DG comes out and officially puts Dorrell on notice (emphasis added throughout):
Athletic Director Dan Guerrero directly addressed UCLA's inconsistent football performances for the first time Monday, mostly stating the obvious: that a Pacific 10 Conference championship and Rose Bowl berth are still within the Bruins' grasp.
But there was no ringing endorsement for Coach Karl Dorrell. Instead, Guerrero said, "I will be very interested to see how we finish the season. And you can use that."
His message seemed clear.
The Bruins have four games remaining -- three against ranked teams -- and their performance from here on out may determine whether Dorrell will remain as coach.
UCLA, which is 5-3 overall, is 4-1 in Pac-10 play and only a game behind conference leader Arizona State. The Bruins play at Arizona on Saturday, then have No. 6 Arizona State and, after an off week, No. 4 Oregon at home before finishing up with No. 13 USC at the Coliseum.
More on DG’s message for Dorrell from Brian Dohn:
But there was no ringing endorsement for Coach Karl Dorrell. Instead, Guerrero said, "I will be very interested to see how we finish the season. And you can use that."
His message seemed clear.
The Bruins have four games remaining -- three against ranked teams -- and their performance from here on out may determine whether Dorrell will remain as coach.
UCLA, which is 5-3 overall, is 4-1 in Pac-10 play and only a game behind conference leader Arizona State. The Bruins play at Arizona on Saturday, then have No. 6 Arizona State and, after an off week, No. 4 Oregon at home before finishing up with No. 13 USC at the Coliseum.
Two days after UCLA lost 27-7 at Washington State, Guerrero was predictably vague in discussing Dorrell's status, particularly since the Bruins (5-3, 4-1 Pac-10) are in second place in the Pacific-10 Conference, and are still in control of their own destiny in regards to the league title.
"The weekend in Pullman (Wash.) was difficult for us," Guerrero said. "We are all disappointed with the performance and with the outcome of that game, but the reality is we still have our destiny in our hands. We have four tough games, two on the road, two at home, and obviously we're going to need to perform at a high level to win those football games.
If you want to read between lines, one could interpret as DG notifying Dorrell that he will need to pack up his belongings if he doesn’t deliver UCLA’s first Pac-10 title since 1998."The weekend in Pullman (Wash.) was difficult for us," Guerrero said. "We are all disappointed with the performance and with the outcome of that game, but the reality is we still have our destiny in our hands. We have four tough games, two on the road, two at home, and obviously we're going to need to perform at a high level to win those football games.
Here is how I see things shaping up from a practical point of view:
- 0-4: Lose all four games, Dorrell is gone
- 1-3: Lose 3 out of 4, Dorrell is gone even if that sole victory comes against Southern Cal or Oregon.
- 2-2: I think Dorrell is still gone with a .500 record. A 7-5 record will generate enough heat on Guerrerro and Dorrell, that DG will not be able to sustain the pressure and fired KD.
- 3-1: This is where things start getting dicey. If UCLA finishes 8-4 this season, and if that includes a victory against Southern Cal, we could be in the proverbial gray area in terms of whether or not DG will fire KD. Of course everyone here will be in total agreement that KD will need to go. But it may not be as clear cut case for DG if we finish the season winning 3 out of our last 4 games. Then again if that sole loss is a blowout loss, that changes the equation against Dorrell as well.
- 4-0: DG will have a hard time firing any coach who has won the Pac-10 championship. That’s a fact we have to live with.
For his part here is what the Doofus had to say:
"It doesn't affect me because I don't directly deal with that," Dorrell said. "I'm not a participant on all the things that are out there, (like) reading everything. I am really focused on what I have to continue to work on and try to accomplish this year (with this) football team.
Uh yeah. Whatever Karl. Keep saying your sweet nothings. And by the way Bell’s injury (which I will maintain could have been averted if he wasn’t allowed back into the game after he was helped off the field) will not be an excuse for rest of the season.So the bottom line is Karl is now officially on notice. The more UCLA wins rest of the season, the more chances get higher for Dorrell to survive at least one more season to completely destroy UCLA football, just like Lavin did in his last season.
I hate Karl Dorrell for putting all of us in this position in Bruin Nation.
He deserves zero sympathy for sucking total life out of UCLA football.
So don’t think about feeling sorry for a loser like him.
GO BRUINS.