Other than athletes and some top scholar prize winners, most students even at Harvard and Stanford have a small contribution or some student loans that are part of the ‘full ride.’ UCs may not award the entire COA, but sometimes come darn close. Your mother’s friends might be saying ‘full ride’ but mean ‘full tuition’ or that the entire bill from the school is covered but all the extra expenses (travel, books, entertainment) are not covered.
You can also get to ‘full ride’ by working the numbers a little. I paid a few thousand dollars out of pocket for my daughter last year, but then she got a late grant and after taxes (a $2500 credit for me) it amounts to zero OOP. She didn’t get one big award but 2 healthy ones and 3 little ones and then the late grant and tax credit= a good deal.
You (and your mother) need to stay on it, figure out what is available, and what the deadlines are. DON’T miss them as in California it can mean the difference of $12k or more. If you can get a UC education for ‘a few thousand’ you are a lucky guy.