Bruins Nation: FanPosts

Gene Block to Dan: You Report Directly to Me Now

2013-05-24T07:39:18Z

A few weeks ago, another FanPost asked the question, "Who does Dan Guerrero report to?". Well, it has taken almost two months to obtain a copy of Chianti's new contract, but we can finally answer that question unequivocally.

The answer is: Gene Block.

Let's back up a little.

The contract that Dan signed in 2008 had a section called "Reporting Relationships." That section read:

Director shall report jointly to the UCLA Chancellor, for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) institutional control purposes, and to the UCLA Vice Chancellor designated by the Chancellor (hereinafter, the "Supervising Vice Chancellor"). The Supervising Vice Chancellor will be responsible for day to day supervision over operational matters. Either the Supervising Vice Chancellor or the Chancellor (collectively, "Management") may assign the Director duties or responsibilities in addition to or changed from those set out below as may be required, at Management's discretion, to meet changing circumstances or needs.

However, his new contract removes the Supervising Vice Chancellor language entirely. The new contract reads:

Director shall report to the UCLA Chancellor. The Chancellor may assign the Director duties or responsibilities in addition to or changed from those set out below as may be required, at the Chancellor's discretion, to meet changing circumstances or needs.

The only other major differences in the two contracts are the obscene amount of money that Guerrero is paid for and that it does not contain automatically rollover provisions which extend it. I would have to guess that is because, when this new contract ends, Dan will have reached the mandatory UC retirement age.

I have posted both contracts on Google Drive. Feel free to read them for yourself.

Cross-posted from DumpDanNow.com

The answer is: Gene Block.

Let's back up a little.

The contract that Dan signed in 2008 had a section called "Reporting Relationships." That section read:

Director shall report jointly to the UCLA Chancellor, for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) institutional control purposes, and to the UCLA Vice Chancellor designated by the Chancellor (hereinafter, the "Supervising Vice Chancellor"). The Supervising Vice Chancellor will be responsible for day to day supervision over operational matters. Either the Supervising Vice Chancellor or the Chancellor (collectively, "Management") may assign the Director duties or responsibilities in addition to or changed from those set out below as may be required, at Management's discretion, to meet changing circumstances or needs.

However, his new contract removes the Supervising Vice Chancellor language entirely. The new contract reads:

Director shall report to the UCLA Chancellor. The Chancellor may assign the Director duties or responsibilities in addition to or changed from those set out below as may be required, at the Chancellor's discretion, to meet changing circumstances or needs.

I have posted both contracts on Google Drive. Feel free to read them for yourself.

UCLA Baseball- A National Seed?

2013-05-23T13:30:00Z

Bumped from fanposts. - BN Eds.

Baseball America most recent projections currently show UCLA as a bubble on the outside for a national seed. Cal State Fullerton and Oregon State are shown as secure national seeds, along with 5 other schools.

Oregon is also considered as a bubble on the outside, after losing their home series to Oregon State last weekend.

Oregon and UCLA are considered to be secure as regional hosts.

Arizona State is projected as safely in the field of 64, while Arizona and Stanford are considered bubble teams on the outside. Let's keep Stanford there this weekend.

Go Bruins !!

Here is the full story Baseball America projections

Oregon is also considered as a bubble on the outside, after losing their home series to Oregon State last weekend.

Oregon and UCLA are considered to be secure as regional hosts.

Arizona State is projected as safely in the field of 64, while Arizona and Stanford are considered bubble teams on the outside. Let's keep Stanford there this weekend.

Go Bruins !!

Here is the full story Baseball America projections

ESPN Joins the List of Media Laughing At Guerrero

2013-05-22T19:59:01Z

Bumped. It's only getting uglier for Chianti and that's a good thing for the best interest of UCLA Athletics. The sooner he gets out of Westwood the better for UCLA. GO BRUINS. - BN Eds.

Cross-posted from DumpDanNow.com

Add tWWL to the list of media calling Chianti Dan an idiot.

Eamon Brennan has written an article titled "UCLA and the Self-Inflicted Backlash" in which he analyzes last Saturday's LA Times article, Guerrero's response and news articles that have been written since.

He writes:

Alford flubbed his opening news conference, Guerrero assured reporters he had asked his new coach about something the coach later said never came up. Whoops.

As unfortunate as that anecdote is, it was just one slightly embarrassing detail in an otherwise not-unflattering story more about Alford's overall life in basketball than his hiring at UCLA. It gained steam among understandably grumpy UCLA fans in no time, but would have likely gone away shortly after that. Guerrero was caught out. It happens. It's over. You take your lumps and live to fight another day.

