My exchange with OC Bruins re their invitation to CHP

by Fox 71 on Apr 27, 2009 9:59 PM PDT Comment 17 comments

I thought the BN might be interested in my exchange of e-mails with the guys in charge of the Orange County event in which several "Bruin Greats" will be speaking. Also speaking will be CHP. Someone recommended that we e-mail Michael Rorabaugh, and I did. My e-mail was forwarded to Shawn Heilbron, who was not only took the time to answer, but also gave me permission to publish the exchange of messages. I don't think Mr. Heilbron actually responded to the main points I tried to make, but I'll let the BN be the judge of this. I also give him high marks for not just ignoring criticism, which would obviously have been the easiest thing to do.

My first message:

I have heard via the internet that you invited Coach Howland's predecessor to speak at some function with other actual Bruins. I have also heard that you have billed Coach Howland's predecessor as "great." I assume that this is a practical joke on your part, but it isn't funny.

As you may have perceived from the first paragraph, I cannot bring myself to actually type the name of the man who single handedly ruined Bruin Basketball. This pretender destroyed what Coach Wooden created and what Coach Wooden's successors tried valiantly to maintain.

Coach Howland's predecessor now is ostensibly an expert. (I am an attorney by trade. In the law business, one becomes an expert simply by self-proclamation. It appears to be the same for Coach Howland's predecessor.) Because of his self-proclaimed expertise and the bully pulpit the louts at ESPN have given him, his denigration of UCLA and his insults to its fan base are take on an aura of legitimacy which is undeserved. He claims UCLA's fans had unrealistic expectations, but backs that with no empirical evidence. He somehow believes that he did not deserve to be fired. Apparently he has forgotten the 11 losses by more than 25 points (including three at Pauley) and has forgotten losses to Branch West, EA Sports, San Diego State and Northern Arizona at Pauley. He seeks to share in the credit for Coach Harrick's championship in 1995, but refuses to accept ownership for the first losing season in 55 years at UCLA.

This charlatan did not know the difference between a man to man defense and a zone defense. (Look it up - it's there.) His contribution to UCLA basketball was described recently by Baron Davis - "We might have put another banner up there if we had had a coach."

And yet you invite this total blowhard to speak at a UCLA function and include his name in a list of Bruin greats. Only one question - why do you think he qualifies as a Bruin after ruining the program? OK, I guess there are two questions - Was this announcement a just a cruel practical joke?

I am no longer in Southern California. If I were, I would pay whatever I had to pay to get a place at the luncheon so I could stand and walk out as soon as Coach Howland's predecessor's name is mentioned. By doing so, I would miss the questions from the real Bruins in the audience.

Frankly, Mr. Rorabaugh, I think you should be more than a little ashamed of yourself for linking yourself with a man whose name will always be associated with the destruction of everything Coach Wooden created. It is not too late to rescind your invitation to him, and I suggest you do so.

Thank you for taking the time to read this rant.

Fox 71

Here is the response (actually, a non-response, in my opinion.)

Thank you very much for your e-mail. We respect your opinion regarding our UCLA Athletics Club of Orange County Event. Our program for that evening will be extremely entertaining and our objective is to provide our supporters in attendance with a memorable experience. Our panel of Ed O'Bannon, Charles O'Bannon, Tracy Murray and Steve Lavin will deliver unique perspectives and insight. Ed, Charles, Tracy and Steve are all volunteering their time to help raise money for the athletic department by participating in this event. We are fortunate to have a storied tradition in men's basketball, and each of these men have been a part of that. They are proud to support the program and help in any way that they can.

Shawn Heilbron
Assistant Athletic Director - Major Gifts

My reply:

Thank you for your response. Although your message is not what I had hoped, I nonetheless appreciate your taking the time to respond. I also must note that I disagree with your characterization of all four speakers. While I agree that the O'Bannon brothers and Tracy Murray were and are proud supporters of UCLA in general and Bruin athletics in particular, the same cannot be said for your fourth speaker. He constantly disparages the UCLA basketball fan base, suggesting that it has unreasonable expectations. He also uses the "unreasonable expectations" excuse to explain his termination, but conveniently overlooks the fact that he generated the Bruins' first losing season in 55 years, and the fact that he presided over some of the most humiliating defeats in the history of the school.

In any event, I would like to share your message with the Bruins Nation, but will not do so without your consent. May I share it?

And his response:

I appreciate you asking for consent to post my response. You may share the information however you would like. Everyone is certianly entitled to their own opinion, but in the end we all share the same passion for UCLA and desire to see our program move forward. That is what I hope the focus can shift to regarding this event. Thanks very much.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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Mr. Rorabaugh is

just a development intern. He was probably handed this OC project to see how he can do at the Athletics department, but I see that you aren’t making easy for him in the beginning of his career. Apparently he didn’t know the way to handle such an email from a UCLA fan, so he had to forward it to his boss.

by Desacrator48 on Apr 27, 2009 10:27 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Basically what I'm saying is...

is that you should cut him some slack. You are being a little too harsh on him, when you real anger should be directed at Lavin.

by Desacrator48 on Apr 27, 2009 10:30 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Great Letter 71!

