UCLA actually finds a head coach worse than Karl Dorrell. Head coaches shouldn’t be learning on the job. This team would tread near the bottom of the current PAC 12 conference let alone the Big 10. I feel sorry for the players.
honestly it would not have been a bad idea to bring back Neuheisel on an interim basis given the timing of Chip's departure. Attempting to conduct a legitimate head coach hiring process that late in the cycle, especially after his top targets said no thanks, shows very poor judgment by the AD. I did not know this was possible, but the program is now in worse shape than it was when Chip left -- why on earth would ANYONE take this job when we fire Foster? Watch them promote our inexperienced OC when Foster gets the boot. I cringe to think what he will do to our basketball program when Cronin bolts, or if he's given the opportunity to replace Foster.
Coach Foster after last night’s shellacking: “They (the players) didn’t do enough, and they’re ready to put in some more work and get ready to go on Monday”. Does this sound like a head coach who has any kind of road map for success?
again, this is not Foster's fault. He is simply not equipped to be a head coach yet. He's be a great running backs coach. It was always a TERRIBLE hire.
Evan we both agree Foster was a bad hire. Following the logic, he was a bad hire because he makes for an awful head coach for many reasons…making it his fault for this current cluster. There has to be accountability and responsibility from the top. We can blame our cheerleading athletic director as well but the on field team play is Foster’s fault. He’s like a deer in headlights. Easy prey for opposing head coaches.
You lost me with your rhetorical question of " why on earth would ANYONE take this job when we fire Foster ? " Were you confusing Foster with Chip ? The latter left, fired or not, believing he was unappreciated and not because of his mediocrity. Foster then succeeded him. So who fires him now ? You also explored the scenario of Cronin replacing Foster. Is Cronin not the basketball coach or a multipurpose one in fact, capable of also coaching football in your view ?
The powers that be running UCLA in recent decades never fully embrace the notion that academic excellence and athletic achievement can co-exist alongside each other.
The word that comes to mind for this debacle is 'empty.' Empty Rose Bowl. Empty game plan. Empty rhetoric. Empty narrative. I am not feeling sad, just empty.
I was hopeful, that's just my spirit. I was super hopeful that the new coaching staff, the ones who stayed e.g. Malloe, would develop our players into a good team, would have a good game plan, would prepare our players to execute that plan.
I was jazzed about Tino, and listened to all the 'amazing' things about our team's brotherhood, dedication, and going the extra mile, every singlr day. It all felt empty.
I will never believe that players at the college level can't be developed regardless of the the number of stars that seem to define them in the public's eye, and in recruiting circles.
We were not even competitive. We were just empty.
Utah is a great team, and everything we are not. They have outstanding coaches who understand not only game strategy and execution but how to get the very most from their players. Their players know their roles, understand expectations and work as a unified group.
I will be cheering for Utah the rest of the season. I live in Utah, born and raised here too. Many family and friends are Utes. I performed at many high school championship playoffs at Rice Eccles Stadium, as a member of my high school's dance and cheer team.
But my heart and soul belong to UCLA. They both feel completely empty right now.
I used exactly that same word this morning when my wife asked me how I was at the end of the game (she had gone to bed by halftime, my son early 3rd quarter, and my-about-to-be Bruin senior daughter who never leaves a game early went to bed mid 4th quarter).
Empty. Empty of enthusiasm. Empty of emotion. And empty of hope.
I rarely post comments these days because I too feel empty, disillusioned about our football program. Living within the vicinity of the Rose Bowl stadium, I am not even a football season ticket holder anymore. Until the program revives itself or, miraculously Foster begins to coach like Bill Belichick ( LOL ! ), I am contented to simply stay home, check the scores on YouTube.
Is it too soon to be talking about a new coach? Foster was never going to work. I feel bad for him. It's kind of like a kid who would have got straight A's at a normal school, but parents pull strings and got him into Stanford where he failed out. He should be an OC right now or a head coach at a mid major. The hiring was always unserious. Fucking up a football head coach hiring that bad is unacceptable and Jarmond should be immediately fired.
Based upon what we all witnessed last night, the Bruins could be looking at Penn St and Ohio St. putting Wilt Chamberlain numbers up on em! And what is/was the deal with 4.3 40 burner Jaivian Thomas getting 7 touches? A couple of those "almost" by the other backs, Thomas could have turned into big gainers.
