Back to Blogging

After another long hiatus away from blogging, it’s time to pick it up again, especially with the start of the holiday season. This time, I decided to lay low for a little while and give priority to the many other assorted activities in my life that keep me busy. I’ll try to get the postings back on track as time permits…

Although the UCLA team managed only a 6-6 record this year, I absolutely loved having season tickets. There’s nothing quite like college football, and the tailgate parties before every home game at the Rose Bowl were tremendous fun, especially with our good friends. Those season tickets were an incredible birthday present from Beth – and they’ll be the gift that keeps on giving, since I’m sure we’ll continue to renew. Maybe one of these days we’ll get an R.V. and park it out there early and really do it up right. Beth’s response is, “Not a chance in hell!...” For now, I’ll enjoy the comfort of my fold-up chair and ice chest…and we’ll have more tailgate parties at home, too, when the team is on the road…

Thanksgiving really is a special holiday – maybe my favorite. The daylong activities at Dave Bosson’s are hard to top, including the annual Turkey Bowl football game. I’ve resigned myself to being a spectator in recent years, but now it’s especially fun watching my boys play along with their cousins and uncles, instead of just trying to keep up with the older guys. They aren’t the little guys any more, and they’re very happy to share their on-field exploits with anyone who’ll listen…

A couple of Sid’s classmates and friends from Upland High distinguished themselves when they were named to the All-Pac 10 women’s soccer team. Both Lauren Barnes (UCLA) and Alyssa Davila (USC) earned second team honors…

A big happy 21^st birthday to Sid on Dec. 14…

Best wishes to Upland High’s football team, which escaped with a narrow victory over Claremont in the final game of the regular season and finished fourth in the Baseline League to earn a wild card berth in the CIF-Southern Section Central Division playoffs. The Highlanders then beat Damien and Colony to advance to the division semi-finals against Chino Hills on Friday. The winner of that game will play either Los Osos or Rancho Cucamonga – two other Baseline League teams – in the championship game next week…

Seemingly unnoticed in Upland’s come-from-behind victory against Colony was Cole Chapman’s huge gain on a draw play as the final seconds ticked away, setting up the eventual winning touchdown with less than a minute to play…

It’s been so long since I last blogged that I never did post the pictures of Sam as the guy who crowned the Homecoming queen at Claremont High. Dressed as a king, he crowed state hurdles champion Kori Carter as this year’s queen. Coincidentally, I had the honor of crowning the queen when I was at Claremont High, dressed as Superman. As Sam noted, we were both “men in tights.”…

No matter what logic you use, Pete Carroll was wrong. The fact that Rick Neuheisel called time out didn’t mean it was okay to run up the score. Sure, Carroll had the right to run any play he wanted. But a coach with any amount of class would have continued to run out the clock. He should have continued to play and gone for a first down. Having quarterback Matt Barkley (the next Jeff George -- incredibly talented and over-hyped) throw deep was inexcusable. I know I’m a UCLA fan, but I don’t dislike USC, where I earned my master’s degree. My time there was not only valuable, but also enjoyable. I still have many friends from when I attended USC, so I try to see these things from both sides and I just can’t in this case.

Some people have said Neuheisel shouldn’t have called time out. As a coach, what choice does he have? He can’t throw in the white flag, if for no other reason than for the morale of the team. I bet all but a handful of coaches in America – Carroll included – would have called time out in that situation, too. The difference is that most opposing coaches in America would have understood the logic and would have continued to run out the clock. Any self-respecting coach wouldn’t have thrown deep, then pumped his fist, leaped in the air like a loon and celebrated like he just won the national title. This game was already over.

I compare this to a baseball team stealing bases with a 10-run lead in the ninth inning, just because the pitcher throws over to first base a couple of times to keep the runner close. Does that all of a sudden make it the right thing to do? Of course not.

Given the score, time remaining and field position at that point of the game Saturday, Neuheisel’s time out call was inconsequential. It wasn’t necessary, but it wasn’t the wrong thing to do. I don’t think the coach or anyone else on the UCLA sideline felt there was a chance to win the game at that point (especially after the awful game by the interim quarterback and the senior backup). The time out wasn’t about trying to win the game. It was about not throwing in the towel.

Carroll, on the other hand, was wrong. No excuses. No justification. No reason. Just go ahead and run up the score.

The victory was not in doubt. Carroll simply showed a complete lack of character and class. Even though I root against USC when they play UCLA, I often root for the Trojans, especially in non-conference games. I always root for them against Notre Dame, and they've brought positive attention to the Pac-10. Sports in Los Angeles as a whole has benefited from USC's success. I always respected their program and their coach. Not anymore.

I'm sure I sound like a bitter fan, but this is more than a game. This was just wrong. And it's time for people to stop saying it was okay because Neuheisel "started it by calling a time out." That's only an excuse. It was a blatant display of what not to do. Heck, I accepted the loss, but when Carroll threw it in UCLA's faces, I was outraged. The whole thing certainly filled my passion bucket.

I suspect there are a few high school recruits out there who might be thinking twice about playing for a coach with that kind of judgment and character, especially after USC’s comparatively disappointing season. Things are definitely starting to get interesting once again in our local major college football battle.