I would expect nothing less from litigator. Your argument is rock solid and backed up with easily confirmed data points. I loved reading it.

Do you plan on posting an email address for Mr. Rorabaugh, that we may all take pleasure in notifying him of our displeasure?

A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment. John Wooden

by MexiBruin on Apr 27, 2009 11:56 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Mr. Rorabaugh's e-mail address was linked in the original post.

The address is mrorabaugh@athletics.ucla.edu.

To desacrator, I have no idea who either Mr. Rorabaugh or Mr. Heilbron are. I assumed they would be affiliated with the OC Bruins, which I assume to be a club pretty much the same as the BN. But apparently they are connected with the athletic department of the school which to me makes the situation worse. UCLA the institution need not stoop to CHP’s level and get into an argument about whether he was fired for destroying the program or whether it was for unrealistic fan expectations. But for guys in UCLA’s athletic department to include CHP in a group described as “UCLA greats” is just wrong. Maybe both are so young that they weren’t around for the Lost Years, but surely they could read even the limited data I provided and get educated.

I don’t mind so much their invitation to CHP, but they could have been honest and billed him simply as the former head basketball …. No, I still can’t say it. I guess I don’t know how they could have billed him, but they sure shouldn’t be calling him a “UCLA great.”

by Fox 71 on Apr 28, 2009 3:54 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

No Way --

It’s one thing for a private group of Orange County folk to invite the lizard to an event. It show poor judgment but, hey, they are a private group and not associated with UCLA.

But, if the Athletic Department did it, or is a part of it — you have to wonder “What the fuck are they thinking?”

It is scary that they can be so out of touch with the Bruin fan base, and so out of touch with what the lizard has done to denigrate it, that they would coordinate an event in which he is participating.

I would really like to know whether there was, in fact, Athletic Department involvement in this fiasco. If so, I’d love to know whether the people who did it have any understanding of the lizard years and what he has said to mischaracterize the institution and the fan base. Perhaps, in the best of Maoist traditions, we need to re-educate them by making them watch tapes of all of the games he coached, just like we had to watch the live events, and suffer through his self-serving “expert analysis” on TV.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Apr 28, 2009 8:33 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

The title really should have read

“Bruin Greats and another person previously associated with Bruin basketball”

by bornagainbruin on Apr 28, 2009 11:11 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Steve Lavin Wikipedia Page

1988-1991: Purdue Assistant Coach
1991-1996: UCLA Assistant Coach
1996-2003: UCLA Practice Chaperone

But hey, what do I know. I’m just the 800 lbs bruin in the room.

by tasser10 on Apr 28, 2009 11:24 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yep

We are going to write more on this to turn up the heat.

Keep the letters coming guys.

by Nestor on Apr 28, 2009 3:25 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You can find out

who the people you are emailing here: http://uclabruins.cstv.com/departments/ucla-dept-directory.html

And some people there won’t know like you know about Lavin because they did not attend UCLA.

by Desacrator48 on Apr 28, 2009 7:18 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Me, too

I sent an e-mail and got the exact same response from Mr. Heilbron, word for word.

by Herodotus on Apr 28, 2009 6:43 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Mine.

Dear Mr. Rorabaugh,

It has recently come to my attention that the UCLA Athletics Club of Orange County has recently scheduled an event featuring UCLA basketball players of the past including former Head Coach Steve Lavin. I am writing to register my objection to his inclusion and would like to suggest (in complete sarcasm) that perhaps you can schedule Henry Bibby to future events. After all, Mr Bibby is the former Bruin who referred to UCLA as “that other school” during a broadcast of the John Wooden Classic in which USC had been invited. My point is this; in comparing Steve Lavin to Henry Bibby the latter contributed far more in terms of on court accomplishments as well as in class involvement than the former, and can rightly be classified a ‘Bruin Great.’ However, he has fallen from the good graces of the fans and alumni who support Bruin Basketball both financially and vocally. Steve Lavin has also earned the scorn of the fanbase for making comments in public that disparage our great university. Asking Steve Lavin to represent UCLA at a fund raising event will be percieved as very insulting to a great many Bruins fans.

