Do you know what we need? We need a head coach. What is so hard to decide which coach to get. It is perty simple.

Either hire Mariucci and pay him the money and lower the standards to enter UCLA. If UCLA is not going to do that then he is no longer a candidate.

Or hire Chow and make him your head coach. Yes it is his first head coaching job but he has years of experience that cannot be ignore. If UCLA does not want to hire Chow as the next head coach do to his lack of head coaching experience then he is no longer a candidate. (This would also eliminate Walker as the next head coach. No head coaching experience).

Or hire Neuheisel and give him an opportunity to be the next UCLA head coach. Everyone knows this is Neuheisel dream job. Keep him on a short leash and if he screws up he is gone. Or if his past is to much to ignore and do not feel he is not sensery in the interview when he speak about his love for UCLA then he is no longer a candidate.

Then their is Walker. Wait, he was already eliminated for his lack of experience as a head coach that would eliminate Chow. If that is no longer a problem then UCLA must decide either Chow who has a succesful track record in his coaching career or Walker who is just starting his career as a coordinator. It’s not mutch of a match.

The point is every coach has flaws. No matter who it is. There is always something that can be said about anybody in regards to coaching. Just got to pick one. Soon I hope.

every coach out there,we could nit-pick about something! point is not everyone is perfect! but when we get down to the heart of it and look at facts,here is what they are! Chow,by far,has the most overall experience of any H.C. out there and I would rather go with 30 plus yrs. of experience than anything else! Walker took our defense from 118th,yes,118th! to 30th in the nation the last two years in total defense! all these geniouses say Mariucci,but what did he do?? plus he likes the W.C. offense and we saw what happened with that! Chow or Walker would bring a different attitude to Ucla! either of them would be a good hire,but together,they would be a dynamic hire! Go Bruins!

Walker a “dynamic hire”?! What have you been smoking ucla34???

What happened to the talk about Bobby Hauck from Montana or Mike Riley from Oregon State? I think both of those guys are stand up guys who would bring the type of attitude that UCLA needs in it’s football program. Plus has a potential to bring in high profile recruits. Both have very solid head coaching records (i.e. Norm Chow/Walker), there’s not possible NCAA violations in their history (i.e. Rick Neuheisel) and it’s clear that these two want to stay in the college ranks (i.e. Mooch).

My vote is Bobby Hauck and bringing in Ed Orgeron as the offensive coordinator.

Tom–I think the operative word in UCLA34’s comment which you overlooked was “together”. Meaning Chow and Walker together. I happen to agree that a Chow-Walker combo could be great for UCLA although I am open to other options including Neuheisel.

Here is what people are saying about UCLA

MSNBC.com contributor John Tamanaha

HELP WANTED: UCLA NEEDS YOU!

Here are some of the extras that would fit in well on a listing at UCLA.

* Must be willing to work for wage not comparable to that of colleagues in the field, yet spend most of it on suitable housing near campus.
* Must demonstrate the ability to operate effectively within the considerable shadow of Pete Carroll.
* Must demonstrate ability to compete for national championship or at least defeat Notre Dame when blessed with 20 returning starters.
* Must adhere to the highest ethical standards with regard to recruiting or operate with the cloaked effectiveness utilized by John Wooden.
* Working knowledge of sports psychology is preferred, as team has been known to be highly schizophrenic.
* Previous experience in winning second-tier bowl games is preferred.
* Musical ability is not required, but having the skills to play a harmonious second fiddle to men’s basketball program is a considerable plus.
* Previous head coaching experience at an elevated level has not been a requirement since 1971.

The sad thing about this is that some of it is true.

well life long bruin fan, he said either of them would make a good hire, so…

I just read on BRO that Steve Hartman just reported Chow’s interview went horrible, said he’s out of the running.

Did anybody hear that?

I just read on BRO that Steve Hartman just reported Chow’s interview went horrible, said he’s out of the running.

Did anybody hear that?

so what? so he is not good at blowing smoke up someones ass, the fact is he can run an offense and develop qbs. I’m sure KD gave a lights out interview, but what did he acomplish on the field? So whats it going to be DG? Are you looking for great interviews or a Great HC? If you are looking for the latter the Chow should be one of the finalist.

Alx324–couldn’t agree with you more!!!

norm chowwwwwwwww

alx324….Can you tell me why you think Norm Chow will be a great HC? No, I didn’t say offensive coordinator, we all know what he can do in that role. I’m talking about HC. Its gonna be difficult because you have nothing to draw upon as far as experience goes. But, I would like to hear your argument. And, please, don’t throw in how he single-handedly won national championships at SC. He had the same OC position at NC State and they didn’t win much.

