Bula Schmidt looking to make his mark at UCF

Schmidt, a native of Wahiawa, Hawaii who attended O'Dea High School in Seattle, comes to Orlando after spending the previous four years at Fresno State.

A regular contributor since his freshman year in 2019, Schmidt was elevated to full-time starter at center for the past two seasons. In 2022, he earned a spot on the All-Mountain West Second Team while helping his team win a conference championship. Fresno State boasted the league's No. 1 ranked offense (402.6 yards per game).

Schmidt's transfer portal recruitment process was quick. He went from UCF offer to visit and enrollment in a matter of days.

"When I first got in contact with Coach (Herb) Hand it was blew me away," Schmidt said. "Out of all places, I didn't expect UCF to get in contact with me. It was good. The recruiting process was great. Getting to know Coach (Herb) Hand, looking at his resume, man, he's the real deal. I give all my respect to him. I feel without him, I wouldn't know all the things I know now. It's been real good."

With an open job at center, Schmidt felt enrolling in January and going through spring practice was very beneficial.

"It was my first time in Florida," Schmidt said. "I'm really glad I made that decision to come in the spring because it gave me more time to get used to things. So by the time fall came around, like, now everything is easier and I could process things a lot more easier."

He said the biggest adjustment was the Florida heat, which is a lot different than the other places he's lived.

"I've been asking everybody in the locker room, 'How do you guys get used to this heat?' This doesn't make any sense. It's six in the morning and why is it 82 degrees? But I'm slowly getting starting to get used to it."