I thought - and many of us - thought that 9 wins, a spot in the Pac-12 championship game, and a shot at the Rose Bowl were the goals this season. Seemed fair given the arc of the program and the experience levels on all sides of the ball, combined with a great schedule and a comparatively down year for a lot of our opponents. Obviously that's all out the window now...but in my grief, I realized it felt all too familiar. Like, Groundhog Day familiar. So I did some quick research to see what I can see...
And what I see, is ugly. Real ugly. Quickly, my grief became rage, which has now given way to total and utter confusion. Here goes...
Over the past 15 years (since 2001) out of the 65 Power Five conference teams, 49 different teams have been to at least one major BCS/New Years 6 bowl game. 49 out of 65, which is some pretty good parity nationally. Crap programs with crap national profiles are in this group, including such cellar dwellers as Maryland, Illinois, Purdue, Wake Forest, Kansas, Oregon St, Arizona, and 11 out of 12 SEC teams. They all got there at least once.
Now, who are those 16 programs that have not caught a glimpse of the mountain top in 15 years? Try these names on for size: Iowa St, South Carolina, Boston College, Syracuse, Duke, Virginia, NC State, UNC, Indiana, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue, Rutgers, Cal, Arizona State....and yes, rounding out the 16, is our beloved UCLA. Can you believe that. Look at that company. It's embarrassing. Ask anyone who tops that list for best program, clearly we'd be #1 by a longshot...which then also means we have to be the MOST disappointing, MOST under-achieving team in the country (which makes us the most miserable fan base in the country, right?). It's pretty sad when we realize that our closest comps over the past 15 years are with the Purdues, Rutgers, and Northwesterns of the college football world, and nowhere near where we want to be, alongside the FSUs, Oklahomas, and Clemsons and so forth.
So...how is all that possible??? 4 head coaches, countless different staffs with both college and NFL pedigrees, numerous NFL players, a bunch of national media attention, a good number of weeks inside the top 25 or even top 10, top notch recruiting classes, and endlessly deep recruiting base. I genuinely don't get it. How have we never gotten there even ONE TIME in 15 years? Something is seriously wrong here. Something deeper than one bad coach, or lost mojo, or a few dropped passes. Those don't even begin to explain these issues.
And I know some of you will jump in and say Dan Guerrero or the chancellor. But that places blame on one person. Is it more than that? Is it the UC system? Is it commitment to the program within the university? Or is it our venue? Is it something cultural or systemic about UCLA? Or is it just a bad run of coaches? Ed mentioned softness not only in the program, but also at our local high school feeder programs. I recall him also describing the massive worlds of difference between west coast HS linemen and east coast/southern linemen...is that it? Are we soft like Charmin? Is it the baby blue? Is it the proximity of Hollywood? Would we be better if we just relocated the whole program to San Berdo? Is UCLA just doomed to perpetually prove our worst and most hated stereotype true?
Misery loves company. Thoughts???
And what I see, is ugly. Real ugly. Quickly, my grief became rage, which has now given way to total and utter confusion. Here goes...
Over the past 15 years (since 2001) out of the 65 Power Five conference teams, 49 different teams have been to at least one major BCS/New Years 6 bowl game. 49 out of 65, which is some pretty good parity nationally. Crap programs with crap national profiles are in this group, including such cellar dwellers as Maryland, Illinois, Purdue, Wake Forest, Kansas, Oregon St, Arizona, and 11 out of 12 SEC teams. They all got there at least once.
Now, who are those 16 programs that have not caught a glimpse of the mountain top in 15 years? Try these names on for size: Iowa St, South Carolina, Boston College, Syracuse, Duke, Virginia, NC State, UNC, Indiana, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue, Rutgers, Cal, Arizona State....and yes, rounding out the 16, is our beloved UCLA. Can you believe that. Look at that company. It's embarrassing. Ask anyone who tops that list for best program, clearly we'd be #1 by a longshot...which then also means we have to be the MOST disappointing, MOST under-achieving team in the country (which makes us the most miserable fan base in the country, right?). It's pretty sad when we realize that our closest comps over the past 15 years are with the Purdues, Rutgers, and Northwesterns of the college football world, and nowhere near where we want to be, alongside the FSUs, Oklahomas, and Clemsons and so forth.
So...how is all that possible??? 4 head coaches, countless different staffs with both college and NFL pedigrees, numerous NFL players, a bunch of national media attention, a good number of weeks inside the top 25 or even top 10, top notch recruiting classes, and endlessly deep recruiting base. I genuinely don't get it. How have we never gotten there even ONE TIME in 15 years? Something is seriously wrong here. Something deeper than one bad coach, or lost mojo, or a few dropped passes. Those don't even begin to explain these issues.
And I know some of you will jump in and say Dan Guerrero or the chancellor. But that places blame on one person. Is it more than that? Is it the UC system? Is it commitment to the program within the university? Or is it our venue? Is it something cultural or systemic about UCLA? Or is it just a bad run of coaches? Ed mentioned softness not only in the program, but also at our local high school feeder programs. I recall him also describing the massive worlds of difference between west coast HS linemen and east coast/southern linemen...is that it? Are we soft like Charmin? Is it the baby blue? Is it the proximity of Hollywood? Would we be better if we just relocated the whole program to San Berdo? Is UCLA just doomed to perpetually prove our worst and most hated stereotype true?
Misery loves company. Thoughts???
