MONEY IS NAME OF THE GAME FUNDRAISING KEY TO RENOVATING PAULEY.

Byline: Brian Dohn Staff Writer

Ross Bjork will never call a basketball recruit, but during the next few years he will play a pivotal role in enticing prep stars to play at UCLA.

Bjork won't make any baskets, but could be a huge player in the Bruins' basketball success.

He is UCLA's new associate athletic director of external affairs, in charge of cozying up to boosters and alumni and enticing them to open their wallets for the betterment of UCLA's athletic programs.

It is a three- to five-year makeover of UCLA's fundraising department, and the central goal, by far, is raising anywhere from $65 to $120 million to renovate Pauley Pavilion. It is a project that has been on athletic director Dan Guerrero's agenda for three years, but remains entrenched in the conceptual phase as the funding plan evolves.

Last year, UCLA had $9.8 million in gifts to the athletics program, and it included the Athletic Fund, Capital gifts, Champions Fund, and Sport Booster Clubs, according to the school.

That's where Bjork comes in. He's handsome, affable, smart, hard-working and experienced in this area, and seems to understands the political game very well.

At the University of Missouri, Bjork, 33, played an integral role in securing $75 million for a new basketball arena. In two years at Miami (Fla.), the school's capital campaign for athletics rose from $32 to $48 million. Those schools are central to their cities as well, but the same isn't true in a diverse city like Los Angeles.

``Here, you have prospects that have potential,'' Bjork said. ``It's just a matter of how engrained in the program are they? Are they willing to support something like this? That's what we have to determine and work on.''

What is Bjork up against?

There is an oft-told story among followers of the basketball program regarding a former basketball player.

The player donated money to help furnish the Wooden Center, a recreational facility for UCLA's students. He went to work out one day, but was denied access because he wasn't a current student.

And there are similar stories regarding marquee athletes, many of whom have the resources to offer significant financial assistance to the school. There were former players told not to use the weight room because the football team was going to work out, and others asked to pay for a burger for a reunion function following a football practice.

Few former Bruins appear on the sidelines of UCLA football games. Reggie Miller, Bill Walton or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are giants in the basketball world, but don't attend Bruins basketball games.

Bjork said the school is now working to get former athletes involved in the programs.

``I think it's great they have a guy like Ross Bjork there,'' said Don MacLean, UCLA's all-time leading scorer in men's basketball. ``He's a guy that gets it.''

The renovation plans for Pauley Pavilion are in place for changes, particularly expansion of the historic arena to the north side.

The project, in its totality, will include new seats, a stadium club, better concessions, a more fluid concourse, restrooms, a second basketball court, new locker rooms and a new media room, among other amenities.

Under the best-case scenario, ground could be broken for a renovation following the 2006-07 season, but before that happens, much of the funding must be secured.

Naming rights to Pauley Pavilion - similar to what the University of Washington did its basketball arena, Bank of America Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion - will be sold and fetch a nice price. But much more is needed.

UCLA recently built the $16 million Acosta Training Center, which houses many of its teams, and did a $14 million renovation of the Morgan Center, which houses the athletics administration offices. But the long-term health and success of UCLA athletics, as with most major schools these days, now relies heavily on fundraising for upgrades and improvements.

The antiquated Pauley Pavilion is a logistical nightmare for fans, and the current average attendance of 8,735 would be the third-lowest total since 1988-89.

``There's a lot more that can be done. Let's put it that way,'' Bjork said. ``We're UCLA. We should really be able to ratchet up our efforts.''

According to several boosters, schmoozing didn't play a big part in UCLA's past fund-raising efforts.

Prior to raising $9.8 million last year, UCLA raised $6.7 million and $7.7 million in the two previous years.

``Rarely did I see or hear from UCLA unless they wanted something,'' said one booster, who asked to remain anonymous.

By comparison, Washington raised $15.1 two years ago, and California raised $17.6 million.

``In order for us to meet the expectations of our constituent base, we need to raise significantly more dollars from our annual fund basis to address the growing cost of just doing business,'' Guerrero said. ``Case in point, when I was named athletic director in 2002-03, our scholarship budget was approximately $5.2 million. Today, it's close to $8 million.''

Bjork, who was hired in August, is working to change that. His days are often taken up by breakfasts, lunches and dinners with UCLA alums and boosters.

He is a courtside regular at home basketball games, talking to the ticket holders or those in the high-priced court seats. And earlier this month he flew to Washington to have breakfast and take in UCLA's game against the Huskies with a booster.

``We're just having conversations right now about our vision with some of our key donors, or prospects,'' Bjork said. ``We're not showing them anything, but discussing the vision. We think we have a good prospect base.''

But fundraising isn't all schmoozing, which is why Guerrero restructured UCLA's fundraising and marketing programs, and put Bjork in charge of it.

For more than two decades, Rick Purdy served as associate athletic director of development. He was reassigned, and Bjork now oversees UCLA's fundraising and marketing efforts and acts as a liaison with the general manager of Bruins Sports Properties and ISP sports, the school's corporate partner.

``You have to spend money to make money, so we're going to invest in more staff to go out and raise more money,'' Bjork said. ``We're going to invest in some infrastructure pieces that we need to raise more money. In the past, UCLA relied on two people to go out and raise money. You just can't function that way. We need more bodies out there.

``With the alumni base, 350,000 people with 95,000 of those people joining the alumni association, you have people that are connected. And so the more people we have out seeing those people, the more success we're going to have raising money for athletics.''

There are other hurdles as well, and Guerrero and Bjork are working to fix them.

UCLA's top level of its donor program, the Coaches Roundtable, provides invitations to special events and special programs with members of its coaching staff, among other amenities. The cost is $5,500.

Bjork said the top giving level at Miami was $15,000, and at Missouri it was $10,000.

``We're going to create levels that are higher than $5,500,'' Bjork said. ``But we're not ready to disrupt any current seating.''

Brian Dohn, [phone]

brian.dohn(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1) UCLA's goal is to raise between $65 and $120 million to renovate Pauley Pavillion.

Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images

(2) BJORK

Box:

No. 19 UCLA vs. OREGON ST.

- Brian Dohn