No offense intended in my tone. I am sincerely interested in hearing what you have to say.

I agree with you alx324!!!NORM CHOW!!!

Can anyone tell me who the OC at Oregon is? That coaching position is so obscured by the responsibilities of the HC, nobody even knows who these guys are. Well, the OC at Oregon is a guy named Chip Kelly. He came to Oregon from New Hampshire, or maybe Delaware, and just completed his first year as OC at Oregon. He implemented a spread offense to take advantage of Dennis Dixon’s running ability. Until Dixon was injured, Oregon led the nation in several offensive stats and Dixon, at one point, was the leading Heisman candidate.
The point is this: Here is another OC who lit the stats on fire. He had a Heisman candidate at QB. If Dixon doesn’t get hurt, Oregon probably wins the national championship. So, why isn’t Chip Kelly considered a reasonable candidate for the HC position? In his first year he accomplished much of what it has taken Norm Chow to do in over 20 years. Why not hire him?

If anyone thinks R.N. will be a better choice then CHOW? just because he’s bin a H.C. then how come the only thing he has to show for that title of “HEADCOACH” is a 8 and 4 record with someone elces recruits? GIVE ME A BREAK !!! as a Q.B. coach to the great troy aikman(who we all know what he went on to do in the pro’s)they couldn’t even beat SuC with the GREAT!!!!wait for it???? RODNEY PETE!
case closed.

Norm Chow has what it takes to be head coach contrary to the fact that he has never had the title. Give him the chance for our team and I would bet grips of money (if i had it) we will have a winning season regardless of talent.He outwits and outplays his opposition and has an extensive backround in coaching. He may not be as well qualified as far as defense goes but thats what Dewayne walker is there for.

The Norm Chow/Dewayne Walker combo is lethal in my mind

shony420….Ahhhh, which record book are you trying to read? 8-4? Did your dog eat the pages that showed Neuheisel went 10-2 twice and 11-1 in another year. The guy had three teams ranked in the top 5 and won two major bowls. Chow? Odds are you would never have heard of him if Carroll didn’t bring him to SC when Lavelle Edwards retired.
Sometimes I think we at UCLA are so in awe of SC we want to copy them at any cost, as if bringing in the mighty SC’s offensive coordinator is going to equate to SC’s success. No, things don’t happen that way.

I like what bruinsnation is calling the possible duo of Chow and Walker……Choker.

FYI

Rick neuheisels overall record as a coach is 66-30

66-30= Not impressive at all

One Conference title(washington)= Not impressive

buycker….I agree there is a lot of Chow noise going on. But, I draw hope from what an old statistics professor once jammed into my head. Consensus breeds mediocrity.

Please…Enough waiting around DC. Hire Rick Neuheisel ASAP! Neuheisel has been a winner when he played at UCLA ‘80-’83 including being apart of 2 Rose Bowl Victories over Michigan and Illinois(MVP of the ‘84 game).

After leaving UCLA has an assistant coach to Colorado in ‘95, he led the Buffs to 3 bowl victories(’95 Cotton Bowl; ‘96 Holiday Bowl; and ‘98 Aloha Bowl) before moving onto the University of Washington. In 2000, the Huskies finished #3 in the country with a 11-1 record and a Rose Bowl victory over a Purdue Team led by Drew Brees.

Overall, Neuheisel’s coaching record is 61-35. Having been in the pro ranks since ‘05-present with the Baltimore Ravens, Neuheisel is motivated to take on new challanges including taking over his alumni. Neuheisel’s energy level will unite alumni and be able to attract recruits to compete vs. USC, Oregon, and ASU year end & year out.

Let’s get back to some winning ways at UCLA and actually play again in the Rose Bowl on January 1st!

Mike, 66-30 isn’t impressive? Wow. Considering the best winning percentage of all time is about .742, I’d say .687 is pretty damn impressive.

“PUKE” although I disagree with you on R.N. I must say that CHIP KELLY would be an awsome name to add to the list!!! Unfortunatly, I doubt he’s even on D.G. radar!

Add Mike….what is Norm Chow’s W-L record as a HC? .000 Now, THAT’S unimpressive.

No, Its not impressive.

