Something Big?

by Nestor on Dec 31, 2007 11:53 AM PST in Football Comment 28 comments

Ted Miller from the Seattle Press Intelligence becomes first Washington based writer to offer up a take, which doesn't follow along the conventional narrative:

Lots of folks are going to blast UCLA for hiring Rick Neuheisel.

I want you guys to cut out their columns. I want you to record their comments.

And mine.

Then we'll see who ends up being right.

Neuheisel will restore UCLA to a Pac-10 power. Cut that out.

Neuheisel won't screw this up. Cut that out.

He will, however, after winning a Rose Bowl at some point... gloat. Not as much as "Scoreboard Baby!" but some.

Good.

Read rest of his post here (HT to Washington Husky Sports). Apparently Coach Neuheisel's arrival in Westwood is bother some folks so much that they are throwing out comparison to President Bill Clinton! OMG! The Horror!!! If comparison to a smart, brilliant and competent (okay some of my friends will say cunning) two-term President like Bill Clinton, who now enjoys approval ratings in the 60s, and who led our country through 8 years of peace and prosperity (during which UCLA was 7-1 against Southern Cal in football with two Pac-10 championships, a phantom fumble away from the BCS championship game and BTW won banner number 11) is the worst insult that can be hurled at Coach Neuheisel, I will gladly take it.

But the juvenile and hysterical (predictable) attacks on Coach Neuheisel aside, there are other college football observers such as Neuheisel, who are recognizing the impact of this hire at UCLA.

For example, Matt Zemek at Bootleg.com (the scout.com site which covers Stanford Cardinals) observes how UCLA and Neuheisel might be up to something big.

Matt uses tomorrow's Rose Bowl involving Illinois as the backdrop to offer his reflections on this hire (emphasis added throughout):

"The Illinois Triangle" remains intact when one considers the condition of the UCLA and USC programs at the times of their encounters with Illinois in these far-apart Rose Bowls. The Bruins, when at their best, didn't quite win six straight Pac-10 titles the way USC has recently done under Carroll (five, if you want to be really picky about things--USC was technically second to Washington State in 2002), but the fact remains that in the first half of the 1980s, UCLA was the money program in the Pac. The Bruins won three Granddaddies in four years, and usually in emphatic fashion. Donahue--the man who once ruled L.A. football and coached Neuheisel during those halcyon days--always had the right answers for Big Ten opponents who came to Pasadena.

It's true that Michigan and Iowa became victims of Bruin boldness and brilliance during that four-year stretch, but one could fairly say that of those three Rosy romps for UCLA, the 36-point annihilation of Illinois--yes, the one led by Neuheisel himself--was the sweetest one by far. The unranked Bruins, with four losses and a tie, thoroughly humiliated the 10-1 and No. 4 Illini. That improbable yet devastating rout cemented the aura surrounding the UCLA program in the mid-80s, because it conveyed the undeniable impression that even when supremely vulnerable, the Bruins could call forth confidence and summon up supreme swagger against a highly-touted opponent in a very big game. One Rose Bowl win over Illinois in 1984 captured the greatness of UCLA football. Now, with USC oozing superiority just before another Rose Bowl game involving those unfortunate Illini, UCLA has brought Rick Neuheisel back into the mix. It's a clear attempt--and a bold, brilliant one at that--to not just steal headlines and some Trojan thunder, but to match Troy's tidal wave of triumphs and trophies.

Yes, you have lil' ol' Illinois standing in the middle of history in these final days before the 2008 Rose Bowl: the Illini, already the recipient of one Rose Bowl beatdown 24 years ago, seem to be in store for another. Neuheisel's emergence as UCLA's new head coach is creating a war--no, not with Ron Zook's team, but with the team that is about to play Illinois on Tuesday. What happens between the white lines in a few days will receive an extra degree of scrutiny in Los Angeles, because every Angelino will be talking about how USC fared against Illinois relative to Rick Neuheisel. Much more importantly, Neuheisel will use the aftermath of the 2008 Rose Bowl to, in one way or another, begin building his program to the point where it can once again roll to victory on New Year's Day... instead of the hated Trojan Empire of College Football. "The Illinois Triangle," adequately explained, reveals how this hire by Dan Guerrero is primarily a response to USC and its recent ascendancy under Pete Carroll.

