from DD reader Steve:

Actually Cowherd said Rick would make UCLA interesting again, either they would be very good or a train wreck. Maisel said it would be a good hire and said how smart Neuhisal is and that he sent a text to Rick and said a lot of people sent him messages about Rick and the UCLA job and Rick jokingly sent back “I’ll tell my mom to quit texting you”

Personally I don’t see what he does, he left Colorado and Washington in shambles, I never did get the love affair with this joker. He seems to be everyones friend, that doesnt make him a great coach, or even a good one.

Steve gets it right. Neuheisel has done absolutely nothing positive in his coaching career other than con people into hiring him. The program needs an established winner to come in and grab control of the team. The Howland experience is a perfect blueprint to success; a coach that established legitimate success at a series of bigger programs prior to joining UCLA. These guys are out there! This chatter about Walker is a joke. If DG were to hire Walker, he should be fired. I doubt DW is on DG’s radar screen.

What exactly happen when he was at Colorado or Washington? Can you explain? I like Rick because I think he can do a great job at UCLA but I am open to other coaches being hire. Can you please explain what he did? And please don’t tell me about the college basketball poll that people all over the US make.

This really hurts but the best thing for us Bruin fans is to hope and pray that we lose the remaining games of the season, especially the game to UA to finally convince DG that KD has to go.

Hiring Walker would be a huge mistake. Sure his brilliant defensive strategy kept USC to 9 points last year, but it also let Utah score 44 points, WSU to score 27 points and even let winless Notre Dame score 20 points. Not one of the UCLA assistant coaches should be considered for the HC job. I said the same thing when Donahue retired, but no one listened and Toledo was hired and we all know the rest of the story. Toledo did well only because he had Donahue’s recruits like McKnown. And if I remember correctly he always beat USC.

Neuheisel is an accident waiting to happen. Wherever he goes, trouble follows. His last year or two at Colorado, his teams weren’t playing all that well. UCLA has to hire a proven HC and be willing to spend the bucks.

I agree that Toledo, overall, was a bad hire. He did well, because he had the players (hey colonybruin, if you’re floating around here right now, you better grip yourself!). In addition to McKnown, Toledo was able to recruit top guys like Deshaun Foster, Tab Perry, Freddy Mitchell, Brian Poli-Dixon, Robert Thomas, Matt Ware, among others. Despite his poor coaching, we won big games due in large part to this talent.

I have to admit, though, I had FUN during that era. Yes, it is true the wheels would fall off and the team would go in to a tail-spin from which it couldn’t recover. Yes, it’s true that the handicap parking issue occured under Toledo. It is also true that there were some serious transgressions that brought negative attention to us, but we were always seemingly in it. in 1997 we were right in the mix of it. in 1998, we were obviously there. In 2000, out of nowhere, we climbed to No. 5 in the nation, after beating Bama and Michigan to start the year. Teh following year, more of the same. Another great start to the season 6-0, beating big time teams and finding ourselves ranked in the top-10.

Not only that, but it was FUN! Watching Cade roll out and throw back to Skip or Deshaun was AWESOME! Having Freddy run the reverse pass for a perfect TD. Having Drew Bennet come in for an option play, fake the option, step back and launch a 30 yard pass to an all-by-himself-and-waiting Tab perry who could’ve back pedaled into the endzone.

All of that stuff was FUN!!! even though it proved for not. Right now, this isn’t even fun. I had fun at the Cal game, but that’s as close as I’ve ever come to having fun during KD’s tenure. Last year’s USC game wasn’t as fun for me as it has been in years past, but the ending was fun. The game, overall, was played poorly. We had a great time, because it was our team, but any third party spectator would agree that last year’s game against SUC was UGLY! Not only are we unstable, we’re just no fun. We’re boring, like our head coach, and there’s very little to be excited about when it comes KD teams.

Javier- There’s an element of ethics, bravado, under-handed behavior that surrounds Neuheisel. Let it be stated above all else, he’s a good coach. He’s savvy, he relates to the players, and he can recruit. At the same time, he likes to cut-corners; he likes to push the envelope in a negative fashion; he has a salesman-like approach to coaching, that is, he sells his ideas to his palyers, but he never truly believes them himself; he likes to wine and dine people, make the promises he needs to make and then leave the scene. When he left Colorado, he left the program in shambles. He had slacked off, disregarded a great deal of institutional controls, didn’t care for his players in the fasion he promised them, slacked off on recruiting and fund raising and once he saw that he wasn’t going to be competitive in the year that was coming, he pulled the rip-cord and left the program. This is a primary reason why Colorado hasn’t been competitive since he left. He left a trail of recruiting issues, violations and duplicitous undertakings that shed negative light on CU.

Much of the same was transpiring at WAshington. The Husky A.D. followed the pattern closely, but she was inept at handling someone like Neuheisel, in an atmosphere that’s all about football. Many of the same issues that existed at CU, surfaced at UW after Neuheisel left.

It’s never wrong what he does. He’s never actually reached a point where he officially, formally did something punishable, but he has always taken it to the brink. It’s one of those issues that he has lost JUUUUST enough to avoid the spotlight usually shined on the big time programs that continue to win, year in, year out. He never sticks around for that time to come; therefore he’s alwasy been able to escape sanction.

This is the primary reason why Donahue didn’t support Neuheisel’s candidacy upon retiring. Donahue supported Toledo, and that’s the reason Toledo was given the job. Despite Rick sitting on his staff, despite Rick having played for him and having starred in a great Rose Bowl victory, despite Rick having shown great promise on his coaching staff and despite the fact Donahue had been openly grooming Neuheisel to take the job, Donahue elected to support Toledo, due in no small part to Rick’s proclivity to cut corners and fancy himself more as a salesman than a man of principle.

That’s the ONLY knock on Rick, but it’s a significant enough knock that has kept him from being re-hired. Even guys like George O’leary, who publicly embarrassed himself, was re-hired.

By the way, what do you guys think of Mike Price, strip club notwithstanding, of course?

NORM CHOW EVERYONE…. NORM CHOW…. Keep DeWayne on as our defensive co. and hire Norm Chow to be our Head Coach and OC… Screw Norvell and the rest of the limp coaching staff. Yes, we may have to grab a former Trojan coach to help us be a national power.

NORM CHOW!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!

Chow tutored quarterback Philip Rivers at NC State in 2000, then groomed Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Leinart at USC.

WHY THE HELL WOULDN’T ANYONE WANT NORM CHOW AS OUR HEAD COACH? He almost took the head coaching job at Stanford a couple years ago. If he came UCLA, he would grab every 5 star California offensive recruit out there.

Who gives a crap if he coached at USC for 4 years? We donated Henry Bibby and Ken Norton to the Trojans.

NORM CHOW… NORM CHOW…. NORM CHOW…. NORM CHOW….

