Spaulding Roundup: Dealing With Adversity
by Nestor on Aug 21, 2009 5:14 AM PDT
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If you have been coming to this (online) bar since the first day it opened you would the know the kind of energy and excitement we have been experiencing around fall practice this year is unprecedented. We just haven't been this excited about football since we started blogging about UCLA football. However, we always knew we had to keep our excitement in check given the state of our football program which is in the middle of long rebuilding process after years of neglect under incompetent and mediocre football coaches. We knew the depth in our program is a big question since the depth chart is filled with youngsters who simply don't have the experience or enough of it to give us tangible datapoints on what to really expect from this coming season. That is why over and over again during this off season we talked about the realistic expectations around this team would be to hope for a +2 season (improvement from last year by getting 2 more victories) in 2009.
Well we got a jarring sense of reality after the bumps and bruises piled up during the second week of practice. Actually in Kia's case (as two of you have noted already in the fanshots) the injury is more than a mere bump as he will be will out for the entire season. From the LA Times:
Senior guard Micah Kia was lost for the season, after an MRI exam revealed a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Center Kai Maiava, meanwhile, was a spectator, sitting out contact drills, said to be precautionary because of a sore shoulder.
On the other side of the ball, Jerzy Siewierski, a starting defensive tackle, was missing because of a back injury. Korey Bosworth, a starting defensive end, watched contact drills because of a "few bumps and bruises," he said.
"No question our depth is an issue," Neuheisel said, adding, "but it is what it is," which was followed by an optimistic moment, "we have to play with our hair on fire . . . "
That is a tough break for a kid who was coming in, all fired up, ready to have a great senior season. Kyle Bosworth can relate since he went through the same ordeal coming into his senior season last year:
"The more you heal now, the less it hurts and the less it bothers you later," said Kyle Bosworth, who missed most of last season with a knee injury suffered in Week 2. "When I got hurt, it was really hard to sit there and know I wouldn't be playing. At the beginning I thought, `I've been practicing so hard, it'll be nice to have a couple days off.' Those couple days turned into a couple days, a couple weeks, a couple months.
"Man, it really sucks."
What hurts the most, Bosworth said - and Kia agreed - was the extra hard work that went into what was supposed to be the final college season.
"Coming into this, I know he was so focused," Bosworth said. "Last year, this is everything, all the apples in the baskets. It's just like all that hard work is for nothing. It makes you hungrier. I remember coming back in for spring ball, and I played my (behind) off.
Well it's not fun but the world is not coming to an end in Westwood.
We discussed yesterday that this kind of injuries to linemen during training camp is not unusual. This happens and its the kind of adversity that is often just part of the game. This is why schools work so hard to stock pile their depth charts with bodies. To their credit coaches have been focusing on doing just that at OL since the time they stepped into Westwood. That is why coming into this year they had about 18 kids competing for the 5 starting spot at OL. Now this injury means a youngster will get definite chances to show his staff. This is exactly why kids like Hasiak and XSF came to Westwood, shocking the world during recruiting season this past year. They are going to be able to compete and develop themselves by jumping right into the fire. More after the jump.
Kai Maiava, who also sat out practice with a sore shoulder (as precaution) is excited about Hasiak getting his opportunity right away in Westwood:
"He has to realize that when these opportunities come around - and they don't come around very often - you've just got to rise to the occasion," Maiava said. "When the time comes and it's game time, I'll let him know, `You've got to step up because it's your turn."'
Hasiak will not be the only first year Bruin getting his shot to prove himself at the OL. From the LA Times:
The Bruins first offensive line unit included freshman offensive lineman Xavier Su'a-Filo and guard Stanley Hasiak and two community college transfers, guard Eddie Williams and center Ryan Taylor.
Maiava's condition was said not to be serious and he was expected to return to practice today. But Kia's injury all but guarantees that quarterback Kevin Prince's blind side will be protected by freshmen.
"That was a big loss," offensive line coach Bob Palcic said. "Micah was having a great camp. This was going to be his fourth year playing. He's an experienced guy."
So sit back and think for a minute about our starting unit in the first game of the season. Our offensive line will most likely have at least 2 true freshman, 1 transfer (Maiava). We will have starting QB who hasn't taken a single snap at the college level. Our RBs will either be extremely young or inexperienced. Among the WR corps, Austin and Ketchum will be only upper classmen, while Paulsen will be the only other senior besides Austin anchoring the offense. Do you get now why we have been relentless in being practical about our season expectations for this year? I think getting 7 wins with this unit would be an amazing accomplishment (akin to getting into second round of the NCAA tournament during Howland's second year). I will gladly take 6 wins and an appearance in a bowl game.