"The greatest sorrow is to recall happiness in times of misery"
I was on the sidelines at the Rose Bowl last night. It was clear on the very first Utah drive that UCLA was overmatched in the trenches. The DL was getting pushed around by the bigger and more talented Utes. One can blame the coach, the QB or whomever one chooses, but playing an experienced and well coached squad with a patchwork of linemen that didn't work out at other schools is unlikely to lead to success. We'd better recruit and develop linemen and that takes time, no matter who is coaching this squad. Foster was hired at a time the cupboard was left bare by Chip Kelly. I don't know if he is a head coach or not. He also does not deserve the blame for the state of the program.
I'd like your perspective on why speed merchant RB Jaivian Thomas only got 7 touches(?) - That said, appreciate your on-scene observation, and you're right, they were over-matched by the darn near 300+lbs across the O-line Ute front. Conversely, UCLA hasn't had REAL beef on it's O-Line since Toledo/Foster's era, when the Bruins had O-line All-Americans regularly, today's D line notwithstanding. The lack of beefers goes hand in hand with the decline of the once storied men's track & field squad, where linemen also put the shot and and or threw the discus. Its tough enough to watch on TV, musta been brutal being up close and personal. GO BRUINS!
Nah, Foster is completely to blame for the state of the program. In the current NIL/Transfer Portal era, it is exceptionally easy to turn things around if you can do two things: 1) identify and develop talent quickly, and 2) encourage donor support so that you have the money to pay said talent. On the second point, Foster has failed spectacularly, and it is hard to say that he inspires the kind of confidence that can generate the funds necessary to raise the talent level. On the first point, this opening game was a pretty good indicator that the ability to identify talent is lacking, especially given what the defense looked like last night. I would understand the idea that Foster needs more time if he had a track record of success prior or if the fanbase was behind him more, but there were only 35,000 of us at the Rose Bowl for the opening game of the season. The Foster era is DOA, and much of it is his doing.
(That said, I am willing to state that you can also blame Jarmond for handicapping Foster in the first place or for being too cheap to get a legitimate head coaching option when given the opportunity.)
is it really his fault he's so bad though? Jarmond is the one who offered him the job. He was SO unqualified. We saw this coming from a mile away. Was he supposed to say no to millions of dollars?
This is what happens at any school when alumni status gets you points during the hiring process. But he understands what it means to be a Bruin, they said!
Man, that was painful to watch. Now, it was one game against a mature, well coached team with a solid long term foundation, so losing that game wasn't that big a surprise.
But the way we weren't even competitive on the field and the way our players, especially on defense, looked so woefully overmatched and slow and lost and frankly unathletic was a huge surprise.
I don't want to overreact after one game by predicting we aren't winning any games this year, but that Bruin team last night took about six steps back from the team we saw at the end of last season and now it needs to take about 10 steps forward in order to look like it even belongs on the field with another FBS team.
I could not disagree more. The hiring of Foster and the desperation behind the hire illustrates more about the state pf the program than anything else. Beyond the quality education, what would inspire an elite player to choose UCLA Football?
California's highly-educated workforce is not so unique anymore, and its quality of life has been tarnished by a variety of issues that either remain unresolved and or have worsened; taxes, fees, taxes etc.
I recall an early interview with Mora that kinda personifies where we are now. Mora explained that he'd been REALLY after an assistant coach at North Dakota State to come to UCLA. He went on to say that in spite of what would have been quite a significant salary increase, the ND State guy had to turn the UCLA offer down, as he had a wife and 2 elementary school aged kids, and there was no way he could afford to even rent a place to live and put his kids in school within reasonable distance of Westwood.
UCLA actually finds a head coach worse than Karl Dorrell. Head coaches shouldn’t be learning on the job. This team would tread near the bottom of the current PAC 12 conference let alone the Big 10. I feel sorry for the players.