Here is what my definition of impressive is…

Mack Brown (Texas) 93-22

Jim Tressel (Ohio State) 73-15

Lloyd Carr (Michigan) 121-40

Pete Carrol (USC) 75-14

Les Miles (LSU) 33-6

Puke–I would agree that “consensus breeds mediocrity” could certainly be applied to the last two presidential elections. As for what the groundswell of support for Chow may indicate, I’d like to interpret it as people “seeing the light”.

yea why dont you compare Ricks stats to those coaches…and tell me hes still impressive…

AH! I Forgot PATERNO!!!

371-125-3

HUMM??? 66-30 ?that is pretty impresive,,if your going up against dorrell’s record? but if you compare what unkle pete done across town? dousn’t really compare now dous it! and i’m tired of being second fiddle in this town to SuC.

obviously its not compared to dorrell….im talking in collegiate generality….its not impressive at all

Puke–the problem I have with the “no head coaching experience” argument is that superior coaches such as Bob Stoops and Jeff Tedford have demonstrated that not having any head coach experience has NOT HAD ANY EFFECT on their ability to be successful. I think both Oklahoma and Cal have been extremely pleased at the ability of these two previously inexperienced head coaches to resurrect their programs. It seems like you are not giving Chow any benefit of the doubt that his 30+ years of sustained excellence count for anything. Perhaps you are but that’s not what I gather from your posts.

Mike, I don’t think anyone is arguing that we would prefer to have one of the coaches you highlight above. If you could talk to Les Miles and get him to sign on at UCLA that’d be great. Unfortunately, out of the candidates we have, Rick is about as good as it gets.

I disagree.In my mind norm chow would be a better pick over rick. He has recieved numerous awards and although he has never had the official title of Head Coach i believe he can do wonders for our team

Mike, I’m not totally against Chow, but I’m weary of hiring another coach that hasn’t proven himself as a HC. I think Chow has the potential to be good, but there’s a big question mark there. If Chow gets the job, I’ll reserve judgement and hope for the best. If Rick gets the job, I’d be happier because I know what to expect. He’s proven he can win, and he didn’t need to go to a powerhouse school like Texas or Michigan to do it. UW and Colorado aren’t exactly hotbeds for football recruiting. If he can win there, he could be very successful in LA.

mike we’d have to be stupid to want rick if we could have some of those all-star coaches. at the moment, no top-ranked coach wants to come here- we have no football field on campus, we get blasted by the analysts in the media, and we just lost to Notre Dame this year. While we might see amazing potential in our team and our school, coaches see the opportunity as a bust. Rick bleeds blue and yellow out of his veins. He is crazy enough to believe in our school and in our goal of winning a national championship. Unlikes other candidates, he actually has the experience. He has won a Rose Bowl, as a player and a coach. Is that not our first goal- to win the PAC-10 bowl. He’s been there. You have to be in imaginary land to believe that we can get a 5 star coach right now. It can happen…after Rick brings us back to prominence. If I don’t get in to UCLA med school, next year could be my last year at UCLA as a student. I don’t want some bozo ruining my last football season. Atleast Rick will have that energy and hope that will make me look forward to next year. I’m blessed to be here when Howland has brought our bball team to the top…and next year will be amazing as will this year.I just want my christmas present to be the knowledge that I won’t have to dread living through another fall of mediocrity.

Chow/Ken Norton… could be a good combo. I know Norton is a mere linebackers coach now, but I think he could be a good DC.

Mike–even though I am with you in supporting Chow, I do think Neuheisel has a very respectable overall W-L record and impressive Bowl victories, which is why I support him as well. The one issue that has been brought up with respect to his record, however, and which I consider to be a reasonable question, is why his teams have shown a pattern of tailing off after early success. No real clear answers here.

Note to DG:

Stop the interviewing and hire Neuheisel ASAP! Let’s get back to winning the Pac-10(’98-present); a Rose Bowl(’86 to present) & a Top 5 nationwide/BCS finish.

Did anyone here see this… LOS ANGELES - The UCLA coaching search caravan was in Baltimore on Friday for a meeting with Ravens offensive coordinator Rick Neuheisel, the former head coach at the University of Washington…. I’d heard anything about a search caravan from UCLA out on the prowel???

You wan’t Slick Rick? You must be out of your mind! He has been nothing but trouble were ever he has landed. Lie, cheat and steal are words that he is more than familiar with. UCLA DG must understand that if you want to play you got to pay. Leach is the man for the job. “We don’t like him because his teams score too fast which leaves the defense volnerable” That opinion is total crap. Texas Tech, Hawaii, the proof is right there in front of you. These offenses are not a fluke.They expose defenses and easily put points on the board. So, lets stop all the nonsense, Hire Leach, and he will be so successful that he’ll be gone within 3 years because UCLA won’t pay the going rate. I’ve about had it and if a proven coach is not hired I’m through. Say goodbye to me and my generouse donations.