In case you didn't click the link, it goes to Nestor's article from Saturday.

The article continues by quoting good ol' Dan's statement and then offers the following analysis:

Yep, that's right: Not only does Guerrero apparently not understand that reporters are under no obligation to include specific portions of their reporting in any given story, he also wants everyone to recognize what Alford -- who hasn't coached a single game at UCLA -- has already accomplished at UCLA.

After mocking Chianti for expecting Bruin fans to just accept Alford with open arms after making only one Sweet 16 in his entire career, Brennan offers Guerrero and Alford some final advice:

Unless Alford builds a consistent national title contender in Westwood, Bruins fans' sky-blue-adorned arms will remain leerily folded across their sky-blue-adorned chests. In a weird way, this should be freeing. What matters for Alford and Guerrero now is whether UCLA wins or loses, and how. It's really just that simple. Little else matters.

In the meantime, maybe write fewer angry, backlash-inducing news releases? I'm just spitballing here.

Or, maybe the Chancellor should step up and do the right thing and dump Dan now.

Bumped. It's only getting uglier for Chianti and that's a good thing for the best interest of UCLA Athletics. The sooner he gets out of Westwood the better for UCLA. GO BRUINS. - BN Eds.

Cross-posted from DumpDanNow.com

Add tWWL to the list of media calling Chianti Dan an idiot.

He writes:

Alford flubbed his opening news conference, Guerrero assured reporters he had asked his new coach about something the coach later said never came up. Whoops.

As unfortunate as that anecdote is, it was just one slightly embarrassing detail in an otherwise not-unflattering story more about Alford's overall life in basketball than his hiring at UCLA. It gained steam among understandably grumpy UCLA fans in no time, but would have likely gone away shortly after that. Guerrero was caught out. It happens. It's over. You take your lumps and live to fight another day.

In case you didn't click the link, it goes to Nestor's article from Saturday.

The article continues by quoting good ol' Dan's statement and then offers the following analysis:

Yep, that's right: Not only does Guerrero apparently not understand that reporters are under no obligation to include specific portions of their reporting in any given story, he also wants everyone to recognize what Alford -- who hasn't coached a single game at UCLA -- has already accomplished at UCLA.

After mocking Chianti for expecting Bruin fans to just accept Alford with open arms after making only one Sweet 16 in his entire career, Brennan offers Guerrero and Alford some final advice:

Unless Alford builds a consistent national title contender in Westwood, Bruins fans' sky-blue-adorned arms will remain leerily folded across their sky-blue-adorned chests. In a weird way, this should be freeing. What matters for Alford and Guerrero now is whether UCLA wins or loses, and how. It's really just that simple. Little else matters.

In the meantime, maybe write fewer angry, backlash-inducing news releases? I'm just spitballing here.

Or, maybe the Chancellor should step up and do the right thing and dump Dan now.

How Will Chancellor Block Treat the Third Estate? Delivering the Petitions

2013-05-22T01:15:30Z

Yes, that is how we felt as we delivered the petitions that nearly 2000 people had signed. We felt like the Third Estate. Or more precisely, we were treated like it. Would the Chancellor let us be heard? Or would he lock us out of the meeting hall, not allowing us to participate in direction of our University? After all, we already knew how Director Guerrero treats the lowest of the Third Estate (the students), moving them away from the sidelines in Pauley for example. But would Chancellor Block learn the lessons from history and give the Third Estate a hearing?

Mexi and I met at the bear on Monday to deliver the petitions and walked to Murphy Hall. When we arrived in the Chancellor's office, the receptionist asked us, "Where is the crowd?" Our reaction: Huh? and Oops? Huh, how did they know? And oops, we both forgot that others might be meeting us at the bear. We explained the latter and then asked if the Chancellor was in and if we could present him with the petitions. The answers were the predictable no and no. We first thought about looking for the Chancellor, but decided to go back to the bear first to see if others had arrived.

As we neared the bear, I noticed a university police officer. I mentioned to Mexi that he might be there for us. Mexi thought he was probably there because of all the school kids. We sat at the bear and the police officer went up to a young woman who had a clipboard and was talking with people. I then asked the woman what the officer wanted, and it turned out he was looking for people trying to get Dan Guerrero fired. The officer was walking away so we unfurled our Fire Dan Guerrero banner. We wanted to talk with him. Sure enough he returned and asked us if we were the people demonstrating. Wow! He was very nice as we explained we were just turning in petitions. He had been asked to watch us and walk with us to the Chancellor's office. As we walked we were met by a young man in a tie who said he was from the Office of Student Affairs. I said cool, it's great that you're joining us. He then explained that he was not there to join us. His job is to "facilitate communication" between different groups on campus. Wow again.

