Spaulding Roundup - Wild Snaps and Making Players Care

by freesia39 on Sep 8, 2011 6:01 AM PDT in Football

It was a hot day in Westwood on Wednesday, with temperatures reaching over 90 degrees, but the person who became really hot under the collar was Coach Neuheisel at the end of practice.

When the team gathered in the post-practice huddle, Neuheisel delivered his message loud and clear, punctuating it by screaming at the top of his lungs: "I can't be the only one who cares."

Emphasis mine.

What caused Coach Neuheisel to go off on his players? A lack of concentration. Was it due to the heat? The delicious training table that awaited the players? Neuheisel wasn't sure, but he was not happy that practice ended on a bad note, with false start penalties galore and the players not being mentally sharp. If you'd like to watch Neuheisel's remarks post-practice, head on over here.

The players on twitter noted that practice went really well, calling it a "beast" of a practice, so hopefully the players will be sharper tomorrow.

QB Richard Brehaut noted that he never heard Coach Neuheisel go off like he did today and thinks the losing might be starting to take a toll on everyone.

"He wants us to care as much as he does and I think a lot of guys on this team do and I think it’s got to be a group thing that everyone decides enough of this ‘UCLA came up just short, UCLA beat themselves,' " Brehaut said. "That’s old news. I’m tired of that. Everyone is tired of that but the only change that can be made is everyone takes it upon themselves to do something about it."

Is that the talk of a starting QB? More details on the QB battle and the offensive line after the jump.

Richard Brehaut took the majority of the snaps with the ones on Wednesday, but Neuheisel did not name him the starter.

Kevin Prince did take a few snaps, but did not make any deep throws.

"It was better," Prince said. "I was able to throw some. I wasn't able to throw everything I wanted."

Prince said there was pain on "some of the deeper throws when I tried to put a little more grip on it." Prince said he expected it to be better Thursday.

Neuheisel did say that Prince will be "available" for the game on Saturday, which may indicate he is leaning towards Brehaut as the starter.

Greg Capella took a few steps backward on Wednesday in regards to snapping the football, but still has the confidence of Neuheisel. A few of his snaps were too high or too low, but he stayed after practice to continue working on his snaps.

Capella said his issues arise when he rushes his snaps because he's trying to get to his block quicker. He said he just needs to slow down a bit.

"I don't follow through," he said. "But I’m going to work hard before and after practice with the snaps so I’ll be fine."

Hopefully Capella figures it out. Kai Maiava didn't start out smoothly on Saturday, with one high snap and two penalties on snaps, so there isn't a high standard that Capella has to live up to - he just needs to get the ball into the hands of the quarterback.

Also of note for the O-Line: Albert Cid will start, taking Capella's spot. Jeff Baca practiced at weak tackle, but Neuheisel won't push him, since he isn't in football shape. Sean Sheller moved to guard.

As for Kip Smith, he made all nine kicks in practice on Wednesday, with only one wobbly kick.

"I changed my technique a little and we've changed the hold" of the ball, Smith said. "I'm making my leg swing more like a golf swing, more fluid. Watching on film, my kicks were pushing to the right because I wasn't following through right."

Hopefully Smith won't be put in a high pressure situation on Saturday where the game rides on his kick. He could use a low stress game to get him acclimated to the college kicking game.

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Comments

Brehaut Continues to Impress

I said before, I thought Prince had a “leadership” edge, but Brehaut is proving to be a strong leader worthy of being a starting quarterback. Glad to say I was wrong.

However pleased I am with Brehaut, I am deeply disappointed by what I read in this post.

What has happened to the creator and keeper of the passion bucket? He obviously bleeds Blue and Gold. I’ve always found him inspirational. Why aren’t his kids buying in?

I wonder just how damaging that loss to Houston will be. Had we won that game, a game we could have won, I bet we would not be reading about these problems. We’d be fired up and looking at a very successful season. That success is still there for the taking. I hope we do not let it slip away because of attitude problems.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Sep 8, 2011 7:24 AM PDT reply actions

Changing the culture

You can bet that practices would be crisper and more intense were UCLA a perennial top team. I don’t think you hear much about lack of concentration in top programs. We need to win these tough games, consistently, in order for the players to feel their rightful place is at the top. Yet, we need to focus and concentrate in practice in order to break through and win tough games.

