UCLA-New Mexico payout: Lobos will get $1.2 million for beating Bruins

A 2025 UCLA football season that began with some sense of promise following the high-profile addition of transfer Nico Iamaleava got off to an inauspicious start.

The Bruins were drubbed in their season opener, falling to Utah 43-10 on Saturday, Aug. 30, a game in which they managed only 220 yards. A week later, they went on the road and fell to UNLV, which hadn’t beaten a Big Ten program in 22 years.

In Week 3, they fell to a new low.

In what appeared to be one of its easiest games of the season, UCLA was dominated against New Mexico, getting outscored 21-0 in the fourth quarter on its way to a 35-10 defeat on Friday, Sept. 12 in front of a paltry crowd of 31,123 at the Rose Bowl.

In the loss, the Bruins gave up 450 yards, 298 of which came on the ground against an opponent that averaged 6.5 yards per carry. 

All those nightmarish stats may not have even been the worst aspect of the setback for UCLA, either, as the school will have to pay New Mexico a seven-figure sum for the pleasure of earning a 25-point win.

Here’s a closer look about the payout the Lobos received for beating UCLA:

How much did UCLA pay New Mexico?

According to the terms of the game contract between the schools, which was obtained by USA TODAY Sports, UCLA has to pay New Mexico $1.2 million. The payment has to be made by April 1, 2026.

Interestingly, that figure is the same as what the Bruins are reportedly paying Iamaleava as part of his name, image and likeness deal with the school after he transferred in from Tennessee during the spring, per On3 Sports’ Pete Nakos.

The deal between UCLA and New Mexico, which was agreed to in 2016, was just for one game. Given what the Bruins saw from the Lobos on Friday, it might be for the best.