DAN GUERRERO, PLEASE PURSUE HIM!!!!!

Bob, in a word: No.

I like norm chow, and it’s unquestionable that the man has a mind for teaching; however, he’s simply never been a head coach. There are reasons for this. One of which is his excellence as an O.C. It seems that the reason he’s so successful at the OC position, is because he takes it to such an extreme that he delves into it completely, worrying about nothing else. A second reason is because he hasn’t wanted for a long time. Norm Chow has been a supreme O.C. for years. He’s not a new name, he’s not the hot assistant or the guy with the new ideas. He has been around for very long time, but he has stated, on many occassions, that he’s not interested in being the head guy. This has been the primary reason why Norm hasn’t been given a head coaching position. No school really wants to give their HC position to someone that has come out and said that they wouldn’t make a good head coach.

Don’t be mislead by the Stanford incident. He FLIRTED with going to STanfraud to be the head coach only because of his duel with Pete Carroll. It is no surprise that he and pete ultimately couldn’t reconcile their egos. Chow used STanfraud as leverage to put the pressure on Pete. When Pete didn’t respond in kind, it was clear Norm was going to leave. He was already making a million dollars as an Assistant USC,but he left for Tennessee. SAme kind of money, but he’s not in the spotlight in the way he was at USC. He would’ve been paid more handsomely at other universities, if he chose to go to them, but the truth is that he doesn’t want to be the head coach. It’s a responsibility he has never wanted to take. For the last 15 years he has had an opportunity to be a head coach, but he has never taken it (college or pro).

Frankly, I stick by our position that the next coach MUST have head coaching experience. It can come from a highly successful coach found in Div. 1aa, like Jim Tressel, or from a Div. 1a coach or from an NFL head coach, but IT HAS TO BE HEAD COACHING EXPERIENCE! PERIOD!

Okay Diego, with that being said, what do you think of Chris Peterson from Boise State? Marty Schottenheimer?

“Tuesdays are usually the hardest day, because that’s when you’re getting most of the information of the game plan, and it seems like these guys did a nice job of attacking the information and trying to get it to be perfected on the very first rep, instead of the third or fourth rep.”

That quote, in large part, sums up what’s wrong with our program. The game plan, namely the west coast offense, is too complicated for these college kids to pick up in the limited hours sanctioned by the NCAA. Dorrell’s stuff is too complicated, where the kids are lost trying to learn the complexities of the gameplan instead of focusing on execution.

In college football, its better to do something simple very well rather than do something complicated poorly.

There’s no way the administration would ever approve of Rick Neuheisel as football coach so its a moot point. He might make a great lawyer, but not be somebody you’d necessairly trust to turn over your program to.

Sure, Neuheisel is an alumni and loves UCLA and did great at UCLA. But, so was Dorrell.

I like peterson, and he’s on many Bruin radars as a great successor. Personally, if we don’t hit the big name coach like a Mariucci, Dennis Green or anyone like that, I’d like to go after a head coach with building experience. I want a guy that has proven his mettle at a lower level by building a winner, both through recruiting and coaching.

That would make me look to a strong D 1aa candidate as I mentioend before. Someone like Jim Tressel who came out of Youngstown State where he built a tradition of titles and a strong football program.

With this in mind, I think Jerry Moore would be a good choice, if he wants it. He’s the Appalaichan State head coach more so for his overall success at the program than recently beating Michigan, the man built a winner at App State. Currently, they’re trying to make the move into D1a, and they’ve been successful at every phase of their plan. That’s a coach that knows the college game, knows how to recruit (see, Jackson, Atamire and others on that team who will be NFL players), knows how to relate to kids and the college experience (something lacking from Dorrell, Norvell and Walker), and someone who knows how to win.

also on my radar would be someone like Jim Leavitt, albeit he’s likely going to be a sought after coach in this off season. He’s the Univ of South Florida coach. Remember, South Florida was a 1aa program in 2001. Starting with 2002, he took them out of 1aa, where they were performing well, and moved them into 1a. Keep in mind, he’s in a state that has a GREAT amount of talent. While at, or near the heights of their success, Leavitt was able to take recruits from Florida State, Florida and Miami. At present, Miami is trying to regain that talent level they had in 2001-2004, which allowed it to win and compete for national titles. Guess who took them? USF! They have them now. That’s a GREAT coach right there. To be able to take recruits away from Miami, Florida and Florida state within their own state is an amazing feat. That speaks well for the task he would have at hand here in L.A. He’d have to compete against USC, but after having outrecruited the three previously mentioned schools, he should have no concern. STill, California, and the L.A. area as a whole, is rich enough in talent to fuel his recruiting needs. HEll, California fuels the entire pac-10 conference. This year, he has shown what 5 strong years of building have done. He’s in a major, BCS conference, and took his team to a top-10 ranking. Impressive. Again, there’s a coach that knows the college game, knows the college experience, knows the college player adn knows how to win at the college level.

Great candidate.

Hey Wayne,

You can’t pin all of the blame of our 3 losses on the D and DW. First off, the D didn’t give up 20 points to Notre Dame, they gave up 3 pts. Check the stats my man, offense had 7 turnovers that game, and when you put your D in those situations, its amazing that we did only give up 20. D only gave up 140 total yards that whole game! In regards to WSU, our D was on the field the entire game. Our offense had so many 3 and outs, that D tired down and gave up some big plays. Do you not remember the goal line stand that they put up and then them blocking the field goal? And what does our offense then do, another friggin 3 and out. If you want to blame someone, blame Norvell and Dorrell for not having an offense that can be consistent enough to get a first down here or there. Defense has carried this team all year.

P.S. I don’t want DW to be the head coach, but I would love him to remain D coord

DD,
Regarding the rumor of a “fire dorrell” ad in tomorrow’s Daily Bruin…Have you seen TODAY’S Daily Bruin front page? Not exactly a glowing endorsement!

I have really gotten into reading the posts here over the past couple of weeks, and have long watched KD in amazement that he shows no emotions, and was so calm in the face of underachievment. However, having said that I think that assuming that his lack of coaching experience as a blanket statement for all potential future head coaches is ignorant. In fact I dont ever remember seeing any coach on any level experienced or not being so completely terrible at game planning or making decisions, or firing up the players, and Toledo no great coach is nowhere near in the vicinity of KD. KD in my opinion is the worst coach in PAC10 history and possibly the nation in my lifetime PERIOD!!

There, I am sure, are canidates out there that could have UCLA undefeated currently, and I really think that this true core group of Bruin faithfull should stick to what’s absolutely important and that is the continued contempt for DG and KD until the program is wiped clean of this mongloid deer in the headlights, a loss by 30 points to Arizona should seal that up, and just to make the Pac 10 be without a title contender I am sure will salt away a title shot for Oregon or Asu right after with an ugly upset.

mikey … yes its an interesting article, one that would normally not get written for a 5-3 UCLA coach were it not for the untiring efforts of DD readers et al. Thanks for the heads up.