So we had our escorts. We had a really good conversation with both men on our walk and let them know our concerns. So yes we were heard!

Back in the Chancellor's office, the conversation turned towards our reception. Mexi asked everyone who had asked for the officer and the young man to meet us. The men both said they were told to meet us by there higher ups. Beyond that no body seemed to know. We turned the conversation back to the petitions and why the Chancellor would not meet with us (I had called previously and asked for a meeting). Mexi brought up the Pauley seating petitions which were turned in (snail mail and email) but which were never acknowledged by the Chancellor, nor by anyone else. We spoke about the issue of access, that we cared deeply about our University, and that we just wanted him to know our concerns so that we could improve it. The receptionist several times said that the Chancellor would see our petitions. We left the petitions, a card with contact information, and with a video of the meeting. We also left knowing that the receptionist was very aware of our efforts, knew about the petitions, about the LA Times article, and even the cbssports blog article. She and/or they do read bruinsnation.

The whole experience was quite surreal, to use Mexi's term. What started as a simple exercise in communication, delivering a petition, turned into an event that would be laughable if it was not about something for which we care deeply. A university is supposed to be about discussion of ideas, a search for the truth, dialogue to develop new understandings and solutions. Running a university requires an intellect that wishes to engage in these pursuits, not run from them. I am a history teacher and I can think of no moment in history when failure to engage in discourse and confront real problems ever ended well for leaders. So I ask you Chancellor Block, will you treat us as the Third Estate, locked out of the conversation? Or will you engage us in the discussion so that we may move our University in a more positive direction? To quote from UCLA's mission statement (emphasis mine):

UCLA's primary purpose as a public research university is the creation, dissemination, preservation, and application of knowledge for the betterment of our global society. To fulfill this mission, UCLA is committed to academic freedom in its fullest terms: we value open access to information, free and lively debate conducted with mutual respect for individuals, and freedom from intolerance.

Chancellor Block, this is what we learned at UCLA, to "value a free and lively debate conducted with mutual respect". We would appreciate being treated with this respect. We would appreciate engaging with you in this debate.

So we had our escorts. We had a really good conversation with both men on our walk and let them know our concerns. So yes we were heard!

UCLA's primary purpose as a public research university is the creation, dissemination, preservation, and application of knowledge for the betterment of our global society. To fulfill this mission, UCLA is committed to academic freedom in its fullest terms: we value open access to information, free and lively debate conducted with mutual respect for individuals, and freedom from intolerance.

Championships by Year- Stuck on 108 Under Dan After Today's Tennis 2nd Place Finish

2013-05-21T22:55:20Z

1950-1

1952-1

1953-1

1954-1

1956-2

1960-1

1961-1

1964-1

1965-2

1966-1

1967-1

1968-1

1969-2

1970-3

1971-5

1972-4

1973-2

1974-1

1975-3

1976-2

1978-1

1979-2

1981-1

1982-5

1983-2

1984-5

1985-2

1987-3

1988-3

1989-2

1990-3

1991-2

1992-1

1993-1

1995-3

1996-2

1997-2

1998-1

1999-2

2000-3

2001-3

2002-1

Dan Guerrero arrives

2002-1

2003-3

2004-5

2005-2

2006-2

2007-1

2008-3

2009-1

2010-2

2011-2

results by academic year for Guerrero-

2002-3 4

2003-4 4

2004-5 3

2005-6 2

2006-7 1

2007-8 3

2008-9 1

2009-10 2

2010-11 1

2011-12 1

2012-13 0 and counting

We just missed our best chance to get to 109 this season with today's men's tennis loss.

Our golf teams are solid, but the competition has been more solid to date. Our baseball team will probably need to win a super-regional on the road just to get to Omaha.

So we are stuck on 108. Our last title was women's volleyball on 12/17/11 (17 months ago).

We were shut out in calendar year 2012, which was a first on a calendar year basis since 1994.

We have been shut on the men's side since our golf championship on 5/31/08 (5 years ago). UCLA won its first championship in any sport in 1950, with men's tennis. Since that time, there had never been a five year period without a men's championship in at least one sport until the current period (5/08- 5/13).

If you look above at Doughnut's record on an academic year basis, you can see that he stepped into a gold mine. Coaches who were already on staff before he arrived were racking up 3-4 championships per year.

