Thoughts On Departing Carnell Lake & Possibilities Around James Washington

Everyone should be aware of the news regarding Coach Lake by now. We all wish Lake best of luck and thank him for the contributions he made during this past season in Westwood. I do believe kids like ATV and Rahim Moore gained valuable experience under a former NFL all pro and I think he did a really good job steadying our DBs despite the injuries to Aaron Hester and the off field issues for Courtney Vinney which came at a crucial time right after a huge win over Tennessee. 

Yeah, we had to endure growing pains with Sheldon Price but even Price was showing signs of growing up towards the end of the season including pitching in with key assists in game clinching interceptions against Washington. So while Coach Lake hopefully move on to another exciting chapter in his life, we can presume Rick Neuheisel has a list of candidates, in which one name will be fairly fairly prominent. 

Let's move on from a Steeler to a Cowboy though as I wanted point out few reasons for which I think James Washington (who name was already mentioned in the LA Times today) could be a very interesting candidate to take Lake's place at Spaulding Field. There is also another name that Blue Reign brought up in the comment section of our fanpost, who could be an interesting possibility as well.

While Washington struggled a lot as a commentator, his underlying analysis on our team has always been pretty good. I think he could be a potentially exciting possibility for few other good reasons:

• Washington is a Bruin through and through, who also happens to be a Super Bowl champion and one of the key leaders of the fierce Dallas Cowboys teams from the 90s.
• He would be a great role model for kids from LA who are dreaming about big time in the world of football.
• He is also well connected to the LA high school scene and has been a terrific ambassador for Neuheisel's UCLA program.
• Washington is also a fierce competitor who would bring the kind of intensity Eric Scott (without his baggage) and Eric Bienemey brought to the recruiting trail. He would certainly not back down from facing off against Kiffin and Ogre when it comes to battle for LA kids.

My biggest question concerning JDub is commitment. I wonder if he is ready for the daily grind of a college coaching staff, which requires intense hours on recruiting trail and patience with kids. Also, as Blue Reign pointed in the comment thread VaeTata. Tata is a former Bruin who has already served as an intern in Rick Neuheisel's staff doing an awesome job on recruiting trail.

It will be interesting to see how this shakes out.  Again, best of luck to Coach Lake.  At the end, I think it will end up being a win-win situation for all parties involved.

GO BRUINS.