for Milton Knox, I came across an article, again via Bruinville.com that I think is a must-read for any Bruin fans. It’s a topic that I’ve spoken about at length, both on this blog and on the wewantwalker.com blog: Should UCLA sacrifice class for success? You’ve heard my thoughts on the subject, now read David Woods’ from the Daily Bruin. Again, a must read:
Should we sacrifice class for success?Neuheisel’s murky past poses key question: Is it more important to win or be the nice guys?I’ll admit that when I was at UCLA’s press-conference introduction of new football coach Rick Neuheisel, I was amazed by the man’s ability to speak. I might even be persuaded to confess that I was inspired.Basically, he had me at “hello.” He had me at “hello.”And then I read The Seattle Times’ series on all of the dirty little deeds his players allegedly committed in his time at the University of Washington – robbery and rape, to name a couple – and his weak, noodle-armed way of dealing with it.The player accused of rape was suspended for half a game, and another player was suspended a full game for violating team rules.Of course, we should give Neuheisel the benefit of the doubt.So that set the stage for my next moment of listening to the man speak.Watching Neuheisel announce his two coordinators, DeWayne Walker and Norm Chow, at halftime of the Arizona basketball game on Saturday, I couldn’t help but think of him as slimy.He worked the room like a politician, eliciting cheers and firing up the crowd.Smarmy so-and-so, I thought.But then I started to think a little bit about what I read (which happens rarely enough that I had to take some time to treasure the moment).How much of what went on in Washington was Neuheisel’s fault?Rereading the series – which I’d call a recommended read for anyone who gives two hoots and/or a holler about UCLA football or college football in general – I was struck by two things:First, a pervasive bad attitude may be a prerequisite for a Rose Bowl berth.And second, the story was not an indictment of Neuheisel, whatever the intentions of the writers.
February 6th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Why must we have to sacrifice one for the other? Who says you can’t have BOTH class and success (ie. the UCLA basketball team)? Let’s give CRN time to run his program before we jump the gun on past transgressions. If the UW article hadn’t surfaced last week I doubt we’d be having a conversation about this.
Let’s focus on the present and current tasks at hand. I’m sure UCLA and the NCAA will be keeping a close eye on CRN for the short time, so let’s leave that up to them and give him the opportunity to redeem himself and show us how he’s matured and grown (if he has, I’m assuming).
February 6th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
I don’t think we should either and I’m not ready to judge Neuheisel yet. I hope he doesn’t let me down, but I have a feeling he won’t.
February 6th, 2008 at 7:51 pm
lets cut the guy a break, everyone deserves a 2nd (or 3rd) chance. I think with UCLA RN is smart enough to not risk jeopardizing the job by playing loose with the rules. The guy obviously has a passion to win and even after the Washington fiasco he took a non paid high school job just to get back on his feet. Trying and failing builds character and i honestly believe that RN has learned from his past mistakes and is a better person and coach as a result.
go Bruins!
February 7th, 2008 at 2:16 am
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