Now, with his coaches, we have 17 months and counting in any sport, and 5 years and counting in men's sports.

At least we have the EagleBank Bowl. Too bad that wasn't for the national championship.

1950-1

1952-1

1953-1

1954-1

1956-2

1960-1

1961-1

1964-1

1965-2

1966-1

1967-1

1968-1

1969-2

1970-3

1971-5

1972-4

1973-2

1974-1

1975-3

1976-2

1978-1

1979-2

1981-1

1982-5

1983-2

1984-5

1985-2

1987-3

1988-3

1989-2

1990-3

1991-2

1992-1

1993-1

1995-3

1996-2

1997-2

1998-1

1999-2

2000-3

2001-3

2002-1

Dan Guerrero arrives

2002-1

2003-3

2004-5

2005-2

2006-2

2007-1

2008-3

2009-1

2010-2

2011-2

results by academic year for Guerrero-

2002-3 4

2003-4 4

2004-5 3

2005-6 2

2006-7 1

2007-8 3

2008-9 1

2009-10 2

2010-11 1

2011-12 1

2012-13 0 and counting

We just missed our best chance to get to 109 this season with today's men's tennis loss.

Our golf teams are solid, but the competition has been more solid to date. Our baseball team will probably need to win a super-regional on the road just to get to Omaha.

So we are stuck on 108. Our last title was women's volleyball on 12/17/11 (17 months ago).

We were shut out in calendar year 2012, which was a first on a calendar year basis since 1994.

Now, with his coaches, we have 17 months and counting in any sport, and 5 years and counting in men's sports.

At least we have the EagleBank Bowl. Too bad that wasn't for the national championship.

More Incompetence: UCLA Softball Fails Under Guerrero's Watch

2013-05-21T19:00:00Z

Bumped from fanposts. Go Bruins. - BN Eds.

I have been critical of KIP for years. The national championship in 2010 was bittersweet for me. IMHO any schmuck could have won with all that talent but because KIP was there for the ride DG and friends truly believe KIP is an elite coach.Today's loss to UAB is a great example as to why KIP is not a top D1 coach.

When you have more talent then the other team, out hit them bby a lopsided margin, load the bases with no outs in the final three innings but fail to score a run something is wrong. When you look back in previous years and see the same errors are being made. (poor base running, poor execution, etc) it makes some wonder how the team would play if they eliminated poor fundamentals. What would it take to eliminate the poor play? Probably a coaching change.

KIP's post season

2007 eliminated in regional
2008 made WCWS and instructed All american pitcher Jelly Selden to walk Katie Cochran at every bat. How is that for giving your best effort
2009 lost to Missouri in super regional
2010 NCAA Championship
2011 eliminated in regional
2012 eliminated in regional
2013 eliminated in regional

Way to go DG, your most decorated women's program is now an average team that gets eliminated in the post season by team like LMU, Hoftstra, and UAB

KIP's post season

2007 eliminated in regional
2008 made WCWS and instructed All american pitcher Jelly Selden to walk Katie Cochran at every bat. How is that for giving your best effort
2009 lost to Missouri in super regional
2010 NCAA Championship
2011 eliminated in regional
2012 eliminated in regional
2013 eliminated in regional

Way to go DG, your most decorated women's program is now an average team that gets eliminated in the post season by team like LMU, Hoftstra, and UAB

Eddie Vanderdoes Reopens Recruitment

2013-05-21T06:20:53Z

I couldn't be more honest when I say I dreamed of Eddie Vanderdoes coming to UCLA in a recruitment curveball weeks ago. I think it was when Tuliaupupu when down with injury, or when Owa's status became up in the air as far as availability for the upcoming season. No, I really think it was when I watched Mora talk about the most "heartbreaking" loss on the recruiting trail on his BSR online radio interview. He is clearly talking about Eddie, and if his reactions any time the kid is brought up is any indication, Mora thought UCLA had a clear connection with the guy, and would end up landing his commitment. All I could think about was the potential of our D-line if only we could remain healthy, and if only we could add some depth. Angus McClure could turn our loaded front 7 into an absolute monstrosity given some talented and healthy bodies. Key daydreams of Eddie Vanderdoes and Ellis F'n McCarthy packing heat down the middle...