FWIW, CRN wanted the kids to play with the "hair on fire." Well look what happened out at Spaulding:
1) A spirited goal-line session was interrupted by players running onto the field after consecutive touchdowns to start the drill. UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel was not pleased, as he shouted to the sideline, "Cut it out!"
Take one: If I'm a head coach, I love the enthusiasm, somewhat misguided as it was. Good for Neuheisel for maintaining order, but good for the players for making him need to.
Seems like they are getting his message. Seems like they are dealing with adversity just fine and responding to the leadership of their head coach. Leadership, again something that has been missing from UCLA football at least from the head coaching position, for decades. I am glad to see signs of it.
GO BRUINS.
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“So sit back and think for a minute about our starting unit in the first game of the season. Our offensive line will most likely have at least 2 true freshman, 1 transfer (Maiava). We will have starting QB who hasn’t taken a single snap at the college level. Our RBs will either be extremely young or inexperienced. Among the WR corps, Austin and Ketchum will be only upper classmen, while Paulsen will be the only other senior besides Austin anchoring the offense. Do you get now why we have been relentless in being practical about our season expectations for this year?”
No, not really. How many talented, healthy seniors did we have anchoring the offense last year? OL will still be better, QB will be better (Craft is having a hard time winning the #2 spot against a guy they’d rather redshirt), RBs will just as good and deeper, TEs will be better due to health, Receivers arguably deeper and better. Offensive gameplan will bear no resemblance to last year. The OL/Kraft combo probably shrunk the playbook by 75%. Yes, the starting lineup this year will lack experience and the depth chart is thin, but compared to last year, its simply better and deeper. An extra year with coaches Neuheisel and Chow should be worth at least an additional win with no improvement to last years roster, not to mention the evident increase in competition for playing time, off season workouts, overall intensity at practice, etc. Layer on top of that the increase in roster talent and you have a team that is going to be much better. Dont forget how much bettter the defense will look with just a subtle improvement in the offense.
No offense to Kia but was he really the key to 2009? He’s the only guy the team has lost ofr the season, right? R. Stokes out for half the season? If thats true, i think its way to early to be caveating, disclaiming, etc.
Uh no
When we have three brand new starters on OL w two of whom have no experience at the college level, a QB who has never played at college, it’s not early to be caveating. If you are expecting 8-9 wins from this bunch you are being delusional.
Also
You seem to say our defense was outstanding last season. Do you remember how it performed against team with spread offense? Also, you did read the posts about lack of depth at DL and LBs. Right? Do you even realize the depth issues we have at DL?
It's hard to believe
that even with everyone returning from last year, we’re going to probably have FOUR new starters on the offensive line. I had no clue they were going to bring those guys in and start them right away….
And it’s actually 2 transfers ( Eddie Williams counts right?) and 2 freshman. If the coaches think these new kids are more talented, then that’s great news, because we’ll have a whole 2nd string and part of a 3rd string with game experience and knowledge of Chow’s system to help teach the new guys what’s going on. I find it hard to believe we won’t be significantly better on offense this year.
Depth at Dline is a big problem, but I’m not concerned about Siewierski’s back injury, he probably just strained a muscle in squats or something. Price is always healthy. I do think we could win 8 if our Dline stays injury free, because our defense is going to be so good.
However the final numbers ended up, for the most part the opposing offense only moved the ball on us at the end of each half, when our guys were getting exhausted from continual 3 and outs. A superior offseason conditioning program and a slightly improved offense will go a long way towards solving that problem.
You are right that 6 is probably more realistic, but I don’t think 8 is delusional. Phil Steele and Brian Dohn picked UCLA to win 8. I know a lot people around here don’t like Dohn, but he wasn’t mr. RA RA UCLA. He honestly believed that we should win 8, and he was more in touch with the UCLA football program than most any other member of the press. The bottom line is that there is that there are too many question marks this year, question marks that could have really high upside, to make an accurate assesment. We could win just 5 or we could win 8 or 9. It just depends on how quickly the freshmen can adapt. They wouldn’t be in there now, if the coaches didn’t expect them to be better starters now. How much better is the big question.
Well wrt to Dohn
Providing accurate analysis on the state of UCLA football was not his strong point.
ESPN power poll
A couple of the ESPN writers had us on their preseason Top-25 ballots as well, which usually equates to about 7 or 8 wins. (Ivan Maisel had us at 20) http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/powerranking?season=2009&week=0&pollId=1&show=middle
vegas is at 6.5
which seems about right. I took the over.
"when you've seen how big the world is, how can you make due with this?"
by silverlakebruin on Aug 21, 2009 3:12 PM PDT up reply actions
6.5 regular season wins
I should clarify.