Okay, just got back from picking the kids up some blue and gold “We Want Rick” shirts.

All I can say is, I am tremendously relieved that Chow will not be hired. We came close to blowing it.

Why was Jeff Tedford off the polling list???

Go Jeff Tedford!!!

Mike … you are aware that the HC position is different than the OC position, arent you?! Some coordinators can make good head coaches. In fact, most good HC were coordinators at one point or another. That doesn’t mean all strong coordinators with tons of experience make good head coaches. The skill necessary for HC are different, obviously. Lots of recruiting, lots of glad-handing, lots of personal contact with families, boosters, etc. etc., paperwork, program management (the stuff Dorrell loved to do - push papers). Norm Chow has had 30 years to get a HC job, and worse programs have turned him down. No program tha twe know of has even offerred him a HC position.

When we say we want experience, we always say “HC experience.” Big difference. Let Chow learn elsewhere first somewhere else if he is cut out for the job, or if he even likes it.

Why must we at UCLA, U C L A, wait 40 years to hire a proven experienced winning coach … only to pass on that prerequisite YET AGAIN?? Because the unproven guy always “has what it takes” and “will be a great head coach” … there is no proof (ie experience) to say that he will fail. There is always only upside. The experienced coach has a TRACK RECORD that gives us a better idea if he truly can be a good head coach, but also gives plenty of ammunition for those nuts who would rather go blindly with hope.

To change the culture of mediocrity we need to change what we have been doing for 40 years!!! And we need to put the nut jobs on the fringes for once … ABW and No Chow For You.

Lifelong Bruin fan….I know what you’re saying about Stoops and Tedford. But, don’t you agree that Stoops has been a disappointment, so far? I mean, heck, Arizona just can’t put meaningful wins together. They always seem to come up with one upset each year and that is it.

And, Jeff Tedford was one helluva OC at Oregon. But, look what happened to his team this year. Ranked #2 in the nation, his indecision and confusion on the sideline with 20 seconds to go in the game, cost Cal the Oregon State game. From that game on, the team collapsed, even losing to Stanford at the end.

Mike @ 4:52 pm:
FYI

Rick neuheisels overall record as a coach is 66-30

66-30= Not impressive at all

One Conference title(washington)= Not impressive

really? I will bet that there are not too many, if any, coaches at U Washington with anywhere near that percentage.

MIKE,

I for one would take Rick’s winning percentage in a heart beat. It’s 68.75 % at Colorado and Washinton combined, I doubt if either school had the overall talent to work with that the Bruins did during that period. Yes, I believ that Colorado may have had Stewart and Bienemy at that time, I am not too sure of that since my Alheimers blocks some things out, but I am sure at Washington he had nothing comparable to what UCLA had for talent. But given those facts, wouldn’t that record for the same period of time be equal to if not exceed UCL’s record for the same given period? I believe that would be an average of 8 wins per season. I for one would be happy to see that at UCLA. You are going to have some up and down seasons, but to average that is good in my book. All of this was accomplished when Rick was in his “internship” phase of coaching. I am sure he has learned a few things and grown up as a prson as well since then. That of course is for DG to decide. I am sure he won’t be partying on Gayley like in his old days there.

To improve upon that it all depends what the AD can do to make the program a more attractive

ATP, did you hear some news about Chow? What makes you sure he isn’t one of the candidates getting a second interview?

JRBruin…..No that was my attempt at humor. I was trying to shock the Chow supporters out of their Egg Nog fog.

Sorry for the confusion.

Haha, ok, too bad.

O’Leary or Price would be good. Both are stigmatized for dumb reasons… so we could get either of these top quality coaches for cheap–and that seems to be what the Morgan Center is all about. Neither one violated NCAA rules. One lied about a degree he didn’t even need to have. The other went to a strip club. I think O’Leary has more than learned his lesson for that inane move. As for Price, I congratulate him on doing something useful with his time.

If you saw the level of talent @ UTEP this season, you would know that Mike Price is a “great” college football coach. Why would anyone bring his name up? I don’t believe that he would leave a beautiful area like El Paso and come and bail us out of our hole of a program. Look back when he was the coach @WSU, I don’t remember prospects knocking down the door to play @ that tiny outpost called Pullman. Yet, he more than won his share of games. Of course, he used a spread offense. Get the picture? It’s not who you hire, but what they bring. Look for those BOZO’S in the AD department to hire on the cheap. They’re still crying about giving KD 2mil. It really has cost them more because they replaced Bob Toledo with a coach who basically proved in a short time that he {KD}could not coach. It’s a sad shame that they have no idea how to improve this program. My message to all is if they hire another hack, then I’m out of here and I take my money with me.