More on Neuheisel v. Pom Pom angle from Matt:

While Carroll is always looking for ways to lighten up the mood around his program, Neuheisel--who may or may not strum his guitar in an attempt to keep his UCLA players free and loose--is similarly inclined to motivate players by creating a culture of energy and liberation, the hallowed formula for California confidence. This hire has an undeniable amount of appeal and wisdom because Neuheisel's personality--much like Carroll's over at USC--is a psychologically compatible match for the city of Los Angeles. Neuheisel is a player's coach who will create a culture of competition at UCLA. A still-young head coach possesses the iconic looks and attitude that fit the local environment, and he'll be able to sell UCLA football in ways few other men ever could have done at this particular point in time. If anyone has a chance of doing in Westwood what Carroll has already achieved across town in the shadows of the L.A. Coliseum, it's Neuheisel.

Well I can tell you this much, Coach Neuheisel hasn't officially arrived yet. But we can already sense that feeling of energy and liberation in Westwood.

Again as we get ready for Spring Football and go through the long season, we will build on the point about having realistic expectations for next season. Next year or two will be difficult for Coach Neuheisel as he will have to work on rebuilding a foundation that was frankly built on creaky frame last few years. But just like we enjoyed Coach Howland's rebuilding efforts and remained patient along the way, we intend to maintain the same posture wrt to Coach Neuheisel.

But that's something we will save for the coming days/weeks/months. For today for the first time in long time in the world of UCLA football we are excited about the long term future of UCLA football under Coach Neuheisel. For the first time in a long time we can actually dream about UCLA football striving for something big and unleash a new era of peace, prosperity and domination over the Trojans just like the glorious 90s.

GO BRUINS.

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Good Post

It's getting me pumped for not only next season but for many seasons to come. Something is about to change for the good in this football program. I hope that RN can make Cheatey-Petey feel the heat.

GO BRUINS!

by kjmcdonald on Dec 31, 2007 12:02 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Presser

Do we know if today presser is televised?

by BruinFam on Dec 31, 2007 12:18 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Any way to hear it online?

Want to bask in the glory of the new era.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 12:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Basking now

The excitement now is great!
It matches for me:

13-9
Title #11
8 Straight*
*Especially the 17 point 4th quarter comeback
'84 Rosebowl (my frosh year)

Somebody at DD (which I don't see a way to post to anymore??) recommended a get-together celebration/bull session. Anybody wanna run with that?

by BruinFam on Dec 31, 2007 12:28 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

ELBA

I have a great idea for a photograph worthy of a sports magazine cover. I'm reminded of when George Steinbrenner returned to the Yankees in the 90's, he posed in French Revolutionary garb and stuck his hand in his shirt a la Napoleon returning from exile. IIRC it made the cover of Sports Illustrated.

I see no more fitting image to portray than Rick on in powder keg blue and gold colored revolutionary attire, with the same pose and with the defiant, triumphant look on his face - the returning, conquering hero.

In the meantime, how is everyone's photoshopping skillz? Mine are nonexistent.

by Seanny Rotten on Dec 31, 2007 2:57 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

found it

This is what I was talking about. Now adjust the colors, put Neuheisel on the back of that steed, and OH put him atop a mighty bruin, not a horse. I can see it now, "Rick Neuheisel rides back into Westwood."

by Seanny Rotten on Dec 31, 2007 4:36 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

On campus for lunch

And saw trucks for the local NBC and ABC affiliates (4 and 7). No idea if it's being carried live.

by Menelaus on Dec 31, 2007 1:18 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Channel 2 (CBS) pulled up as I left too

by Menelaus on Dec 31, 2007 1:44 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

This been posted on the main site?

Loeffler as QB coach?

The implications of that hire, if made, are pretty big. Even if Ryan Mallett doesn't come with Scot, being able to call upon the Michigan quarterbacking tradition of NFL quarterbacks should give access to the best at that position.

by hyarrr on Dec 31, 2007 2:16 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Posted

That's already been diaried up by N.

by Menelaus on Dec 31, 2007 2:22 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

OT -- Oregon Killing South Florida

But, oh, are those uniforms ugly.

Truly, I am pleased with RN, better than I'd be with Bellotti.

I want someone who dreams in blue and gold -- not some ubly green and black.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 2:20 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Anyone listening to the press conf?

Can you give us a running thread like we do on games?