I have to assume that this letter will change nothing for your fund raising event, so I would like to conclude by second point. Any fanbase anywhere in the country will hold a certain number of former athletes and coaches in high regard for past performances. But they will also hold in their hearts a certain amount of enmity towards those whom they feel have betrayed their community. Rather than consider this the unreasonable diatribe of an unreasoning sports fan, I encourage you to come to understand the hearts and minds of the UCLA fanbase upon whose support you are calling upon. I object to Mr Lavin’s presence at this event for comments he has made on national television. For your future reference, I would like to bring these men to your attention as men whom the UCLA community once held in high regard, but are now considered pariahs.

1. Ken Norton Jr. – made unfounded allegations in the L.A. Times that the UCLA Football program was spreading lies about his departure from USC. His allegations by natural extension implicated head football coach in negative recruiting, and in the very least; disparaged the university as a whole. The university he once attended on a full athletic scholarship.
2. Henry Bibby – criticized UCLA on several occasions including the comments made on KCAL 9 in Los Angeles. His complaints ran the gamut of cheap or dirty play to a bitter resentment of not having been hired to replace Coach Jim Harrick when the position opened up. He also attended UCLAon a full athletic scholarship and has shown no remorse for his comments.

Those of us who have attended and matriculated from this fine university all feel a deep sense of loyalty and gratitude to our Alma Mater. We all feel a deep need to protect and promote the university’s sterling reputation, so naturally we feel betrayed by these men. Please consider this when planning future events when appealing to us for financial assistance.

Thank you for your time,

A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment. John Wooden

by MexiBruin on Apr 28, 2009 7:41 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

In defense, somewhat

If the goal of the OC Booster club was to raise $ for the Athletic Department, then getting Lavin to attend may be shrewd move.

Lavin is a national TV broadcaster now, who is fairly recognizable to many who have no idea what he did to the UCLA basketball program. He is also a very polarizing figure to many who are close to UCLA Athletics (as clearly seen by BN’s efforts here). Lavin is a part of our basketball history, albeit a forgettable one. Even SC Football had their Paul Hackett. I don’t know how many booster events Hackett has been invited back to at SC, but if he worked at ABC or ESPN doing color commentary for college football, he would be far more welcome at SUC then he is now.

But if the goal was to truly raise money then publicity is key to get people to be aware of the event and maybe even attend. Many will boycott the event because of their beliefs about how badly he damaged our hoops program, but many will come because of his national status as a TV analyst. Maybe even a net gain, which is what I’m sure they’re hoping for.

They say, bad publicity is better than no publicity at all!!

Do I think the OC Boosters should have abstained from inviting Lavin back to participate in such an event. Probably. Do I think its worth all the hoopla its receiving here? No. But if all the awareness we’re creating generates needed publicity to help them raise more $ for UCLA Athletics which could always use extra funding, then I say let the BN Campaign continue.

by Bald Eagle on Apr 29, 2009 7:36 AM PDT reply actions 2 recs

If he can

solicit donations with the same ability he showed in getting top recruits to come to UCLA, then yes, they should whore him out and get the money.

It’s mostly a matter of semantics for me, the invitation should have said “a panel of UCLA greats and a special appearance by Steve Lavin”. It’s hard to swallow thinking of him as a UCLA “great”…

But hey, what do I know. I’m just the 800 lbs bruin in the room.

by tasser10 on Apr 29, 2009 10:48 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nice phrasing

That’s a very diplomatic way of putting it. And he probably would have appreciated the special “call-out.”

by Harsha on Apr 29, 2009 3:39 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

They work for the Athletic Department

…for Development, so you could say that our AD had something to do with this event. Why? I don’t know…but I’m gonna take a guess that the Orange County club had more to do with the organizing and planning of the event, and it was Development’s role to offer some support? Honestly, I don’t know why they would if Lavin is involved…

GO BRUINS!

by jlegs on Apr 29, 2009 3:24 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

The OC Bruin Club should dig into the CHP archives

They can find the text of his dis-invitation to his wedding and use it to tell him that he should go ahead and send whatever money he wanted to send to the Club but that he shouldn’t actually show up for the affair.

by Fox 71 on Apr 29, 2009 6:51 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Here you go!

I still had this in my email from a friend at ESPN. Using this format to uninvite that classless weasel is a GENIOUS idea, 71. I can’t stop laughing! LOL!

Update from the Jarou/Lavin wedding headquarters in Newport Beach.

Unexpectedly we have received a stunning 95% RSVP on sent out wedding
invitations. As a result, our wedding guest list has far exceeded the
maximum capacity for a traditional ceremony and reception at The Montage
Resort.

After giving serious consideration to alternative plans we have decided
the best option at this late stage is to head to Europe to create a
magical wedding day.

Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconveniences this change
in our wedding plans may have caused you.

We are sorry that we will not be able to share our big day with family
and friends. We will be sure to send you photos of our wedding upon our
return from Europe.

Please confirm that you received this email.

Thanks in advance for your understanding.

Warm regards,
Steve & Mary

by uclafan11 on Apr 30, 2009 4:16 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs