very comfortable there and loved it, and they knew that I had a great experience there too.”

Owen said that after four years on the East Coast, a return to California felt like a homecoming.

And following in his parents’ footsteps, his playing career now over, Owen added another graduate degree to his family’s name.