Another nice article by Adam De Jong. He’s obviously one of us. The fact that his editor lets those articles see the light of day means his editor is one of us, too. And as I recall, that wasn’t the case last year. DD and BN have been winning converts everywhere, and clearly it’s happened at the DB.

Diego; are you high-Dennis Green-Steve Mariucci. Give me a freakin break 2 losers who have never won anything is the best you can come up with? Get out here you damn idiot before people start thinking that your 2 ignorant choices are worth even thinking about.

By the way did anyone see the stupid expression on Jay Norvell during the game at WSU. Talk about looking clue less.

Wayne Cutler;unlike Diego you know what you are talking about. Any coach on this staff would be a disaster. The player’s do not practice hard and have no heart and the blame for that is this pathetic coaching staff led by Karl Dorrell. They need a good coach with a brand new staff who can motivate them and make them believe in themselves. As for the player’s who don’t practice hard and have no passion or heart they should be kicked off the team as insubordinates. They aren’t worth a rats shit.

Good stuff. Leavitt is under very different academic constraints at USF in comparison to UCLA. USF is primarily a commuter school and the administration is pushing football hard as a way to attract more out-of-state students and raise the profile of the university. Like others have mentioned, I think it is absolutely essential that UCLA hire someone with head coaching experience (that means no coordinators - even Norm Chow). I like Terry Bowden and Dennis Green…

Terry Bowden is the epitome of a student athlete. He graduated Magna Cum Laude at WVU, did graduate work at Oxford, and earned a J.D. from FSU while working as a graduate assistant. Bowden has a career 111-53-2 record, is known for being a great motivator and recruiter (Dorrell weaknesses), and has great coaching genes (son of Bobby Bowden).

Prior to being an NFL head coach, Dennis Green coached at Northwestern and Stanford so he is familiar with the academic constraints at a school like UCLA. Green is part of the Bill Walsh tree so he should be familiar with the WCO personnel that Dorrell has recruited to Westwood. Green’s NFL record is not that great (117-102-0), but Pete Carroll’s record was not that good either.

Any thoughts?

Marco- Agreed on Leavitt’s easier recruiting angle at USF, who doesn’t have UCLA’s academics standards. The point is, he’s still a shrewd recruiter. Miami, Florida State and Florida don’t have standards, but he still sold those kids on going to USF over the other three. WHile we have higher standards, there are still PLENTY of players that fit into our academics. Presently, Cal is beating us to those recruits, as are STanford and a few other institutions. Leavitt should have no trouble beating out those current competitors that are taking our players. INcidentally, many of the players we lose, we lose them to USC, but it’s not for lack of grades. Most of the kids have the grades ,they’re just preferring to go to USC. Someone like Leavitt, who’s proven he can out-recruit big name programs with less at his disposal, can only grow with the resources we’d have available for him.

Hey Chris,

I stand corrected on the ND game. I think that DW is a very good Defensive coach, but not a great one. He definitely had a great game plan for USC, but what happened against FSU at the Emerald Bowl? DG has to make a clean sweep of the entire coaching staff and let the new coach, who is hopefully proven and will be well paid, to choose his staff.

Now I have to check the line. Hoping that UCLA is favored because the games that they have been favored in they lose.

WHAT THE??!??

Louis Miranda @ 11:11 pm:
Diego; are you high-Dennis Green-Steve Mariucci. Give me a freakin break 2 losers who have never won anything is the best you can come up with? Get out here you damn idiot before people start thinking that your 2 ignorant choices are worth even thinking about

Ahhhh.. Louis, you’re clearly someone that knows me. So, who are you; another hater that’s followed my path? I can tell you’re someone that knows me, because only someone that knows me would come on here and write something as asinine as what you’ve just written just to try to give me a hard time.

Mariucci and Dennis Green carry name credibility with them, as well as head coaching experience. Losers???! Are you kidding? Dennis Green, a loser? A missed Morten Anderson FG prevented his 16-1 Vikings from playing in the Super Bowl. You don’t coach 12 STRAIGHT SEASONS with the same team in the NFL and SUCK! That just doesn’t happen, but that’s what Dennis Green did, as he took the Vikings to multiple playoff appearances and won coach of the years honors. IF you term that sucking, then you simply don’t know about what you’re discussing. Or, like I said, you’re someone that knows me personally and is just on here playing with me.

He didn’t win in Arizona, but then again who does? It is a perennially losing franchise for a reason; and that reason is not coaching.

This is just mentioning his pro career. This speaks nothing of the fact that he turned a historical doormat (Northwestern) into a winning team en route to a Big-10 Coach of the year honor.

He also coached two brief seasons at Stanford before accepting the Minnesota Viking’s head coaching job. Stanford and Northwestern, two challenged programs that are usually kept uncompetitive by the fact they have high academic requirements.

If you fancy yourself to know about football, then you’ll know the great difficulty surrounding coaches that move from college to the Pro ranks. In few words; most all of them fail. Who wass the last college coach to have success in the pros? HEllo? Are you there, Miranda? Let’s go through the names, shall we?

Spurrier? NIck Saban? Butch DAvis!!? Bobby Petrino right now?

EAch one of these college coaching legends couldn’t make it in the pros, but Dennis Green coached 15 seasons in the NFL, 12 with the same team whom he took to the playoffs on a regular basis; and you’re going to call him a loser? Baaaaaa ha ha ha ha ha! You can excuse yourself from this forum at any time, Louis Miranda. Thanks for wasting my time, and yours.

Mariucci not only has Pac-10 ties, is not only a players coach that can easily relate to players ( a key element in recruiting)… you know what??

. should I even DISCUSS Mariucci? You know what? I’ll save my fingers for worthwhile participants; you’re clearly not one of them.

If you’re still stupid from whatever it is you were thinking before, remember that loser coach in the pros that never amounted to anything? Remember him? That one guy that coached the jets to one of the worst records they’ve ever had, and then took over the Patriots and ran them into the ground after Parcells had turned them into a super bowl team? That guy SUCKED! He was a terrible coach in the pros that NEVER won anything and didn’t know squat. He was mocked, ridiculed and people rolled their eyes when they spoke about him. In case you don’t remember who that guy was, why don’t you go across town and say hello to him. You’ll find him in the office that says Head Coach Peter Carroll.

Louis Miranda @ 11:11 pm:
Diego; are you high-Dennis Green-Steve Mariucci. Give me a freakin break 2 losers who have never won anything is the best you can come up with? Get out here you damn idiot before people start thinking that your 2 ignorant choices are worth even thinking about

Ahhh.. notice also, Louis Miranda, that you only took the first part of my paragraph, but made NO Mention of the names written below Mariucci and Leavitt. Your shallow posts that simply rant and scream, but offer nothing of substance clearly identify you as knowledge deficient. It’s okay, you’re fine how you are, but please, leave those of us that know the sport to discuss its finer points. YOu can continue to post shallow posts and just let me scroll right by them.