Dorrell would be a huge step up at this point.
honestly it would not have been a bad idea to bring back Neuheisel on an interim basis given the timing of Chip's departure. Attempting to conduct a legitimate head coach hiring process that late in the cycle, especially after his top targets said no thanks, shows very poor judgment by the AD. I did not know this was possible, but the program is now in worse shape than it was when Chip left -- why on earth would ANYONE take this job when we fire Foster? Watch them promote our inexperienced OC when Foster gets the boot. I cringe to think what he will do to our basketball program when Cronin bolts, or if he's given the opportunity to replace Foster.
also watch us blow out UNLV and a certain sect act like the program has turned around
sadly
Coach Foster after last night’s shellacking: “They (the players) didn’t do enough, and they’re ready to put in some more work and get ready to go on Monday”. Does this sound like a head coach who has any kind of road map for success?
again, this is not Foster's fault. He is simply not equipped to be a head coach yet. He's be a great running backs coach. It was always a TERRIBLE hire.
Evan we both agree Foster was a bad hire. Following the logic, he was a bad hire because he makes for an awful head coach for many reasons…making it his fault for this current cluster. There has to be accountability and responsibility from the top. We can blame our cheerleading athletic director as well but the on field team play is Foster’s fault. He’s like a deer in headlights. Easy prey for opposing head coaches.
i'm just saying its not his fault he sucks. he's doing the best he can. Maybe Kevin Craft will be the next coach.
Mark Helfrich was in the freaking booth, for crying out loud!
You lost me with your rhetorical question of " why on earth would ANYONE take this job when we fire Foster ? " Were you confusing Foster with Chip ? The latter left, fired or not, believing he was unappreciated and not because of his mediocrity. Foster then succeeded him. So who fires him now ? You also explored the scenario of Cronin replacing Foster. Is Cronin not the basketball coach or a multipurpose one in fact, capable of also coaching football in your view ?
That was an absolutely dreadful display. The program is at an absolute low. A couple decades of mismanagement by the athletic dept and here we are.
The powers that be running UCLA in recent decades never fully embrace the notion that academic excellence and athletic achievement can co-exist alongside each other.
Well at least you nailed the over but it was oh so close.
The word that comes to mind for this debacle is 'empty.' Empty Rose Bowl. Empty game plan. Empty rhetoric. Empty narrative. I am not feeling sad, just empty.
I was hopeful, that's just my spirit. I was super hopeful that the new coaching staff, the ones who stayed e.g. Malloe, would develop our players into a good team, would have a good game plan, would prepare our players to execute that plan.
I was jazzed about Tino, and listened to all the 'amazing' things about our team's brotherhood, dedication, and going the extra mile, every singlr day. It all felt empty.
I will never believe that players at the college level can't be developed regardless of the the number of stars that seem to define them in the public's eye, and in recruiting circles.
We were not even competitive. We were just empty.
Utah is a great team, and everything we are not. They have outstanding coaches who understand not only game strategy and execution but how to get the very most from their players. Their players know their roles, understand expectations and work as a unified group.
I will be cheering for Utah the rest of the season. I live in Utah, born and raised here too. Many family and friends are Utes. I performed at many high school championship playoffs at Rice Eccles Stadium, as a member of my high school's dance and cheer team.
But my heart and soul belong to UCLA. They both feel completely empty right now.
💙💛🥲😞
I used exactly that same word this morning when my wife asked me how I was at the end of the game (she had gone to bed by halftime, my son early 3rd quarter, and my-about-to-be Bruin senior daughter who never leaves a game early went to bed mid 4th quarter).
Empty. Empty of enthusiasm. Empty of emotion. And empty of hope.
I rarely post comments these days because I too feel empty, disillusioned about our football program. Living within the vicinity of the Rose Bowl stadium, I am not even a football season ticket holder anymore. Until the program revives itself or, miraculously Foster begins to coach like Bill Belichick ( LOL ! ), I am contented to simply stay home, check the scores on YouTube.
Is it too soon to be talking about a new coach? Foster was never going to work. I feel bad for him. It's kind of like a kid who would have got straight A's at a normal school, but parents pull strings and got him into Stanford where he failed out. He should be an OC right now or a head coach at a mid major. The hiring was always unserious. Fucking up a football head coach hiring that bad is unacceptable and Jarmond should be immediately fired.
If only he was tarmaced last night. I'm afraid we're stuck for the rest of the year.
I think that's actually a really good analogy.
I also don't think Jarmond has the nerve or vision to do anything about it.
the analogy can apply to Jarmond too.
at least we ALWAYS had at least SOME hope and excitement with Dan Guerrero's football hires
Foster is a terrible head coach and Jarmond is a terrible Athletic Director.
