So while Brian Dohn is hanging out in La La land these days completely oblivious to it, some how some way rest of the traditional media in LA is slowly waking up and realizing the kind of (rightful) pressure the UCLA alums, students, and fans have been able to exert on UCLA’s mediocre head football coach.
Today in the LAT, Foster has a story on how the Bruin online communities have been hammering away at one of the worst coaches in college football. While Dohn tried his best to discount the significance of last week’s story in the Sporting News, Foster recognizes the importance of it:
The anti-Dorrell faction thought a remedy was at hand last week, when a Sporting News blog reported that UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero had met with defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker and asked whether he would be interested in taking over as interim coach.
UCLA officials confirmed the two had met but said it was a scheduled meeting regarding career development. The Sporting News withdrew the blog entry.
But by then Bruins fan websites were abuzz.
Guerrero, who has never deviated from his support of Dorrell, was asked after the Bruins' 20-6 loss to Notre Dame on Oct. 6 if anything could happen on the field that would make him consider a change. He replied, "My answer in that respect is we're at the halfway point and there is a great deal of football left to play. Anyone involved with the program is focusing on those next six games."
Asked if that wasn't dodging the question, Guerrero replied, "That's all I'm going to say."
Couple of things. First, by now all of you should know because of Fox71’s dogged pursuit, Sporting News story might have been "withdrawn," however, the substance of the report was never retracted. Second, I wasn’t aware of such a stern, ominous comment coming out of Guerrero following the Notre Dame game. And if I am not mistaken, I have not seen any comments from him following the Cal game to deviate from that post-ND stance (unlike the comments we heard following the Oregon State game).UCLA officials confirmed the two had met but said it was a scheduled meeting regarding career development. The Sporting News withdrew the blog entry.
But by then Bruins fan websites were abuzz.
Guerrero, who has never deviated from his support of Dorrell, was asked after the Bruins' 20-6 loss to Notre Dame on Oct. 6 if anything could happen on the field that would make him consider a change. He replied, "My answer in that respect is we're at the halfway point and there is a great deal of football left to play. Anyone involved with the program is focusing on those next six games."
Asked if that wasn't dodging the question, Guerrero replied, "That's all I'm going to say."
So no matter what you hear from Dorrell cultists and beat reporters in denial, the pressure on Dorrell has not subsided one bit. In fact as DumpDorrell.com notes this morning, we now have Matt Hayes, Dorrell’s biggest supporter other than his wife and Donahue, laying down the gauntlet for Karl for rest of the season:
I'm now, officially, bumfuzzled by UCLA. What else can you say? I mean, I know it's a rivalry game and everything, but how does this UCLA team beat Cal and lose to Utah and Notre Dame?
And don't give me the Pac-10 is overrated garbage; it's as good as the SEC.
This isn't a young or inexperienced team; the Bruins returned 20 starters from last season and are loaded with talent on defense and the skill positions on offense.
So how does this happen? Lack of focus from players and lack of motivation from the coaching staff.
I've said this before with other programs/coaching staffs, and I'll say it again: the mark of a program in trouble is a team that wins and loses games it shouldn't
As good as UCLA looked against Cal, I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if the Bruins lose this week at Washington State. And, of course, beat Arizona State two weeks later.
To me that sounds like a guy who is realizing Dorrell is most likely toast if he fails to win the Pac-10 championship this season. A spot in the Holiday Bowl is not going to work for Karl. Foster and Hayes are not the only ones realizing the pressure on Dorrell. Right after the Cal game Simers chimed in with his own article on "the Dump Dorrell crowd," which DD responded to with the perfect response:
And don't give me the Pac-10 is overrated garbage; it's as good as the SEC.
This isn't a young or inexperienced team; the Bruins returned 20 starters from last season and are loaded with talent on defense and the skill positions on offense.
So how does this happen? Lack of focus from players and lack of motivation from the coaching staff.
I've said this before with other programs/coaching staffs, and I'll say it again: the mark of a program in trouble is a team that wins and loses games it shouldn't
As good as UCLA looked against Cal, I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if the Bruins lose this week at Washington State. And, of course, beat Arizona State two weeks later.
Yes, we "the Dump Dorrell crowd" are huge fans of UCLA football. We are the fans that want excellence for our program, for our players. Beating Cal was a great thing, but we see it for what it was … a win handed to Dorrell by mistake-prone Tedford. We just don't expect Dorrell to keep winning … as TJ himself points out, inconsistency is Dorrell's calling card. Dorrell will most likely have our team lose badly again, and hopefully Dan Guerrero will finally put an end to the source of this destructive Bruin division.
TJ, of all people, should know that this is not a new problem for UCLA, which makes it even more infuriating. We've had this problem before with Farmer, Hazzard, Lavin … WE SHOULD KNOW BETTER!!! Once Dorrell is finally gone we will all look back at this period and remember how bad it was just like we do Lavin, and some of us Farmer and Hazzard. Because hopefully Dan Guerrero and UCLA will finally have learned the lesson we've been taught so many times … Make a commitment to excellence … the rewards are unparalleled!!! TJ, the solution has not changed … Dump Dorrell!
But of course poor Karl thinks to the world is out to get him (from the Foster article linked above):
TJ, of all people, should know that this is not a new problem for UCLA, which makes it even more infuriating. We've had this problem before with Farmer, Hazzard, Lavin … WE SHOULD KNOW BETTER!!! Once Dorrell is finally gone we will all look back at this period and remember how bad it was just like we do Lavin, and some of us Farmer and Hazzard. Because hopefully Dan Guerrero and UCLA will finally have learned the lesson we've been taught so many times … Make a commitment to excellence … the rewards are unparalleled!!! TJ, the solution has not changed … Dump Dorrell!
"We talk about it as a staff, we understand there is nobody in our corner right now," Dorrell said. "We can't let that be the determination of what we love to do. . . . We want people to understand there's a lot of football to be played this year."
Actually Karl it is you and your competent coaching staff, who hasn’t been in our corner for last four + years, saddling us with one underachieving season after another marked with humiliating and disgraceful losses each and every season. Every time we have even entertained the notion of coming to your corner, you keep turning the wrong way. And we have had enough of that.We perfectly understand there’s a lot of football to be played this season, but none of it is going to matter if you do not win the Pac-10 championship. And even if you do win the Pac-10, the ill feelings you have generated through last 4+ years of mediocrity and fostering a culture of lack of accountability, will not magically go away. That’s what happens after four+ years of constantly turning corners.
And none of that it’s our fault.
GO BRUINS.