I don’t think Leavitt has really out recruited the Miamis, FSUs, and other florida schools for players. Only a few of his players, I believe, were also coveted by programs like Miami.

But, Leavitt will never leave because he’s built the program up and has had previous offers to leave.

Bobby Petrino would be an interesting candidate. He’s only been in the NFL one year, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he was ready to jump ship at this point. Arthur Blank brought in Petrino to put in a system to best utilize Vick’s talents, and Petrino was intrigued with coaching Vick. And, we all know how they turned out.

If you’re Petrino right now, you must really regret taking the money to coach in the NFL. You’re stuck with a really bad team. And, the players on the team have already turned on you.

The word on an ad taken out in the Daily Bruin to “Fire Dorrell” is TRUE. The ad was purchased by a law firm in OC.
Hard copy only but it’s there! Anyone got a scan we can post?

Whoever takes over the HC duties; hopefully not on this staff or an old washed up coach like Dennis Green or Steve Mariucci cannot ever say west coast offense. It doesn’t work in the college game. I also want to remind our fans that we should never have low expectations for the football program at UCLA. I have been a fan for 42 years and their are alot of people who have been fans a lot longer than that.It is inexcusable that UCLA one and only heisman trophy winner Gary Beban won the award 40 years ago. Unless you are maybe 59 or 60 years old you cannot say you have ssn this team win a national championship, the only one in their history which is truly pathetic when you consider all the great player’s that have played at UCLA. Think about this;it has been 53 years since that one and only championship. The truth is the last coach who definetly would have won another chanpionship was let go 30 plus years ago over a raise in salary that wasn’t very demanding. His name is Dick Vermeil. We were then stuck with Terry Donahue for 20 years. A coach who never was aggressive enough to think his team could win a Championship even though he had great player’s during his 20 years. Until money is spent for a up and coming coach with some experience who is here to play and win the national championship, nothing less we will probably go another 53 years before we get a sniff at a national title.
Chris Peterson or Jim Leavit would be outstanding coaches at UCLA. Terry Bowden would also be breath of fresh air with this stale atmosphere that is UCLA football. By the way Diego: I don’t know you. And I know a lot more about UCLA football than you ever will.

Lets first confirm that even though we do not want DW as the HC. We must admit that the defense has done a good overall this year. Don’t look at the stats at the end of the game. Keep in mind that eventually if the offense is just going 3 and out the defense will get tire and start giving up big plays and score. That is only natural. Again; agree that DW should not be the next coach but lets keep things in perspective.
I now understand the concern with Rick. My only feeling towards that is people learn from their previous mistake and learn to do things correctly. But that is easier said than done.
I don’t think Dennis Green would be a good candidate. I like Mariucci, Neuheisel and Peterson. I don’t think Peterson will leave BS to come to UCLA. Marty Schottenheimer is an interesting choice. I think he would be a good choice because he is a raw raw coach and that works in college. The Atlanta Falcons coach would be a great hire. The only problem is that he has only been there for one year and I think he is not done there. In my opinion we should not endorse Mike Price or Dennis Green. They are over the hill. In my opinion.

Louis Miranda- just cuz you were around when dirt was created doesn’t mean you know more than me. I’ll tell you one thing; your logic is skewed to have written that Dennis Green is a nothing coach. How you can claim that you’re knowledgeable on football and then write that Dennis Green is no good, is beyond me.

If you’re knowledgeable, then start acting like it! REfrain from making comments to other people without a shred of logic. You don’t accuse a man that has coached in the pros for 15 years of sucking.

Diego you are a pompous jerk. I wasn’t around that long ago but I bet your mother was, which would explain your ignorance.
Why don’t you go back to sipping wine and allow us more experienced and knowledgeable fans to figure out who the coach will hopefully be. How stupid are you to continue to think an old washed up coach like Dennis Green should be the next football coach at UCLA.Take off your rose colored glasses. I may be older than you but at least I know a younger coach with head coaching experience is needed to fix 9 straight years of zero Pac-10 championships.

Louis Miranda, Right on! I thought that Vermeil left because of an NFL head coaching position. Donahue was so myopic with his goal of winning the Pac 10 and playing in the Rose Bowl. Even in those days before the BCS, Donahue should have been focusing on national championships. The only thing that is definite is that Dorrell and his staff go and hope that DG can do as well in choosing a new football coach as he did in basketball and baseball.

Give me Marty Schottenheimer. I live in San Diego and watched him coach the Chargers for 4-5 years, or whatever it was. We all complain about Karl not showing any emotion, Marty is a guy that shows emotion. People can complain all they want about his postseason accomplishments (or lack thereof), but every game he coached, the team came out PREPARED and played hard…basically, they showed up for every game, every week. Can’t really say that with Norv Turner right now. Anyways, I would love to have Schottenheimer on the Bruins sidelines firing up our team, lighting a match under their butts and getting them prepared to play hard no matter who they are playing against.

For all of those who think Rick Neuhisel has too much baggage I have two words for you…..

Dennis Erickson!!!!

read the LA Times today…Bruce Davis on UofA..
“They can run out three or four wide receivers, that’s fine with us. We got great cover guys back there, bar none.”

We are screwed. Bet the house on UofA. Every time this guy or Trey Brown run their mouths, we get wacked. Why aren’t KD and DW cracking their heads, telling them to shut up and play ball. The only thing they have done well all year is run their mouths. More proof the coaching staff has no control or discipline.

Interesting thoughts about Neuheisel. But, like it or not (and similar to Dennis Erickson), his baggage would probably scare off those hiring a Dorrell replacement. Norm Chow always says he doesn’t want the HC position, but even if he did,his salary demands would probably scare off the UCLA A.D.
Remember, at USC Chow’s salary was higher than many NCAA head coaches. Bowden ? Accurate or not, he was “accused” of inheriting a great team and program and after that team won the National Championship, his teams faltered. He would also come probably be available at too high a price. So what does that leave us? I don’t have the answer, but unless we are ready to pay the big bucks both from the A.D.’s perspective and from the fans (higher ticket prices etc.), don’t expect a high priced, big name coach to choose a program (like it or not fellow Bruin alumni and fans) that has a reputation of not being supportive of the big time committment required to “go to the next level.”
Again, right or worng, there is unfortunately a huge perception issue that we are committed to the type results Dorrell presents, as much as that stinks! I just don’t know that the A.D. has the gumption to swing for the fence on this one and if he doesn’t, expect more of the same.

Just dropped 500 on Arizona to win straight up on Bodog.com, money in the bank. Think I’ll parlay my winnings this week to next weeks game too.