Walker is absolutely not UCLA head coach material at this point in his career. Neither is Norm Chow. If they want to become UCLA head coach material, they should go get some experience at a lower tier school, learn their craft there, then come knocking on the door for the big job. In the meantime, we need a proven winner who can turn this program around. We’ve been stuck in the Dorrell quicksand for the last 5 years. We’ve been stuck so deep that a lot of people on other boards are saying things like, well, noboby will want to come here, we should have kept Dorrell because he’s about as good as we can expect.

Have we really sunk that low that we expect UCLA to be a third rate football school, and that Walker is who we should let lead our program. Come on! Let’s have a little Bruin pride.

Mike Price is a great choice as well, the three coaches that are available that i believe would be the best fit here at UCLA are the ones least talked about:

1. Mike Price - a Pac-10 guy who’s got a great track records as a head coach

2. Bobby Hauck from Montana - a UCLA alum who is great with recruiting and offense and has another great track record as a head coach. Success breeds success!

3. Mike Riley from Oregon - another pac-10 guy who has won everywhere he went.

Each though are not a big name, but personally i don’t want a big name just for show, i want someone who’s going to stay at UCLA for a long time and give this program stability!

Why not…
Norm Chow - because no head coach and not a great recruiter, great QB coach

Rick Neuheisels - because he’s All Flash, no substance. He isn’t a great coach and he’s been dirty at TWO places.

Dewayne Walker - because he’s got no experience and he’s not proven he can win yet…

1) From what I’m seeing, Leach isn’t really in the running anymore. Anybody know what happened there?

2) I am terrified of a Slick Rick hire. Did we learn nothing from the Toledo fiasco? Yeah, we might post a couple 10-win seasons, even win a BCS bowl, but chances are one or two good years will be followed by mediocrity-ensuring sanctions for the next 5. I just don’t see how he can be trusted. Plus, his offense at Washington started well, but seemed to go downhill after Pac-10 defensive coordinators got wise to his schemes. He’s been Baltimore’s OC since, and in that time, their offense has been abysmal. I see no reason to believe he would be an instant offensive turnaround, and his track record off the field is nothing but worrisome.

3) Tressel, Miles, Rodriguez, et al are simply not walking to Westwood. Yeah, we’re all tired of being second-fiddle to the Silly Clowns, but a top-tier coach just isn’t going to happen. We can bitch and moan about that all the way through the b-ball team’s next trip to the Final Four, but the fact is we are not an elite football program and probably never will be. I don’t like it any more than you do, but it is reality. And until that day that we are an elite program, we will have to be satisfied with hiring coaches for their upside, not for their proven-beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt success.

4) With that in mind, I do not see any bigger upside than Norm Chow. My understanding is that he’s never wanted the HC job, and has only considered it now because it is an HC job at a big-time school in SoCal. And if he wants it, I have a hard time seeing a man with his level of lifelong success failing at it. Yeah, it’s an upside call, but it’s a helluva lot of upside.

5) I can’t believe that a secondary coach on an NFL team is even being considered for the same job as Chow just because he has a Pac-10 pedigree of some sort. Anybody have any inside scoop as to how seriously John Harbaugh is actually being considered?

Thanks for posts, all; it’s great seeing other fans going through the same thing I am.

Bobby Hauck. Good idea as well

John, just to clarify, Mike Riley was booted out of San Diego as the Chargers coach because he didn’t win. Also, at Oregon State, his teams are notorious for being slow starters. True, they always seem to finish strong, but he was actually being booed at Reser Stadium early this year. When Oregon State lost to Cincinnati, there was talk about finding a replacement.

I remain with Chow as HC and Walker as DC. Let’s do it and begin solidiying our 2008 recruiting class. The QB position is key to our success and we need Chow to develop a QB for us …. soon.

Well Dino , I guess that makes two of us , except the Walker part. Anybody coming in should be able to put their own staff in place . I would like to see the staff Chow puts together .