"when you've seen how big the world is, how can you make due with this?"
by silverlakebruin on Aug 21, 2009 3:12 PM PDT up reply actions
8 wins is not delusional
assuming Kia and Stokes are our major injuries and only a few more guys miss 1 to 2 games. 9 wins would be miraculous and totally unexpected. But 8 wins is possible and 7 wins should be whats expected. Why predict more devastating injuries? I’m too superstitious to do that.
Here’s my 7 wins:
SDSU
KSU
Stanford
AZ
UW
WSU
ASU
8 wins include an upset vic against the remaining USC, OSU, Cal, UO, and UTenn.
It looks like there are 4 wins just by showing up: SDSU, KSU, UW, WSU. 6 wins imply we win only 2 from the collection of Stanford, UA, ASU and none aagainst the rest. Our roster from last year could have done that, especially after another training camp under the current coaching staff. Give the coaches some credit. College football is where coaches have the biggest impact with regards to W-L relative to any other sport. I think former coaches win 2 at most last year.
I appreciate the lack of depth on defense but time of possesion will be much improved this year, simply couldnt be worse. And why is the depth at LB any worse than last year? I may be missing something here, is Sloan hurt? I dont have a 2008 roster, did somebody grauduate that I missed? I thought Harwell was really the only big loss on defense. The DBs that left improved from terrible to mediocre, cant see how that is a big loss, but inderstand I am in the minority with that opinion.
I also appreciate the number of freshmen to get playing time this year, but we had a number of guys on offense last year that played worse than the average freshmen, no names need to be mentioned. They were literally place holders. I just find it hard to believe that, after reading about these recruits and how the coaches talk about them, that they will embarass themselves nearly as much as some guys did last year.
I think we are arguing over 7 versus 6 wins here, so not too far apart. We probably disagree more on the fact that I think 8 is doable where it seems you think its delusional. Using the word elusional strikes me as totally misunderstanding the unpredictability of sports and the abillity of great coaching to exceed expectations. C’mon, Dorrel beat a #1or #2 ranked USC, nothing is delusional.
Dorrell beat USC in his fourth year at UCLA
at the Rose Bowl. There was nothing miraculous about that win. If you were around these parts, you’d know it was expected and not a surprise.
Next year we will expect CRN to field a team that will give us somewhere around 8-9 regular season wins which should include a win in the last game of the regular season at the Rose Bowl.
As for this year, I do believe given all the inexperience we have and the lack of depth we have at DL, expecting 8 wins is delusional for UCLA fans. If it happens it would be a miracle for a program that was utterly devastated by the total mismanagement of the previous regime. And I am not going to lay out exactly how the talent level was flushed into the gutter by the previous head coach given the body of work that has been compiled here at BN.
Another note
If you are going to take the mentality of expecting wins by “showing up” then don’t write that nonsense here on BN. If you want to disrespect an opposing team on game week that way, do it somewhere else.
Lastly, do you realize how difficult a time UCLA traditionally has had at Arizona. When was the last time we won in Arizona? We got blown out of the water even with Drew Olson and MJD in Tuscon and you expect us to win that game? Stanford is not gimme either considering how lucky we were against them last year at the Rose Bowl.
Are the shoes and field conditions an issue?
Did we ever come to a conclusion on any contributing factors to all the ankle/knee issues that might be part of the shoe deal UCLA has with that particular company that apparently focuses on other sports like running or soccer, or the grass on the field at Spaulding? It has been debated but not sure where that discussion ended.
Bill
BillSouthBay
Nestor
Really? Expecting 7 wins, thinking 8 wins is more likely than 6 is delusional? Using the term “showing up”’ is that offensive to you? How about this, the disparity in talent and coaching acumen make these games highly likely victories barring monumental mistakes one could describe as “not showing up prepared to play”. If disagreeing with you is that out of line and delusional, I won’t bother. If weeding out dissent is your thing, no problem. I promise never to post an opinion that deviates from yours, more than half a game. But your passion to relentlessly shepherd your reader’s expectations borders on one-dimensionality. Not sure why this gets under your skin so much, it’s not like I am calling you out for bad grammar or typo’s. I just totally disagree with you. I don’t think UCLA’s troubles under Toledo and Dorrel in Tucson translate under good coaching. I don’t think depth is a problem until it manifests itself as a problem, no more injuries, no problem. If more key guys get hurt, than expectations change. I don’t think Drew Olson was nearly as good as his stats, and if a running back could win a football game with a uninspired team around him and a sleepwalking head coach, MJD would have won that game. Flushing talent down the toilet is why it was so unlikely to win later in the Dorrel era than early, though he took over a mess as well. With that in mind, isn’t the true sophmore/redshirt freshman class this year coming from a #10 recruiting class, Dorrel’s best by far, keeping in mind he had Neu to close for him (i think)? Lets hope I am right and you are wrong, or do you think hope is delusional too?