J has got it right. We need to act committed in every way and at every level. Otherwise, we should pack it in. Hear this Guerrero? Hear this Bruin fans who keep going to every game no matter how bad the on field product is?

Until Dorrell is fired, Bruin fans, don’t attend any more games and don’t even watch the games on TV or listen to them on the radio!! Toss those season tickets in the trash. Kill both gate recipts revenue and the TV and radio advertising dollars by NOT attending and not watching and not listening and soon enough Guerrero will get the message…or it will be his job on the line!

Bruin fans, if you really want to get the best long term results you have to be willing to go all the way in the short term. This sounds extreme, but what have we got to lose that we are not already on the verge of losing or have lost anyway?

We have already lost national respect and don’t be fooled into believing that the best recruits (the 5 star recruits that USC gets don’t know this - ask Tyler’s kid!. If you are fed up with more average BS played out in the best Donohue tradition, try taking an extreme position.

Louis Miranda-

You’re saying I’m pompous??!

Dude, you’re the one that entered this forum insulting people. My post tangentially mentioned Mariucci and Dennis Green, but the rest of it, a long one, mind you, referenced young, college based coaches. I introduced the names of Jerry Moore and Jim Leavitt. I wrote about 300 words about how a coach like these two, if not one of these two, would be a brilliant pick. You elected to very rudely reply to only the mentioned names of Green and Mariucci, and further accuse me of being an idiot. Well, you showed you’re a dumb wh0re by saying that Dennis Green and Mariucci suck. They don’t suck. Now, many cases can be made as to why they wouldn’t be good candidates for UCLA. No one is going to denounce such an argument, because those coaches aren’t infallible or beyond criticism; however, that isn’t what you did. I’m not too warm on Dennis Green, or Mariucci, but I understand the attention their names bring.

What’s even more ridiculous is that I’ve sprayed this entire forum with multiple discussions about a variety of coaching options (Peterson, Neuheisel, Moore, Bowden, Leavitt). I’ve delved into each with great, GREAT detail. The only ones I MERELY mentioned by name, but didn’t detail profiles were Mariucci and Green, yet those are the ones on which you focused. Either you had your glasses missing at that point or you’re educationally challenged. If after reading my extensive posts on a variety of coaching candidates led you to believe that I am somehow endorsing Mariucci and Green as top candidates, then you need some ESL classes, because you clearly don’t know how to read the English language.

Damn, yoookla! It’s rough to wager against our Bruins, but I can’t say I fully blame yah. I can’t believe it has come to this?

There has got be a better way than feeding on ourselves. Yikes. We sound like the SC hounds when they were on the ropes during the Hackett era.

Diego you are right and I’m man enough to admit I was wrong about just focusing on Green and Mariucci. No I’m not back on medication or anything like that it’s just been so frustrating watching this go on for so long that the thought of another coach who more than likely is not going to succeed here is hard to take. I realize after reading what you and the other fans are saying ,myself included is that we all love UCLA football and that’s why we are on common ground about wanting a change in the direction of the football program. I respect the fact that you care and are a fan of the football team like the rest of us. My apologies to you Diego.

Miranda, my brother, let’s go find us a New coach!! Wadayasay??? A REAL MOTHA F’ing coach! I can’t lie to you all; I’m stressed by this. When UCLA performs like this, the quality of my daily spirit, especially the weekends, nose dives.

Diego, I’m with you and the rest of the fans who want not just some assistant coach or jaded ex-coach who has nothing better to do. I to get pissed off on the weekends when they play this terrible type of losing football,especially against doormats.

J-

what you write is accurate, adn it’s the central theme to all of my posts referencing the UCLA Administration. The UCLA administration has held the same position since basketball really started taking off: UCLA doesn’t care about football.

This is the reason why we’ve always hired BARGAIN coaches that wont’ cost much, but won’t mess the program up. This includes Donahue, Toledo, Dorrell. HEll, that’s their outlook always. The same can be said for bball. Lavin was a bargain coach, as was Harrick before him. The 80s? do I even want to bring up the 80s? UCLA doesn’t like to spend the money on the coaches. They know that the university is competitive enough to stay relevant, and that’s good enough for them. Ben Howland is the glaring exception, but much of what brought Howland to UCLA is his own fanaticism for the university. He’s a hardcore fan of UCLA. If you hear him give interviews on UCLA, he’s always talking about how this was his dream job. My believe is that Dan Guererro DOES want to stop at nothing to make football competitive. He had to focus on Bball upon his arrival, but with bball set up, and the rest of UCLA athletics prospering under Guererro, he needs to focus on football. HE can’t concede to the administration like it was rumored he did during the hiring of Howland and Dorrell. This time, he’s ready to cross the Administration, if he has to. I truly, truly believe in this.

Diego-I hope your right about Guerrero wanting to stop at nothing to improve the football team. My only question is why has he waited so damn long? Is he scared to fire KD because he is African Amwerican? I hope not because winning the national championship should be the issue not race.

Hey, Harrick was a pretty good coach and did win us a NC. He may have been ethically challenged, but I thought he was driven out for a rather minor violation.

That’s part of the problem with the administration’s expectations, where it only wants a coach as pure as driven snow. So, no Dennis Erickson, Rick N., or even a coach like George O’Leary. The irony is that without Sam Gilbert, John Wooden doesn’t become the greatest basketball coach of all time.

Dana,
Your mis-informed on Harrick’s removal. It wasn’t a minor violation. That was just one of many West Virginia good ole’ boy maneuvers. He pissed off the “brass” at UCLA…and I can tell you where it occurred.

Brentwood Country Club, 1st tee box in front of the entire clubhouse and spectators, Jim, in his standard demeanor, yanked his pants down to ankles so to re-tuck his shirt in. To you, me, and most everyone else in the world, this is probably OK on a golf course, but not at that club, on the fisrt tee box, in front of ucla power money people.

That wasn’t the only reason he was removed. He just didn’t fit with the brass, and the golf thing was the last straw

Doug,
Can’t agree more. If UCLA is risky enough to hire Dorrell, then why not have gone for Rick. (I know it’s money, but if your gonna take a risk, then go for it!!!)

Diego-I hope your right about Guerrero wanting to stop at nothing to improve the football team. My only question is why has he waited so damn long? Is he scared to fire KD because he is African Amwerican? I hope not because winning the national championship should be the issue not race.