DW was almost as inconsistent as KD. Remember The terrible defenses against Florida St last year, Utah, Wash St, N.D. and the 2nd half against BYU. His only claim to fame was last years u$c game

Well, I’m almost ready to raise the white flag. I don’t know why it is so difficult to understand that coaches on a football team have very different and specific roles. An offensive coordinator is responsible for designing and scripting plays. Part of his job is to recognize the specific skills of players at each offensive position. He can’t spend all of his time developing a quarterback. It takes countless hours of filmroom time to teach a quarterback how to recognize defenses. It takes more hours to work on technique, mechanics and execution on the practice field. That is why the team has a quarterbacks coach. The OC delegates chores to different position coaches, i.e., offensive line coach, wide receivers coach, tight ends coach and running backs coach.
So, if the offensive coordinator spends the bulk of his time designing the offense, dictating to position coaches where he would like to see improvement, putting together a game plan based on the opponents strengths and weaknesses compared to his offense’s strengths and weaknesses, and strategizing for situations that may occur during the game, how is the HC, whose job it is to coordinate the efforts of all coaches on the staff, supposed to find time to develope a quarterback?

John–I could definitely get on board for Mike Price. He built a solid program at WSU and if Alabama was willing to hire him, that says a lot. Of course he was stupid to get caught hanging with strippers, but I am sure he could turn things around at UCLA. Don’t know too much about Hauck but I know Riley was bypassed the last time around. I know you don’t agree but I still support Chow though.

Puke–I understand what you are saying that a HC will not have the time to spend with the offense (or defense) as he would if he were a coordinator. That said, I still believe Chow could do a great job as head coach because he understands the game like few others. I’ve cited Stoops and Tedford as great recent examples of coordinators with no previous HC experience who stepped into HC roles without skipping a beat. I know you disagree but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with accepting that not everyone will see the situation exactly the same. You present some strong arguments though and I can understand why others might also agree with you and support Neuheisel.

Rick Neuheisel Hired. No just kidding I thought I’d throw that in for ATP. In your response to what I posted The reason I think that chow would make a great HC is because of his 30 experience in the game, but more importantly being around some of the great head coaches of the game in both college and pro starting with Lavelle Edwards and Pete Carroll and currently with Jeff Fisher of the Titans. Being around great coaches gives one a chance of seeing how they put together a game plan, delegate authority, and in the college arena recruit. Now I know that RN has done a good Job with 2 different programs but he was an OC before he took the Job, he didn’t coach at a lower tier college and earn his stripes and he did okay, so Chow should do just as well because he has more coaching experience in regards to running an offense. I also posted that he should be one of the finalist and if RN is hired I would be happy, just like everyone who is posting i want the Bruin Football team to be contending for a national Championship every year.

Puke , you may get your wish ! Chris Foster of the L.A. TIMES is reporting that slick Rick is getting a second interview tonight . Supposedly it will be with his highness Chancellor Block . I still don’t know why you think Chow with all his experience ( including asst. head coach ) is incapable of being more than a O.C. or Q.B. coach . I get that you love SLICK RICK and have annointed him the only one capable of doing the job, so good luck with that !

Puke , you may get your wish ! Chris Foster of the L.A. TIMES is reporting that slick Rick is getting a second interview tonight . Supposedly it will be with his highness Chancellor Block . I still don’t know why you think Chow with all his experience ( including asst. head coach ) is incapable of being more than a O.C. or Q.B. coach . I get that you love SLICK RICK and have anointed him the only one capable of doing the job, so good luck with that !

Sorry, didn’t mean to send it twice .

Rise…No, Neuheisel isn’t the only guy who can do the job. To tell you the truth, I don’t think he’ll be hired. I honestly believe Bronco Mendenhall will be the next HC. And, I’m okay with that. He’s pretty solid. There has been some question about whether he would take the job because of his Mormon affiliation, but I think he will. I read an interview he gave a Utah paper and he didn’t directly deny that he would take the job.
And by the way, Chow could do the job. I don’t have any doubts about that. What I have been saying is that he would be in a different role so we can’t expect the same results we could if he was the OC. Its just a difference of opinion.

Remember, we hired a coach who never had been a hc before. Chow, no matter how good he is as an offensive coordinator, has never been a hc before. He doesn’t seem to have the exhuberance that I think we need. I hate to point to Pete Carroll but I think you know what I mean. Rick has that.

Lifelong….did you see the comments I made about Mike Stoops and Jeff Tedford yesterday?
Bob Stoops is doing just fine at Oklahoma, but brother Mike and Tedford have kinda stumbled a bit.