Well, it looks like Big Eddie may be re-thinking his college decision - read more here:

It seems we share some sort of telepathy (at least, I hope). Maybe he just thought about the ceiling at Notre Dame (which, lets be honest, didn't deserve a spot in the National Championship over the likes of Oregon, and arguably, Stanford) or the stars aligning at UCLA. With the NFL coaching staff, injuries on the D-line paving the way for opportunity, and an honest brand of excitement around the football program, it's hard not to smell the roses on the turf for Eddie. And let's get real honest here - how many of us California natives took untold amounts of sunshine and natural beauty for granted until we left for some reason or other? I know I did, and if you didn't, you need to work out your honesty issues.

Here's to a BruinsNation 8-clap-heard-round-the-midwest!! Let's bring V-Diddy (yes, I just made that up) back home to his Cali turf, and let's get one step closer to earning that recognition on the national scale as a football power to be reckoned with. If you want to try to reach out to him on Twitter and let the collective Bruin family's voice be heard, give a shout out to @EddieVanderdoes.

The Rose Bowl beckons, Eddie, and we're here waiting for you with open arms.

Well, it looks like Big Eddie may be re-thinking his college decision - read more here:

The Rose Bowl beckons, Eddie, and we're here waiting for you with open arms.

UPDATE x10: Support the Cause! Let's get our message across via A HUGE BILLBOARD!

2013-05-20T12:00:00Z

Bumped from the Fanposts. Let's all get behind this. Here is the direct link to DONATE NOW. Let's get this going and turn up the heat on Chianti. GO BRUINS. - BN Eds.

UPDATE #10- It's been posted elsewhere, but this story is very interesting regarding the Wake Forrest fan base putting up a billboard to get their message across. Guess what happeened? It got picked up by the national media. This will be us soon once we hit our goal.STORY

UPDATE #9- $2825......we are climbing the mountain. Slowly, but surely.

UPDATE #8- Thanks to all your generous support, we are approaching $3,000. Awesome work all. Keep it up. Additionally, after countless mock ups (HT to ArchiBruin), many back and forth passionate debates internally, going back to the drawing board, more debates, more decisions, more agreements and more disagreements,etc,etc,etc......we have a mock up that we feel will sum up the feelings of Bruins all across the world and right here on BN. It's a direct and open message to Chancellor Block (Who is seeing his fair share of criticisms as well). It gets to the point quickly. Check it out here on our Donate Page, While you're there fell free to throw a bucks to the cause :)

UPDATE # 7- We surpassed the $2,000 mark as of May 7th. Keep it coming. We are almost a third of the way there.

UPDATE #6- Almost at $2000 since this weekend. Whoohooo! Cmon folks!

UPDATE #4 5: It's not even noon in Los Angeles and we are about to hit the $~~1,500~~ $1,700 mark. Let's get to $2,000 by this evening! Tweet this. Facebook this. Do what ya need to. Donate once...donate again. Everybody here will be part of something special. ArchiBruin is putting the finishing touches on some approved mock ups and we will post them as soon as possible.

UPDATE #3: A few commentors asked about more transparency for the donation process. I couldn't agree more. As a result, I have taken all the current donations paid through PayPal, and moved them over to a GoFundMe account that can be found here. And yes, you can donate anonymously if you don't want your name out there in the open. Current total is at $615. Additionally, we will not be moving forward with the Bill Walton idea for the billboard but we have a few other ideas that we are looking at right now that will take a "straight to the point" approach. We will share those with you as soon as we can.

UPDATE # 2: As of 4:47pm PST, we have raised ~~$380~~ $477. A good start, but we still have ways to go. Cmon everybody. Avoid starbucks for a few days, or skip that candy bar at 7-11. Put that money towards this cause for this week. We can't do it without all of you.

For those of you following the fanposts lately, you will see previous threads over the week regarding the idea of putting up a giant billboard by the beautiful UCLA campus to get our message across loud and clear to Chancellor Block, the Athletic Dept., and UCLA supporters and alumni all across the land. We will not stand for mediocrity anymore. It's time we take our message outside the blogosphere and into the mainstream.

For various reasons, I don't want to dispose of too much specific information yet regarding the billboard. I can tell you that there have been three locations on major boulevards by campus that have been selected as possible sites. Depending on when we raise all the funds needed for this project, I will be able to check the availability of the three locations and make a final decision based on proximity to campus, availability date for the billboard to go up, and amount of traffic that will see the billboard. For this initial billboard, the plan is to have our message posted for 30 days.

The company I am working with that owns the billboard is very particular about what can go up. Because of that, some of the fine ideas you have all come up weren't able to get approved. The billboard that will go up will be a quote from Bill Walton with his infamous "If I were in charge, things would be different." along w/ an image of Dan and a link to a website that will soon be the public facing URL of this movement. I truly believe this is going to catch the eye of folks driving by, sports talk radio, and the mainstream media.

