MONTEREY PARK, Calif. - Being the quarterback at USC when the Trojans are winning basically makes you an A-list celebrity in Los Angeles. And while the plan is for 2021 Rivals100 quarterback Jake Garcia to help lead the Trojans back to their glory days from the early 2000s, he might already be a celebrity by the time he sets foot on campus. Garcia and his girlfriend, UCLA track athlete Indiah Turner, have their own YouTube channel, which has attracted more than 35,000 subscribers in less than a year.
Rivals.com caught up with Jake at the recent Los Angeles stop of the Rivals Camp Series for a Q&A to talk about his budding online fame and how he balances football and his online persona.
MORE RIVALS CAMP SERIES: 'Friday Night Tykes' star wins Rivals MVP award | The best of RCS L.A. | Camp MVPs and more | Los Angeles combine draws 1,500 | Schedule and coverage
WHEN DID YOU START YOUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL?
We started it last summer, just for fun. We posted some videos and then after a while all of our friends started watching them and posting them and we started getting more subscribers. That's when it really started taking off more.
HOW OFTEN DO YOU POST NEW VIDEOS?
In total we have like 60, I think. We try to keep consistent but it's hard with both of our schedules. Just whenever we can do it. And the people that follow us understand because I'm playing football and practicing and doing my extra work and she's at UCLA running track. So we don't have much time but when we get time, we do them.
DO YOU GUYS FEEL PRESSURE TO POST?
It's not that hard to come up with new stuff to post, different content, but we try to keep it in a timely manner. But everyone understands because we're so busy.
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE VIDEO?
That's a tough one but probably the Valentine's Day one we did. Because I surprised her. I planned that on my own and shot it and surprised her and that was me being a good boyfriend.
THE CHANNEL DOESN'T FEATURE MUCH, IF ANY OF YOUR ATHLETIC ENDEAVORS, WHY?
So because of the way the NCAA rules are we just leave that stuff off of there mostly. If there's anything that has to do with athletics then we make sure there isn't ads and stuff on there. So we stay away from all that stuff.
HAS IT LED TO ANY OTHER ENTERTAINMENT OPPORTUNITIES?
We have both had people ask us about it but there's not enough time, honestly. We're just trying to focus on school and our craft.
