"We want to build the ball from back to front, and it's something that I feel strongly about -- and I feel strongly about teaching the guys how to develop that mindset, because it's really easy to break up the game and destroy the game and call it soccer. It's really difficult to make the game."

He had the players to do it, which exceeding talent in midfield, and after a stumble here and there, the Bruins were a machine as the games turned vital. By November, they were playing the prettiest soccer in America -- the closest thing in these parts to Barcelona or Spain -- and it led to a 10-0 mark in the Pac-12 a march through the NCAA tournament to the College Cup in Birmingham, Ala., where the Bruins fell on penalties after a 2-2 draw with North Carolina in the semifinals.

The ending wasn't what he wanted, but his revolution will make UCLA more attractive to top prospects and help him develop more and better talent for MLS and leagues abroad, and it ought to lead to some impressive victories, too.