Hope is delusional ...
…when it’s not based on reality.
In your jumble above you are revising history quiet a bit when you suggest Dorrell too over “a mess.” That is making stuff up considering how we laid out repeatedly he had enough talent to win from the get go. It was reasonable for us to expect from Dorrell to win 8 games in his second season when had QBs such as Matt Moore, Drew Olson and talent like MJD in the fold.
The mess Neuheisel inherited last year was no where close to what Dorrell was left with when he took over in 2003.
The depth should always play into a factor while thinking about expectations for a football team. We just don’t have it at the defensive front-7. It’s not about being superstitious. It’s about being realistic after what we have seen with our team year after year. Given that we don’t go 2 deep (we are nowhere close to it) it is delusional to be so confident about an 8 win season at this point of time. Is it impossible? Of course not. It is also not impossible for us to win 9 games and get into the Holiday Bowl. But it’s not going to happen.
This time of year everyone gets wildly optimistic. That’s what happens in college football. However, I do want this community to be grounded in reality. It’s been the hallmark of this place since we launched it years ago and we are not going to let it change based on takes that are not based on reality.
That said I do hope you are right and I am proven to be wrong.
While I mostly agree
I believe Arizona and Stanford on the road are going to be more difficult games than you’re anticipating, especially since we have yet to see this team play. Regardless of recruiting ratings, starting freshmen offensive linemen is typically not a good thing. Even though they may be “better” than the guys they’re replacing, I think that says more about the replaced than those stepping in. The offensive line will most definitely struggle, just not to a terrifyingly horrible extent as last season.
There are five games we should win (SDSU, KSU, ASU, WSU, UW) three games that are toss-ups (UA, Stanford, UT) and four probable losses (Cal, USC, UO, OSU). When our toss ups all happen to be on the road, I struggle to see how this team wins eight. Seven would be a tremendous accomplishment. Six the expectation. Five a disappointment. Less than that means we had some crucial injuries.
I'd gamble
that we beat either UO or Cal since we get them both at home and we tend to play those two teams tough.
UO’s defensive line is not at all overpowering so I think we’ll be able to move the ball against them. Barring injuries, I think we can contain the UO running game (Masoli and Blount) this year. We have a lot more defensive speed so I think the spread isn’t going to be as much of a challenge either. We only lost by 1 score last season at their stadium. UO is very beatable. I give us a 55% chance to win this.
I don’t see us having as much of a chance against Cal, but if Best isn’t 100% due to his recovering foot, we have a decent shot, since we always play them tough at home.
Even with OSU we have a decent shot, say 30%. Building the Dam is talking about downgrades in most positions. Mike Riley is a great coach, but I’d still put OSU in the bottom half of the PAC this year. The problem there is that we play them at their place so victory, while plausible, isn’t probable.
If I had to pick 8 wins
I’d pick SDSU, KSU, ASU, WSU, UW, Stanford, UT, and UO.
Here is proof
This article describes rather clearly what Dorrell had in his cupboard when he took over, vs. what he left for Neuheisel. Coincidentally that article was posted yesterday, so quite timely.
No doubt in my mind that we should be better this year, but we need to temper our expectations. Doubling our win total from last year would be a HUGE accomplishment, and I think CRN would deserve Coach of The Year in the Pac-10 if that were to happen.
But hey, what do I know. I’m just the 800 lbs bruin in the room.
8 wins is not delusional
Its hopeful, but within the realm of possibility. For me, 5 wins would be very disappointing. With the infusion of talent we have had and the veterans having had a fully year under this coaching staff, only picking up one win on last year would be disappointing. 6 would be acceptable, 7 would be great and very possible. So 8 is picking up one additional win; it will be difficult, but its far from delusional to think that we can. Having seen firsthand the intensity of this team and the talent of the freshman at practice over the past couple of weeks,7- 8 is doable.
Out of context
All of this talk about 8 wins being delusional has been taken out of context. Nestor said: “If you are expecting 8-9 wins from this bunch you are being delusional.”
Expecting 8-9 wins would be a pretty crazy expectation, implying less than that would be disappointing.
I agree whole-heartedly with BruinJD about the range of emotions I would feel regarding the range of potential outcomes for this exciting season. That said, I still expect 6-6.
That is it
I didn’t mean to come down so hard on people who are hoping for 8 wins this season. I think you hit it on the right point discerning that “expecting” 8 wins is delusional. I really believe it is and it will set up people for huge disappointment based on unrealistic expectations. But nothing wrong with hoping for 8 wins. We are always hoping but need to stay realistic.
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