How much we need to raise?

Approximately $6500 all in. If we raise more than $6500, the money will be put towards the next billboard idea or another "big statement" project.

When will this billboard go up?

Depends on how quick we can raise the funds. If we can get the funds raised by this week, I can sign the paperwork to get everything started and put up by the end of May.

How do I donate?

DONATE HERE via GoFundMe

Donate $10. Donate $100. Every bit helps.

How can I get a hold of you? I have a few questions.

Ask away in the comments section and I will do my best to respond quickly. If you want to email me directly, you can reach me at FireDanRightNow at gmail dot com.

Bumped from the Fanposts. Let's all get behind this. Here is the direct link to DONATE NOW. Let's get this going and turn up the heat on Chianti. GO BRUINS. - BN Eds.

UPDATE #9- $2825......we are climbing the mountain. Slowly, but surely.

UPDATE # 7- We surpassed the $2,000 mark as of May 7th. Keep it coming. We are almost a third of the way there.

UPDATE #6- Almost at $2000 since this weekend. Whoohooo! Cmon folks!

How much we need to raise?

Approximately $6500 all in. If we raise more than $6500, the money will be put towards the next billboard idea or another "big statement" project.

When will this billboard go up?

Depends on how quick we can raise the funds. If we can get the funds raised by this week, I can sign the paperwork to get everything started and put up by the end of May.

How do I donate?

DONATE HERE via GoFundMe

Donate $10. Donate $100. Every bit helps.

How can I get a hold of you? I have a few questions.

Ask away in the comments section and I will do my best to respond quickly. If you want to email me directly, you can reach me at FireDanRightNow at gmail dot com.

Trivia time!

2013-05-20T06:22:44Z

Hey Bruins! It's time for Scotty Trivia!

Today's question:

What do these schools have in common?

Arizona
Alabama
Auburn
Cal State Fullerton
Connecticut
Duke
Florida
Fresno State
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana State
Louisville
North Carolina
Ohio State
Oregon State
Rice
South Carolina
Southern California
Syracuse
Texas

You'll notice that UCLA is not on the list, but the list has to do with UCLA (ooh, a hint!)

Can anyone get this one?

As a reward, the first person to guess the correct answer will win 1,000,000 scottybucks, my own personal currency kind of like bitcoin except it exists in my head instead of the internet.

Hey Bruins! It's time for Scotty Trivia!

Today's question:

What do these schools have in common?

You'll notice that UCLA is not on the list, but the list has to do with UCLA (ooh, a hint!)

Can anyone get this one?

As a reward, the first person to guess the correct answer will win 1,000,000 scottybucks, my own personal currency kind of like bitcoin except it exists in my head instead of the internet.

Quest for 109: UCLA Softball Fails to Advance to Super Regional After 13 Inning Marathon

2013-05-20T00:36:08Z

They were down, but not out.

After losing their first game on Friday to the University of Alabama-Birmingham by a score of 6-3, the Bruin softball team came roaring back on Saturday.

In their first elimination game on Saturday, they convincingly defeated IPFW (that's Indiana University-Perdue University Fort Wayne, by the way) 8-0. Then, in the nightcap, they destroyed the #15 seed Louisville by a score of 19-2.

Needing to win not once, but twice on Sunday, the Bruins fought hard defeating UAB 4-1 in the first game.

The second game proved to be the toughest game so far. UAB put up a run in the bottom of the first to take the lead, but the Bruins tied it by scoring in the top of the 2nd when Brittney Rodriguez scored on Gracie Goulder's single to left.

From there out both teams remained scoreless and the game moved into extra innings after the 7th.

It remained tied until the top of the 11th when CF Allexis Bennett scored on Mysha Sataraka's sacrifice fly to center making it 2-1 Bruins.

But, UAB came back with a sacrifice fly of their own to tie the game 2-2 in the bottom of the 11th and send the game into the 12th inning.

The Bruins escaped again in the bottom of the 12th inning when a walk, fielder's choice and a wild pitch put the winning run on third. But a missed squeeze play hung the runner out to dry for the second out of the inning. A flyout to center sent the game to the 13th.

In the bottom of the 13th, UAB ended the stalemate with a triple by CF Whitney Fletcher which scored Heather Peason to win the game 3-2.

In the end, 18 runners left on base is what killed the Bruins. When you load the bases and can't get the runs across, it becomes very tough to win.

They were down, but not out.

After losing their first game on Friday to the University of Alabama-Birmingham by a score of 6-3, the Bruin softball team came roaring back on Saturday.