I am sure that most of you will agree that the head Coach is truly the captain of the shi, the focal point of attention to say the least. Good or bad he gets the attention. Me thinks, Rick will be the Captain Jack Sparrow type, a swashbuckler who gets the job done anyway he can. I can go with that for and take the lumps with his mistakes, but I don’t think there will be many.

Mike,

You mentioned some great coaches and their “impressive” winning percentages. Like anything else, you get what you pay for. Those coaches get paid penthouse salaries, while the UCL salary is liely less than half and at Christmas time that will only het to the manger out back at the Sheraton.

This hiring is going to include tangibles and intangibles that we likely will never know the true facts as to who is hired and who is not and for what reasons.

Remember, DG is looking for someone who will work for sub-scale wages. Take the winning coaches you named an their salaries, find a mean salary from that, offer that as a salary for the next head coach and candidates would be coming out of the woodwork.

Answer this for me, why would a coach come to UCLA when he could make twice as much somewhere else?

My answer to that is that he would have to be on a mission to do something he likes for less money and for his UCLA family. Does that sound like Rick, I think so.

For the money the job pays, we were lucky to have Dorrell. We could have had worse.

Quite an article in this morning’s Riverside Press Enterprise about current players lobbying for DW.
“So strong is the support for Walker within the UCLA program that linebacker Reggie Carter went to AD Dan Guerrero on behalf of the entire team and spoke at length about the team’s desire for Walker to become the head coach.” Also mentioned was that Walker “has also received a groundswell of support from the Bruins’ highly rated recruiting class.”

And a huge color photo of him on the first page of the Sports section to boot.
Hey, don’t shoot the messenger..

I heard the troops and recruits also liked General Custer, where did that take them?

they also liked Dorrell and Lavin. Need we say any more?

Puke–no I missed your other post. Sometimes with all the different threads it’s kind of hard to follow all of them…:)

Without having read what you had to say, not sure it is fair to say that Tedford has stumbled. Yes Cal went into a funk in the latter half of the season, but Cal was ranked #2 in October and primed to take over the top spot when they were upset. Perhaps from the shock of this loss Cal went on a bad losing streak. But overall Tedford has been a God-send for Cal. (Believe me I know, because even though I am a lifelong and passionate Bruin fan, I am a Cal alum that has witnessed many many years of sports mediocrity.)

alx324….good job! You made a pretty good argument for Chow.
I’m still a Neuheisel guy, but I like what you had to say.

Lifelong Bruin fan….You kinda touched on what I had to say about Tedford. I know he was a very good offensive coordinator at Oregon. But, in the Oregon State game, his team came in ranked #2 and really blew that game. His indecision and confusion on the field with 20 seconds to go resulted in time running out before he could get the field goal team on the field. His substitute QB, Riley, kinda ran around in circles while time ticked off the clock. After than game, the team more-or-less collapsed. I guess that could be attributed to Nate Longshore’s injury, though.

About to Puke -

I don’t understand that you think Bronco Mendenhall will be the next head coach despite the fact you say you are a Neuheisel guy.

I am a rabid Rick Neuheisel faithful and before I go to sleep every night I close my eyes and imagine the scene from next year’s season opener for UCLA and see him standing on the UCLA sideline. Murphy’s Law works great. You should do the same if you really want Rick Neuheisel to be the head coach of our UCLA Bruins. Right now, it is looking like it is going to happen.

Then, it will happen and we have a big Rick Neuheisel hiring party.

It’s taking so long to pick a coach… I’ve gone from believing that DG was putting a lot of thought and research into this to thinking DG didn’t have a very solid game plan for someone who planned to give Dorrell the ax himself.

Like I said before, I am enjoying this whole process and all the rumors immensely. I don’t mind not having a coach yet, but it is not inspiring faith that DG doesn’t have a guy yet.

I am not in favor of Neuheisel or Walker. That being said, if we ultimately do hire one of those two it is incredibly lame that it is taking this long. They should just be our coach already.

If we come up with someone other than those guys–who are both home grown in their own ways–then maybe it’s worth all this. Right now it just feels like DG still doesn’t have a date for homecoming and knows he is probably going to fall back on one of two easy girls he knows will not mind his offer of a cheap resturant and cheap liquor (Neuheisel and Walker). However, DG’s still scrambling for a prettier date right up to the last minute–now that his dream girl Peterson is gone.

I hope some kind of news comes out of Neuheisel interview with UCLA today.

