LOS ANGELES — It’s plastered all over Wasserman Football Center and echoes across Spaulding Field. Chip Kelly’s key phrase for UCLA football: Habits reflect the mission.

The mantra is used to break many team huddles as coaches say “habits reflect” and players respond “the mission.” It used to sound more like a question, running back Joshua Kelley said.

“Habits reflect the mission?” the redshirt senior said Wednesday at Pac-12 media day at Hollywood and Highland.

One year into the Kelly era, there’s no doubt in their voices.

“We’re all focused on one goal,” linebacker Krys Barnes said. “Doing better than we did last season and pushing toward greatness and changing the whole misconstrued idea of UCLA that’s been there for the last three years.”

What is the perception the Bruins are fighting?

“The idea is that UCLA is soft,” the senior added. “UCLA isn’t a big competitor in the Pac-12 and that’s something that we’ve kind of been dealing with. This year, I feel like it’s going to be a big change.”

UCLA is in the midst of three straight losing seasons, the program’s first such streak of futility since 1962-1964. The skid wasn’t supposed to continue after Kelly’s much-lauded hire. The head coach was a main attraction last summer as he returned to the Pac-12 as fans and national pundits eagerly watched for what the innovative mind would do next.

The hype died quickly when UCLA lost its first five games of the year.

The Bruins won just three games last year, the fewest for a UCLA team since 1989, but finished as possibly the happiest 3-9 team in the nation. They felt a surge of late-season momentum push them into the offseason after finishing the year with narrow losses to Arizona State and Stanford sandwiched around a rivalry win over USC.

The improved performances started building after UCLA held on for a one-point win over Arizona on Oct. 20. It was the team’s second straight victory after five straight losses.

“After that, it made it seem like everything we’re doing in terms of training, waking up early, watching film, there’s a reason why we’re doing this,” Kelley said. “We had a young team so it was the first time a lot of those guys were doing that and now, once they figure out, OK, this is what it feels like to win, it feels amazing, let’s keep doing that.”

Lucier-South out due to academics

Outside linebacker Keisean Lucier-South will miss training camp and the beginning of the season due to academics, Kelly said Wednesday. The redshirt senior who led the Bruins with four sacks last year has “got to finish up some things academically,” the head coach said after Lucier-South also missed three weeks of spring camp due to academics.

Kelly said he is hopeful Lucier-South will return after the third game of the year.

Waiting game

UCLA is waiting for word on the status of transfer quarterback Colson Yankoff after the school submitted a waiver on behalf of the former Washington signal-caller seeking immediate eligibility this season. Yankoff redshirted at UW in 2018 as a true freshman, but would need approval to play immediately after transferring.

“We support him and hopefully we can get him eligible because he already sat a year because he redshirted last year,” Kelly said.

Yankoff completed threw for 2,396 yards and 21 touchdowns while rushing for 1,027 yards and 12 touchdowns on 109 carries as a senior at Coeur d’Alene High in Idaho.

Fully healthy

Linebacker Josh Woods and defensive back Kenny Churchwell III, who are both recovering from knee ligament tears suffered during training camp last year, are cleared for full participation when the team returns to the field on July 31.