Needing to win not once, but twice on Sunday, the Bruins fought hard defeating UAB 4-1 in the first game.

From there out both teams remained scoreless and the game moved into extra innings after the 7th.

It remained tied until the top of the 11th when CF Allexis Bennett scored on Mysha Sataraka's sacrifice fly to center making it 2-1 Bruins.

But, UAB came back with a sacrifice fly of their own to tie the game 2-2 in the bottom of the 11th and send the game into the 12th inning.

In the bottom of the 13th, UAB ended the stalemate with a triple by CF Whitney Fletcher which scored Heather Peason to win the game 3-2.

In the end, 18 runners left on base is what killed the Bruins. When you load the bases and can't get the runs across, it becomes very tough to win.

Alford Missing Opportunities

2013-05-19T19:20:57Z

Although I bleed blue and gold, I do follow another southern California college basketball program closely. I live in San Diego and have been very impressed with the SDSU program under Steve Fisher so I was not surprised to see SDSU land two top transfers recently.

I am, however, really disappointed that Alford has not yet landed a top recruit or transfer. Either of these recent transfers would have been nice additions for the Bruins and would have provided some much needed depth and size. Angelo Chol, 6' 9", came from Arizona and has two years of eligibility left after sitting out 2013-14. Josh Adams, 6"8" and rated by many as the best transfer candidate nationally, came from Tulane where he averaged 17.6 ppg and 10.7 rb's and is eligible immediately for one year.

I don't know if Alford tried to get either of these outstanding players but if he didn't he should have. The silence is deafening on his recruiting efforts and I can only hope there will be some positive announcements soon. So far, he has been one big "missed opportunity" as a coach.

Chianti Move: UCLA Adds Alabama to the Basketball Schedule

2013-05-19T14:21:25Z

I do not understand this one. We play the ultimate football school, Alabama, in a basketball game home and away series.

UCLA's preseason schedule continues to fill up, with the latest development being a home-and-home series with Alabama (per CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein). The Crimson Tide, who finished 23-13 last season and lost to Maryland in the NIT quarterfinals, will play at Pauley Pavilion this upcoming fall.

The St. John's and Texas series of recent years made some sense. They had some marque value and some chances to recruit for UCLA. (Texas has some basketball players and New York obviously does.) But Alabama is a state that could care less about basketball and Alabama is a team that is defense first, second and third.

While according to Dan Guerrero beating Texas last year was "huge" and TV loves UCLA playing Lavin (which if we won both as we should have would have been a nice public relations boost for UCLA), I just don't see an upside to playing at Alabama.

As a small aside Alabama is a defense first team that tries to slow things down, they only averaged 63 points a game last year. In their games against ranked opponents they scored 56,68, 52 and 51 points. The 68 was against Missouri team that UCLA beat last year and as we saw that team was not that interested in defense.

Alabama ranked 17 in the country in total team defense as well. If the idea was to have more exciting looking teams, Alabama also makes no sense. Furthermore, they should be getting most of their NIT team back this year, so at first blush this is likely a solid, experienced, defense first team UCLA will be matching up against. I would argue that is not the kind of team Alford wants to play against next year and further not the kind of more exciting basketball that Guerrero wants UCLA play supposedly.

I just don't get it.

I do not understand this one. We play the ultimate football school, Alabama, in a basketball game home and away series.

UCLA's preseason schedule continues to fill up, with the latest development being a home-and-home series with Alabama (per CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein). The Crimson Tide, who finished 23-13 last season and lost to Maryland in the NIT quarterfinals, will play at Pauley Pavilion this upcoming fall.

I just don't get it.

Per L.A. Times: Alleges Guerrero Lied to UCLA Administrators re: Vetting Alford on the Pierce Scandal. Source: ALFORD

2013-05-18T23:16:50Z

Per Foster 5/18/13:
"Guerrero was also questioned — about whether UCLA had properly vetted its new coach and investigated what happened at Iowa. He said he "clearly discussed" the Pierce situation with Alford before hiring him.

However, when Alford was asked a similar question, he said the topic never came up." http://www.latimes.com/la-sp-0519-steve-alford-ucla-20130519,0,3881395.story

If there ever was a million dollar "Smoking Guerrero Gun" mandating the DG firing, this should be the trigger....