Bruin Genius….lol I am still convinced that Rick Neuheisel is the guy who can get the program back on its feet. In fact, I really believe he can get us to where we are playing for the national championship regularly. I watched him come on the scene in 1983 and rescue the team from a disastrous start to the season culminating in a huge Rose Bowl win over the #4 team in the nation. He exudes confidence and that is one commodity the program has lacked for the last several years. I have made about every argument I can think of for why he should be hired. I was extremely pleased to hear Bob Stiles endorse him, as well.

I just have this nagging feeling that DG will go in another direction. Why? Well, to my way of thinking, Neuheisel should have been the frontrunner in this coaching derby from day one. Why has it taken a groundswell of grassroots support from former players, coaches and fans to get him an interview? Even now, we hear fans bringing up his past and calling to mind whatever deficiencies they can find.

I am extremely hopeful DG will make the right decision and bring Neuheisel back to UCLA. I’m willing to hang in with him through however long it takes to turn the corner.

RyBruin–that’s a brilliant metaphor.

Bronco Mendenhall. That has to be the answer. Either that, or incompetence explains why it is taking so long. I’m going with Mendenhall.

We are playing BYU in the Vegas Bowl. We can’t very well anounce that we are stealing their coach before the game. I predict (well, hope) for a Mendenhall anouncement after the bowl game… maybe a few days later.

As you can tell I’d be OK with a number of coaches. This is my latest dream.

Thanks Powder Blue Blood in VA!

this issue of the coaches and the recruits lobbying for DW is disconcerting. Of course, we should expect nothing else. NEvertheless, I’m at the poitn of involvement. I’m thinking I will email Reggie Carter and tell him to STFU!!! OF course, that will likely not go over well, but it did help when I emailed Cory Paus to tell him that he needed to start using the dig route by the TEs more. The next game, VOILA!!!! Fletcher blew up for 7 catches and 85 yards.

Please don’t use Powderblue. You can use Skyblue, but powderblue has always been a thorn on our side.

Hey Dump -
I doubt if the players really liked Lavin, but I think I can say we all (or almost all) liked Dorrell - as a person, just not as a Bruin head footnall coach.

I heard a story a long time ago when Terry Donahue was coaching the Bruins when he talked to a recruit he mentioned winning the pac10 and going to the rose bowl. When usc talked to the same recruit they talked about competing for a national Championship. That is one reason, maybe the only reason usc does better job of recruiting with possibly next being the exception. Who ever is hired the goal should always be about competing for a NC. The rosebowl is a nice consilation prize.

Whomever Guerrero selects, we need to get behind the new head coach and give him a chance.

Having said that, I sure hope it’s Neuheisel. He was a winner. His teams at Colorado and Washington were prepared. That is to say, if it were 2007 and time was running out, the QB would know that he’s supposed to spike the ball.

Preparation and imagination are the keys to winning football. Neuheisel demonstrated competencies in both. You also have to have good offensive and defensive coordinators, and if Neuheisel can’t bring in fresh talent, then there may be a problem. But he knows how to coach at the level we deserve at UCLA, and the quality of players we have and will attract is much more impressive than what was available at Colorado or Washington.

He had the kind of problems that image-consciuos UCLA doesn’t much like, but it looks as if he’s quietly done his time and turned himself around.

IF YOU DON’T GIVE THE JOB TO THE VERY CAPABLE COACH WHO THINKS IT’S HIS DREAM JOB, YOU’RE DOING SOMETHING VERY VERY WRONG. Sorry to shout, but we’ve had so many years of mediocrity that it’s getting to me.

So, let’s back whomever it is. And I hope its Neuheisel.

DigDog - UCLA 1967 (figure that out, guys).

December 20, 2007
DigDog @ 1:25 am:
Whomever Guerrero selects, we need to get behind the new head coach and give him a chance.

Digdog- I hear you, brutha, but I’m a hardliner. I’ve stated that if DW is given the position, I will quit Bruin Football. Basically, if this happens, UCLA will be TELLING me that I MUST quit Bruin Football.

Football is my favorite sport, bball isn’t even a close second. I can’t quit Bruin football, it’d just be too painful. I think DW could possibly become a decent coach, I don’t think he’s the right hire, but I don’t think we’d necessarily suck with him at the helm. I’d give him a shot, if only because it couldn’t be as painful as watching my niners get destroyed week after week. That said, I’m pulling for RN or some magical mystery coach like Bronco or June Jones that has somehow stayed out of the rumor mill (probably not going to happen, so RN it is).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Hauck

this is Bobby Hauck…… read about him, think he would be the best fit here at ucla…..

John, I like Bobby Hauck too, but haven’t heard his name come up other than on this board…