I sure hope my feelings are right, too, Louis. I actually know Dan Guerrero personally. I met him while he was Athletic Director at UCI. He’s an intelligent person that’s centrally focused. At UCI, he worked wonders, and it’s the main reason he was given the UCLA job.

here’s the story I know from the Athletic department at UCLA. Then Chancellor Carnasale (Mr. Egghead himself) really liked Karl Dorrell. He liked KD for several reasons, one of which was the fact he was a former Academic Bruin. Above that, though, he came at a cheap price. If you remember, Guererro actually fired both Lavin and Toledo at the same time. He knew he had a great deal of work to do in his first full year. The hiring of the bball coach was the key element upon his arrival. Since we’re a bball school, he HAD to take care of bball first. The story goes like this; DG first contacted Roy Williams. Williams expressed an interest in the UCLA job. At the same time, UNC was having trouble with Matt Doherty and once they learned of UCLA’s contact with Roy Williams, they snatched him in right away, within a week is the story I heard. Dan’s second phone call was to Mike Montgomery, who at that point was with Golden STate and who had been a serious candidate to replace Harrick during Lavin’s Interim year. Montgomery also turned down the job. He said he didn’t want it, because he wanted to take some time off. During their conversation, Montgomery told DG that he should contact Ben Howland, because Ben Howland would be the perfect fit at UCLA. As it turns out, Ben Howland was ALREADY the third name on the list, so that whole scenario worked out.

That’s how it transpired in the BBall hiring. For the Bball hiring, Howland acted pretty autonomously. Football, however, was going to be a different issue, because the fact is that the UCLA Administration doesn’t really support football. AT UCLA, we’re Eggheads. That’s the truth. I’m an egghead, but I love sports. I played sports, and I play sports now (soccer). UCLA’s biggest fear is that become known for football than for how good the university is. Hiring a strong personality at the football position will have people associating football with the school.

Right now you say the name UCLA and people think; Great School. Great Academics. BEautifuly campus. Drs. Research center. If you go around town and ask random people what they think of when they hear USC, they’ll say football, pete carroll, reggie bush.

UCLA DOES NOT want this. No matter how dominant we are in bball, it doesn’t have the mass appeal and exposure that college football does, because the truth is that college football is the HEALTHIEST sport in the nation.

Knowing that he’d likely have a fight on his hands with Carnasale, DG conceded and went with Carnasale’s choice for a football coach: KD. Since 2002, though, a few things have happened. First, and most important, the Egghead Carnasale didn’t want to continue being Chancellor. HE wanted to return to teaching and to his reasearch (no surprise). We now have Chancellor Block, about whom I know nothing! Second, Dan Guererro has positioned himself as one of the better Athletic Directors in not only the pac-10, but the country. He did brilliant work with the baseball team (he was a baseball player when he attended UCLA in the 70s) and the hiring of its head coach. Soccer (my former sport), both men and women and all other sports, including Bball, of course, have thrived. HIs fund raising efforts have been outstanding, and he’s been recognized by the NCAA when they elected him to sit on the NCAA committee that selects the Basketball tournament. All in all, he’s been terrific. Now that he has more control, he’s not the newbie, he’s well respected, I trust that he’s going to make a better decision about the football coach.

I HAVE to believe that there’s a great deal of truth to not firing KD earlier, because he’s black. DG is also a minority, and his involvement (both at UCI and UCLA) with minority groups at UCLA is well noted. I believe there’s a degree of truth to thinking that he delayed the firing of KD, because of KD’s race. I think he believes in giving people all of the opportunities that can be given, before breaking off, and that’s the reason why KD has stayed on so long. Also, DG is a strong-minded. This is HIS hire, even though this was Carnasale’s guy. It goes on DG’s record, so there also has to be some truth to the fact that his ego makes him a bit stubborn.

At the same time, people are starting to lay the blame on Dan Guererro, as they should. My belief is that he’s not going to stand for that, and therefore fire KD.

Dana- I love Harrick. I met him a couple of guys and just simply loved the guy. The truth is, though, that he was UCLA’s 5th choice. HE was at Pepperdine and he came at a cheap price. Being that he was the 5th choice, he wasn’t very popular from the get go. THey looked at him as the guy they were settling with; most notably Peter Dalis (the AD back then). It was a situation where they figured HArrick could make it work, but if he didn’t, they wouldn’t have spent too much money on him. He wasn’t a known name, he didn’t have a long pedigree, and he didnt demand anything.

What they didn’t know is who they ended up truly hiring. The infraction for which he was fired was relatively minor, and as Valencia said, he did upset several people. The truth is, though, that Harrick was crooked. There were MANY run-ins with the A.D. and the administration. HE constantly lied to Peter Dalis. He fired more for his lying than anything else. It’s difficult to argue his firing at this point when you consider how BADLY he and his son cheated at Georgia. That was a MESS!! Fake classes, fake grades, fake exams. MAJOR infractions. He was crooked, but I can’t help it. I love the guy.

Diego-

I don’t know how much of Dorrell’s continuation as coach has to do with race than it had to do with poor timing.

It was UCLA’s fault for hiring somebody with no coaching experience, but the feeling was that you needed to give him time to grow as a head coach. So, unless UCLA really stunk it up, he was going to be safe for, at least, his first two years. After his third year, if UCLA didn’t improve, maybe you could have dumped him. But, then, UCLA went 10-2 that season. Could you really fire a coach after that season? Last season, he probably would have been fired except for that perfect storm where he finally got his signature win against the hated rival that deprived them of going to a national championship.

To all bloggers, including myself:
UCLA is a mediocore football program…period. We are something like Georgia Tech for example. Every now and then, we produce a good team, but generally we just stay in the middle of the pack. There’s no commitment to winning.

It always has been this way, and until the administration changes it, it always will be this way. Unfortunately, we are the “red headed stepchild” to USC in this town which is a shame.

UCLA is saddled amidst some of the best high school football talent in the country, has the “most” sought after campus in the country, has virtually a perfect climate, and produces high graduation rates, etc., etc.

Not than I can ever remember, has our football program been about winning. (i.e. Donahue era - kick a 1 yd field goal to tie a game instead of going for the win).

But our basketball program, and all other sports have been about winning. Why not football? Why can’t the administration commit to a hired gun to change the football program to about winning.

We’ve done it in all other sports. We have the population to support a “hired gun”, we have a 90K seat stadium, we have talent in our backyard, we have good weather, we have everything in the makes for a football power program…but our administration just won’t commit to it. And they should’ve done it a long time ago. (Good local high school talent will opt to play in icy Michigan just because of their commitment to winning.)

Mr. Guerrero, please hire someone and commit yourself to making UCLA about winning…not just an above .500 program

Dana- what you write makes a great deal of sense, and I’d be willing to lean in your direction. I truly, truly don’t see KD’s race when I think about him. I have to be reminded that he’s black, and that’s a good thing. That’s how it should be. I do believe, though, that the considertaion to fire KD is going to involve a study of his race. That’s been DG’s M.O. with regards to how UCLA is perceived. He’s a detail guy, and he wants to make sure UCLA is shown in its most positive light. No matter how poorly KD has done, we are going to make news for firing a black head coach and greatly affecting the percentages of black coaches in D 1a.