In 1996, National Championship coach Jim Harrick was fired for lying to UCLA administrators about a $900 dinner check at Monty's. The offense was in the "lie." Per this Article today by Chris Foster, Guerrero, per none other than Steve Alford, had essentially prevaricated to UCLA administrators regarding his alleged vetting of his $18 million impulse hire. Per Foster 5/18/13: "Guerrero was also questioned — about whether UCLA had properly vetted its new coach and investigated what happened at Iowa. He said he "clearly discussed" the Pierce situation with Alford before hiring him. However, when Alford was asked a similar question, he said the topic never came up." http://www.latimes.com/la-sp-0519-steve-alford-ucla-20130519,0,3881395.story If there ever was a million dollar "Smoking Guerrero Gun" mandating the DG firing, this should be the trigger....

The L.A. Times on Alford, Dan, and the Petition: Let's Write Some Letters

2013-05-18T22:50:50Z

Bumped from fanposts. - BN Eds.

"We found a coach that not only represents and honors the treasured history of UCLA's place in college basketball, but also a coach who will bring a brand of unselfish basketball," Athletic Director Dan Guerrero gushed.

Guerrero was also questioned - about whether UCLA had properly vetted its new coach and investigated what happened at Iowa. He said he "clearly discussed" the Pierce situation with Alford before hiring him.

However, when Alford was asked a similar question, he said the topic never came up.

These are two sections from Chris Foster's article in the L.A. Times which is up today. You can read it here, and it looks like the times did some research and did head back to Iowa to look into things. The fact that Alford denied answering these type of questions with Dan also makes one wonder whether these issues were vetted at all. In Peter Yoon's article Dan claims:

Guerrero says Alford's character is, in fact, a big part of what made him a candidate for the UCLA job. He vetted Alford during the hiring process and discussed the Pierce incident with former Iowa athletic director, Bob Bowlsby, as well as with officials at the University of New Mexico.

I wonder if these issues were ever brought up with Bowlsby and/or officials at UNM. Considering the lost look on Alford's face when the issue was raised at the press conference, my guess is that none of this happened. I also wonder if Dan misrepresented this to Gene?

The article brings up many points we have made and even points to the petition which will be delivered on Monday.

The controversy prompted one group of UCLA fans to circulate a petition calling for Guerrero to be fired because he had "disregarded Mr. Alford's history of defending a sex offender or did little to no research into Mr. Alford's past."

With little publicity, the petition generated nearly 2,000 signatures.

I think the Times has done a pretty good job bringing out the issues related to character and qualifications we have been discussing, while including the views of people who support Alford. It would have been great if the Times had given it more room, but they have hit the important points.

I encourage people here to write a letter to the editor about the situation and/or the article. I know I will be doing so. You may send a letter here. You may write to Chris Foster at chris.foster@latimes.com .

Bumped from fanposts. - BN Eds.

"We found a coach that not only represents and honors the treasured history of UCLA's place in college basketball, but also a coach who will bring a brand of unselfish basketball," Athletic Director Dan Guerrero gushed.

Guerrero was also questioned - about whether UCLA had properly vetted its new coach and investigated what happened at Iowa. He said he "clearly discussed" the Pierce situation with Alford before hiring him.

However, when Alford was asked a similar question, he said the topic never came up.

Guerrero says Alford's character is, in fact, a big part of what made him a candidate for the UCLA job. He vetted Alford during the hiring process and discussed the Pierce incident with former Iowa athletic director, Bob Bowlsby, as well as with officials at the University of New Mexico.

The article brings up many points we have made and even points to the petition which will be delivered on Monday.

The controversy prompted one group of UCLA fans to circulate a petition calling for Guerrero to be fired because he had "disregarded Mr. Alford's history of defending a sex offender or did little to no research into Mr. Alford's past."

With little publicity, the petition generated nearly 2,000 signatures.

Spring Sing 2013 - UCLA Basketball with the Company

2013-05-18T16:47:20Z

It's every Bruin's favorite time of year - Spring Sing! UCLA's greatest musical tradition was held last night in Pauley Pavilion, with MC Hammer receiving the George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Achievement. (Hammer, don't hurt them!)

Company is made up of UCLA students, and they open the show and air skits inbetween acts (whom have included a little known Maroon 5 at the time and Sara Bareilles) and boast alums such as Nasim Pedrad on SNL. This year's judges included Paula Abdul and Mike Warren.

The clip everyone here will be interested in is Pauley Jam, the intro for Company this year. Check out the acting skills of Tony Parker, Kyle Anderson, Jordan Adams (still on a scooter) and Khalid McKaskill, and a partial homage to Space Jam. Looks like they're enjoying college again.

By the way, Company, we expect to beat Southern Cal more than once every six years in football.