Based upon what we all witnessed last night, the Bruins could be looking at Penn St and Ohio St. putting Wilt Chamberlain numbers up on em! And what is/was the deal with 4.3 40 burner Jaivian Thomas getting 7 touches? A couple of those "almost" by the other backs, Thomas could have turned into big gainers.
"The greatest sorrow is to recall happiness in times of misery"
~ Dante ~
Geezus, Mark Helfrich was in the broadcast booth, for crying out loud!
I was on the sidelines at the Rose Bowl last night. It was clear on the very first Utah drive that UCLA was overmatched in the trenches. The DL was getting pushed around by the bigger and more talented Utes. One can blame the coach, the QB or whomever one chooses, but playing an experienced and well coached squad with a patchwork of linemen that didn't work out at other schools is unlikely to lead to success. We'd better recruit and develop linemen and that takes time, no matter who is coaching this squad. Foster was hired at a time the cupboard was left bare by Chip Kelly. I don't know if he is a head coach or not. He also does not deserve the blame for the state of the program.
The AD does. For not firing Chip right after he coached a loss against the undermanned ASU Sun Devils two years ago.
I'd like your perspective on why speed merchant RB Jaivian Thomas only got 7 touches(?) - That said, appreciate your on-scene observation, and you're right, they were over-matched by the darn near 300+lbs across the O-line Ute front. Conversely, UCLA hasn't had REAL beef on it's O-Line since Toledo/Foster's era, when the Bruins had O-line All-Americans regularly, today's D line notwithstanding. The lack of beefers goes hand in hand with the decline of the once storied men's track & field squad, where linemen also put the shot and and or threw the discus. Its tough enough to watch on TV, musta been brutal being up close and personal. GO BRUINS!
Nah, Foster is completely to blame for the state of the program. In the current NIL/Transfer Portal era, it is exceptionally easy to turn things around if you can do two things: 1) identify and develop talent quickly, and 2) encourage donor support so that you have the money to pay said talent. On the second point, Foster has failed spectacularly, and it is hard to say that he inspires the kind of confidence that can generate the funds necessary to raise the talent level. On the first point, this opening game was a pretty good indicator that the ability to identify talent is lacking, especially given what the defense looked like last night. I would understand the idea that Foster needs more time if he had a track record of success prior or if the fanbase was behind him more, but there were only 35,000 of us at the Rose Bowl for the opening game of the season. The Foster era is DOA, and much of it is his doing.
(That said, I am willing to state that you can also blame Jarmond for handicapping Foster in the first place or for being too cheap to get a legitimate head coaching option when given the opportunity.)
is it really his fault he's so bad though? Jarmond is the one who offered him the job. He was SO unqualified. We saw this coming from a mile away. Was he supposed to say no to millions of dollars?
This is what happens at any school when alumni status gets you points during the hiring process. But he understands what it means to be a Bruin, they said!
Man, that was painful to watch. Now, it was one game against a mature, well coached team with a solid long term foundation, so losing that game wasn't that big a surprise.
But the way we weren't even competitive on the field and the way our players, especially on defense, looked so woefully overmatched and slow and lost and frankly unathletic was a huge surprise.
I don't want to overreact after one game by predicting we aren't winning any games this year, but that Bruin team last night took about six steps back from the team we saw at the end of last season and now it needs to take about 10 steps forward in order to look like it even belongs on the field with another FBS team.
I could not disagree more. The hiring of Foster and the desperation behind the hire illustrates more about the state pf the program than anything else. Beyond the quality education, what would inspire an elite player to choose UCLA Football?
and they can find quality of education at so many other places. we do not stand out anymore.
You're absolutely correct!
California's highly-educated workforce is not so unique anymore, and its quality of life has been tarnished by a variety of issues that either remain unresolved and or have worsened; taxes, fees, taxes etc.
I recall an early interview with Mora that kinda personifies where we are now. Mora explained that he'd been REALLY after an assistant coach at North Dakota State to come to UCLA. He went on to say that in spite of what would have been quite a significant salary increase, the ND State guy had to turn the UCLA offer down, as he had a wife and 2 elementary school aged kids, and there was no way he could afford to even rent a place to live and put his kids in school within reasonable distance of Westwood.