“But our basketball program, and all other sports have been about winning. Why not football?”

I actually suspect that might be part of the problem.

UCLA and Stanford are the two most succesful programs in terms of overall athletics, where a wide range of different sports, both men and women, have won national championships. Yet, both of our football programs aren’t that good.

If you look at the schools with succesful programs, for the most sport, football is the only sport at those schools in that all the attention is given to the football program. The AD has only so much time and money, and a great football team would take up a huge chunk of that to the detrement of the other programs.

Valencia- completely agree. I’ve held the contention that UCLA is the MOST UNDERACHIEVING FOOTBALL PROGRAM IN HISTORY for several years. Of this, there’s no doubt! And the blame lays with the administration. I’m not sure if you read my post on the administration, but basically, UCLA doesn’t want to be known as a football school. The name UCLA should be associated with academics, research, institutions of higher learning rather than football. It’s ironic, because we were voted best university for athletics. We’ve won the most national titles of any school, yet football is ignored.

If you read my post, it tells you why football is ignored at UCLA. It is ignored, because football carries a negative stigma to it. Generally, All schools that are superior at football are terrible at Academics: Ohio State, Miami, Florida State, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas. Bball has more schools that are known for its academics: Duke, UNC, UCLA , etc.

I used the example that if you go around town and randomly ask people what they think of when they hear UCLA, they’ll likely answer that they think of Academics, Research, Medicine, and/or institution of higher learning.

If you do the same for USC, the most common response will be Trojan Football and references to Pete CArroll, etc.

This is true due to the fact that football has the greatest appeal in this country. College fotball, in particular, is the HEALTHIEST sport in our nation. It will never suffer ratings drops, or mismanagement, or dead crowds, or anything like that. Truth is, ifyou’re a big time school with a big time football program, you’re going to be known for your football program moreso than for your academics. Case in point: USC; Case in point: Michigan.

Diego-

Also, last year, after that win against SC, it turned out to be a mirage, but didn’t it almost seem as if Dorrell had finally turned the corner? But, then that embarassing bowl loss revealed that nothing had changed and we were still stuck with the same coach. After that loss to Florida State, maybe you could have fired him but it was already too late. If you were going to fire him, UCLA should have fired him immediately after the SC game to get the whole searching for a new coach process set up.

With Harrick, I’ve heard that he wasn’t actually that bad when he was still coaching at UCLA. It wasn’t till he was uncermoniously fired by UCLA did he cross the line and go off the edge. Almost as if he was so hurt by that experience that he vowed he would do anything to show the admin that fired him what a mistake they made, even if it meant crossing the line.

You have got to love the enthusiasm of the Bruins that peg their thoughts on this site and you need to really appreciate their intensity.

Quick exception to the idea that a great football program is alway aligned with lower level academics. An S.I. article examined all division I schools and said that with the exceptions of the military academies, Notre Dame had the highest level of academic requirements of any division I school. It was so high that a certain freshmen QB in the summer prior to his freshmen year learned that among many difficult courses, ALL the freshmen football players were required to take calculus. May not seem like a big deal for non-football player students, but this is unheard of even at Stanford, Princeton, Harvard etc. The freshmen QB upon hearing this left the practice field that day and transferred to USC. The QB? Carson Palmer. Obviously not everyone bailed out on N.D. in the past, but they may have taken their academic requirements to too high a level … the point being their program did not suffer from “jock IQ-itis.”

We could indeed have a great program if we only had the same vision at the “brass” level as someone mentioned.

J spoke to the point as did so many. The attitude of everyone needs to be on the same page.
Drawing on the old Network movie line, everyone really needs to say “I’m as mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore.”

Steve said that the alumni and fans need to take it to a new extreme. I know, I know. The implications of a boycott are serious. But, I think a boycott would really hit Guerrero in two ways. As someone else mentioned, his ego is big. Well then, he wouldn’t want to be caught with an empty stadium. Admit it everyone, we rarely sell out anyway. We have that “fake” sell out number that gets publicized we hit the 84,000 and change level and that is rare !!! Even during the 20 game win streak during the Toledo days, we always had empty seats in the end zones and the student section always looks less than filled. Why not add to the spaciousness for the time being and hit ‘em in the wallet at the same time?

It kills me to say it, but as Steve said it so well, our UCLA football program garners just about zero respect. All of us pounding the key boards here, while good intentioned cannot not alone cause the intended change. Maybe we should look to something more extreme as Steve said. Then maybe A.D. Dan will get the message. I can go the rest of the year without attending, watching or listening to this embarrassment, if only for the long term good of the program. I know it’s way out there and everyone will worry about negative results, but if the program does not turn around and A.D. Dan keeps KD, the death spiral will in the long run be far worse. Simply put, there’s no guarantee that KD will lose enough games to get fired during the remainder of this season. So maybe we need to guarantee the message is received by A.D. Dan that regardless of how the team does the remainder of this season, we want Dorrell out !!

Just a little insight for all you Neuheisel fans…Ravens vs. Bills (2 weeks ago)…I noticed while the other coaches and players were going through the motions, Rick is on the sidelines with Kyle Boller, talking to him and showing some emotion and passion during their huddle together, and actually doing the same during the course of the game…just something I noticed, sure beats that dumb-founded look of surprise that Dorrell seems to always show

“sure beats that dumb-founded look of surprise that Dorrell seems to always show”

Having spent my entire career in the Pharma world, that dumbfounded look is most certainly Karl doubling up on his Zoloft. You can’t get mad, show emotion, or focus on far away objects when doubling up. He’s depressed and he’s medicating himself away from the source of his depression. Lets just hope the hell he triples up and medicates himself to where he can’t find the damn Rose Bowl.

Doug, nice take on A.D. Dan. Until Dorrell is gone, I’ll refer to him as A.D.D. Guerrero as he apparently can’t focus on the issue long enough to get around to it.

“Just dropped 500 on Arizona to win straight up on Bodog.com, money in the bank. Think I’ll parlay my winnings this week to next weeks game too.”

I wouldn’t pass up the Notre Dame-Navy game this weekend either. ND has won only one game, and that’s cause Dorrell gift wrapped it to them and ND is still favored to win…

well one day before the game#9 against Arizona and I feel like a traitor writing this, but it is my sincere hope that the Bruins get thrashed. It’s painful but the more we lose these type of games the better chance of a new coach with some balls hopefully to turn this into top tier football program which is ridiculous that it already isn’t. A bad year at UCLA should be 8-4 not 6-6- or worse. Next coach I hope raises the bar and the expectations. I hope to see the football team win a national championship before I get too old to know which way is up. It would be great for all of us fans young and old. It’s been 53 years since the last one. Enough already.

Doug- point taken. In fact, Is aid it was a general make up of schools, not a rule. I offered Michigan as an exception of a team with high academic standards and a strong football program.