Chicken and egg? Yeah, I guess. John Wooden surprised people when he went against the common assumption that breaking through and winning the first time was more difficult than repeating. Coach thought the opposite, that once your guys have tasted success, it is harder to get them to pay the price at practice and to continue to strive to be the best they can be.

So, what’s the answer? Well, persistence for one. Keep striving. Keep reaching. Once the kids taste success, they’ll self-motivate, I think. Maybe CRN’s outburst will help break through the bubble of laissez-faire and result in excellence against San Jose. And, maybe the seed of confidence will be planted. Then, in time, maybe we’ll have the luxury of worrying about the difficulty of getting the players in the right mind to repeat. We hope, huh?

As to your question, freesia, “Is that the talk of a starting QB?” It sure sounds like it to me. As for Kip, I hope his new swing yields higher elevation on his kicks. I wasn’t surprised that one of his PATs was blocked—the successful ones just got over the linemen and crossbar. You can do this, Kip. You have done this.

Go Bruins.

by Bruinut on Sep 8, 2011 8:33 AM PDT up reply actions

Self-imposed Suspension

Upon further review…

I think I got it backwards. I may have gotten my football testosterone mixed up with the wisdom of Coach. If I’m not mistaken, the common assumption was that repeating was more difficult than winning the first championship. Coach thought the opposite. Coach knew that the goal wasn’t to win again. Rather, the goal was to continue making every drill, every practice, every game your masterpiece. The results would be what they would be.

Of course, my addled brain may be mixing things up yet again. Clarification or correction is welcome.

In any case, other than being 180 degrees wrong, my citation was great. But, you get a Coach citation wrong, you pay the price. I hereby suspend myself from citing Coach for a period of not less than 7 days. Second offense is 30 days.

by Bruinut on Sep 8, 2011 9:39 AM PDT up reply actions

Kai Maiava out for San Jose...Drug test (+)

I wonder if Kai’s attention to details (snaps, illegal procedures) is in any way related to his off the field problems…4 strikes and he is out. How much more rope is UCLA going to give to this lineman?

BTW, I agree with ‘Class of 66’. Brehaut showed some impressive skills against UH last Saturday. I was really impressed with J. Fauria and his stick’em hands. Great grabs from our TE. It is nice to have a UCLA TE playing like UCLA TE’s of old (Tim Wrightman, Marcedes Lewis).

by BruinDan32 on Sep 8, 2011 8:23 AM PDT reply actions

He gets the same rope

as everyone else. That’s the policy. You can’t just make exceptions because he is the starting center on the football team. You wouldn’t be so outraged if he was buried in the depth chart. He should hold himself to a higher standard, of course, because of his responsibility to the team. But that doesn’t mean the rules should be harsher for him.

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

by tasser10 on Sep 8, 2011 9:04 AM PDT up reply actions

Sweet write up

If the game comes down to a Kip kick, it would be a major facepalm for UCLA…

by impaulv on Sep 8, 2011 9:08 AM PDT reply actions

But I’m encouraged by his increased consistency in practice. He was #1 kicking recruit for a reason, I think he’ll get there.

by impaulv on Sep 8, 2011 9:09 AM PDT up reply actions

A good kick in the pants

Is exactly what this team needed. It’s not inconceivable that they were all looking at the schedule and this game screams gimme all over it. I think this is Neuheisel sending a message that we will not except mediocre. We will demand excellence, in practice, off the field, and in games. Generally what you get in practice, you get in games. There had been prior write ups leading up to the first game that Coach Neuheisel commented on some lack of concentration issues and that is exactly what we got against Houston- in the form of penalties and miscommunications.

Even though we are facing San Jose St. this weekend, I think this is the best time for some tough lovin. But at the end of the day, when he goes off on his team, he needs to build them back up again. So I’m curious to know what will happen after tomorrow’s practice. Will it be crisper? And if it is, does Coach Neuheisel use the end of practice as an opportunity to build his team back up again and bring them closer together?

Bruins are forever but Trojans are good only once.

by $honuff on Sep 8, 2011 11:52 AM PDT reply actions

Nicely stated...

These kids need a swift kick and they got it. It takes a lot to get CRN fired up and they know it. Hopefully practice will go smoothly today and they can build themselves back up. Now it’s time to get down to business and play SJSU like it was a championship game.

by AnteatersandBruins on Sep 8, 2011 11:58 AM PDT up reply actions