Thanks.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 2:27 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

It's On KLAC

http://www.am570radio.com/main.html

Click "Listen Live".

by VenturaHwy73 on Dec 31, 2007 2:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Thanks, I have a commercial

Is it over?

Summary?

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 2:37 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

It's still going on

But they broke away. I just caught a couple comments about wanting to kept Walker. That a lot of programs are after him. He also talked about commiserating with Dorrell after he got fired.

They just said that they will have RN on later in this broadcast.

by VenturaHwy73 on Dec 31, 2007 2:46 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Neuheisel's presser

Just watched RN's presser on-line. Not surprisingly, he said all the right things. I was struck by the genuine emotion in his voice and facial expressions expressing his joy at returning to UCLA as HC. RN responded to a question about recruits: Per NCAA rules, he gets one phone call per recruit this week, which he made sure the previous staff saved for him. He can meet recruits on-campus next week, but cannot visit them off-campus, as it is a so-called "quiet week."

by TfXc79 on Dec 31, 2007 2:59 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Very Impressed

Coach Neuheisel was fantastic in his press conference. He was funny, articulate and seemed to captivate the entire room.

Now, I know that RN detractors will say, "Of course he did, he's Slick Rick" etc. But I could hear and see the passion in his voice and on his face. This wasn't a used car salesman. This was a passionate and energetic coach who is thrilled to have finally landed his dream job.

I watched the whole press conference with a big smile on my face. And I'm guessing I wasn't the only one....

GO BRUINS!

by Quickhands on Dec 31, 2007 3:23 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Also...

RN told what I thought was a very funny little anecdote, and the whole room was laughing.

Someone asked him to compare his first day as a coach to his first day as a player. He said...

(Paraphrased) "I walked out to the intramural field, and was playing catch with a guy. I thought to myself, this guy throws a better spiral than I do. And he's a tight end!"

I laughed.

by Quickhands on Dec 31, 2007 3:25 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Quiet Week and Signing Day

When is "quiet week"?

When is signing day?

Thanks.

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 3:29 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Signing day

is in early February. The NCAA has arcane rules about when coaches can contact recruits, and in what manner. No outside contacts are permitted during so-called "quiet" periods. No wonder these rules get broken all the time!

by TfXc79 on Jan 1, 2008 1:05 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I think the acutal day is February 1

by bruinbabe2000 on Jan 1, 2008 9:20 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Presser

There's a link to "All_Acces" for the press conference on the UCLA athletic site:
http://uclabruins.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/122907aae.html

by BruinFam on Dec 31, 2007 3:32 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

When Other Blondes Think You're Stupid...

http://www.digg.com/football/When_Other_Blondes_Think_You_re_Stupid

It's times like these that I love social news aggregators.

by Tydides on Dec 31, 2007 3:50 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Presser Podcast

You can download then AM570 Podcast of the Presser from this website:

http://www.am570radio.com/cc-common/podcast.html

For those that weren't listening, there were some technical problems at the very beginning, but it got cleared up pretty quickly.

Nestor....maybe you can bump this link to the front page. All Bruins should get the chance to listen to our new football coach!

by Quickhands on Dec 31, 2007 3:56 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Oops!

While you guys were writing, so was I. I put up a Diary on the press conference but now that I look, my link didn't come out.

I'll try again. I agree, its a great "listen".

sjh

by Class of 66 on Dec 31, 2007 4:09 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

66...

Quit trying to steal my thunder.

Kidding, of course.

Happy New Year, Bruins!

by Quickhands on Dec 31, 2007 4:10 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Clinton v. Neuheisel

Nester, et al,

This is wandering a bit, but I was wondering if we might declare a moratorium using metaphors, similes, comparisons, or other devices summoning politics and/or religion to make our points on this site?

It unfairly inflames and exacerbates disagreements and is not really necessary if arguments are rooted soundly in logic and supported by facts.

Further, it could possibly harm the friendships and bonds formed by those of us on this board if we argued over something as specious as politics when a far more grander subject is at hand: UCLA football.

by whp68 on Dec 31, 2007 5:01 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Presser

The link is updated, so you can see the whole Press Conference now.
http://uclabruins.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/122907aae.html
Awesome! I am even more convinced now RN was the right choice!!!

Anyone know if the ability to post on DD has been changed?

PS - I gree with you whp

by BruinFam on Dec 31, 2007 5:36 PM PST reply actions 0 recs