Your piece on ND, though, kind of underscores my point a bit. The reason Lou Holtz left ND was because the academic standards wre raised for sports. Before, they used to take just about anyone they wanted. Since the raising of the standards, and Holtz’s departure, ND has only been competitive based on its name and the media love-affair. They’ve failed to win a bowl game or truly be competitive in terms of National Titles.

Many famous alumni like Paul Horning have come out to say that the administration needs to relax its Academic standards if ND figures to be competitive again. If ND was a regular school without the tradition in football that it has, they’d be worse than they’ve been since Holtz left.

your point, though, is well noted. It’s a general comment I wrote, but nothing that fits for all occassions.

Dana and Louis both are hoping that we get trashed this week and I have got to admit that it makes me sick to admit that I too want the same. I felt that ambivalence for years now and it was highlighted for a brief nano-second during the Cal game. The alls hell feeling overwhelmed me right up to the interception return for the TD during the Cal game … then, a weird depression set in. It was ethereal for a minute as a sickening belief/hope set in that maybe we could run the table, maybe we could take out the Pac-10 and send old Pete scurrying back to the NFL. A few minutes later I screwed my head back on straight. A week later the Wazu wake-up call confirmed that I had suceeded in screwing it back on correctly. Now I have to hope my team gets hammered, it makes me sick. I am tired of “hoping” for wins and this feeling pre-dated even Donohue (I was much younger then). Expecting second best isn’t fun, especially when we are always teased with what could have been and fed a diet of “take it or leave it, it’s better than nothing.”

Second note to Louis - In the 1st to 100 we don’t even claim the National championship of 53 years ago. Note that USC went from 7 to 11 overnight three years ago. Seems they jumped on some obscure small town newspaper voting them the title 4 times back in the 20′ and 30’s.

Why doesn’t Dorrell use a little imagination and start Osaar Raschan-I hope I spelled his name right. This poor guy has been on the sidelines waiting to come in and contribute for 2 plus years. What a waste of talent. He is tall and and carries over 215 lbs. He by all accounts was recruited as a QB who can run and throw. Why did Dorrell even bother to recruit this young man who has talent. For his own sake he should transfer somewhere he will be allowed to display his athletic talent. Just makes you scratch your head and wonder why any kid would want to come to this dysfunctional situation and play football. This is so depressing just writting about it.

Louis Miranda - the word was put out by the players that Osaar can really play the QB position but Dorrell and company never let him take a try because Osaar’s game was more akin to the option style offense AND because apparently Osaar was not making the correct “reads” he needed to in the WCO. Supposedly, according to the coaches, Osaar needed to be on the run to feel comfortable and not just simply rolling out to pass. He is supposedly more a Michael Vick type player. Not that that is entirely bad (canine jokes aside). The WCO is not that type offense and so he was pegged as one that should move to a receiver position this year, that was until all the QBs got injured or failed. At the receiver position he supposedly was not making the catches he should have. It could very well have been that he was never given a chance to fully develop either at the QB or receiver position … one more trajedy in Bruin football.

Hate to say it, Olsen also was never and never will be a WCO QB. Put him in a more conventional system with some decent blocking and he probably succeeds. Sad as it is, our coaches probably misused both these excellent prospects (emphasis on prospects and not guaranteed successes).

I agree Louis. In fact, just about all of us at the ND game were wondering why Bethel-Thompson remained in the game and there was no package prepared for Osaar Rashan. This showed CLEAR negligence by KD. Cowan was out, and our starter is a player that has been injured EVERY SEASON he has been at UCLA. He has missed multiple games throughout his career at UCLA. Why KD wouldn’t have plays ready for Ossar is clear indication of how dumb he is at coaching.

Having written all of that, I found out the answer to why Osaar hasn’t been used at the QB position. This is straight from Matt Stevens’s mouth: Osaar is just no good. Apparently he’s HIGHLY inaccurate. According to STevens, Osaar can’t throw a straight pass even in warm ups. Stevens said that he watched Osaar take warm up throws from 15 yards apart. It seems that Osaar was overthrowing, underthrowing and making the other guy that was catching with Osaar RUN after the ball. This from 15 yards away! Incredible! Stevens said he couldn’t believe, so he went to play catch with him, to see for himself. Stevens said his legs got more of a work out than his arm, from chasing down Osaar’s passes.

Stevens agreed with me, though, WE STILL wanted to see Osaar play. Stevens went on to tell me the story of Pat Barnes. He said Pat was so incredibly inaccurate in practice, that no one could stand it. The coaches would yell at him and Cook said he would also get on him, but once in the game, especially at that USC game, he bleeeeewwwwww up!! Pat Barnes was a GAMER! The fact is, you just don’t know what you have until you put your guy into the game. Osaar, for as inaccurate as he is, apparently, could be a GAMER! He’s obviously a playmaker, especially with his running ability. He was recruited as a QB and moved to WR, where he hasn’t gotten reps this year either. Basically, he hasn’t been given the proper chance to succeed!

This is a MAJOR black mark on KD. No doubt! I feel your frustration, Louis.

My mistake in that last post. I wrote Stevens when I meant to write Wayne Cook.

Well Diego I guess that explains to me why they won’t play Osaar. Too bad. Maybe as you say he is a gamer and at this point really why not give him a chance anyway. Realistically after they lose this weekend, they might as well try something different.It’s obvious that Ben Olsen is either uncomfortable in the WCo or overrated. Maybe a little of both. Elaine, I know it feels lousy to root against our teamm but sometimes things have to get worse before they get better. As for Patrick Cowan I will always love him for finding a way with his teamates last year to stun the Trojans, but he is not the long term answer for the position either. A new offense is really, desperately needed for this team to not only start winning consistently again, but also making it exciting again to watch them play. We all know that only with the dismissal of this entire staff can something like that happen.

I know Boise’s State coach Peterson is getting a lot of love as the potential replacement, but wasn’t his predecessor, Hawkins, just as highly regarded? In a three year stretch, Hawkins lead Boise State to 12-1,13-1, and a 11-1 record. Yet, I’m looking at Hawkins’ record at Colorado, and he hasn’t been able to carry it over to Colorado so far where he has a record of 2-10 and 5-4 this season. With only one full season under his belt, how do we know Peterson wasn’t just a flash in the pan?

“I wouldn’t pass up the Notre Dame-Navy game this weekend either. ND has won only one game, and that’s cause Dorrell gift wrapped it to them and ND is still favored to win…”

Yep, as I thought, ND was going to lose this game. Seriously, how could we lose to a otherwise winless ND that can’t even beat Navy? This is the same ND that can’t even beat a Navy team that just lost the previous week to a 1-AA team. Even our third string players have more talent than Navy’s starting players. And, yet, Navy was able to beat ND. I like what Johnson has done at Navy. No other coach has squeezed out of his players as he’s been able to do.