Thank you UCLA. Beat 'SC!

NCAAM, NCAAF

Dear Bruin Family,

I am a Bruin. I have never met John Wooden. I have never met Ben Howland. I have never met Jim Mora.

I believe I know John Wooden, Ben Howland, and Jim Mora. I know them because they have taught me and continue to teach me. They have been exceptionally good teachers because they are an essential part of my family, the Bruin Family.

Professors Wooden, Howland, and Mora can be as inspirational and instructional as any academic professor, especially when you attend one of the best sports schools of all time.

I need to share stories of my continuing education even though I ended my formal undergraduate education at UCLA in 2010.

In early 2011, I faced a difficult time in my life.  I had personal health issues that required my immediate family to take care of me.  With their help and the support of my extended family, including the Bruin variety, I recovered to where I now feel that I am a better and stronger person than before my illness.

While I worked my way back to good health—a day at a time—I read the writings of John Wooden’s book with Steve Jamison:

WOODEN

A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court

This book was great to “drink in.”  It was not the novel ideas that stuck with me. It was the reinforcement of ideals and values that I already had acquired over the years from my family, my friends, my teachers, my community, and from my own sense of self. In what was the least confident time of my life I received a boost of confidence from John Wooden. It carries weight when John Wooden tells you that you are a good person.

Ben Howland provided the best entertainment of my college experience. From my first year, he gave me three straight Final Fours. That was fun, but I think I loved his defense even more.  Watching the way in which he produced championship caliber teams was entertainment in its purest form.  He was only denied full vindication in the record books because of two practically unbeatable Florida teams and a Memphis team with one of the best players that plays basketball.  I know that if those UCLA teams re-matched the original victors 100 times each, Ben Howland would not allow the Bruins to win less than 51.

Ben Howland was successful at his dream job. Unfortunately, he was fired this year. He was fired because he did not give what people demanded—wins and more trophies. I know he did everything in his power to achieve wins without compromising how to be successful.  He was fired the year he refocused a young team with no depth to win the conference season title. That was magical work. He lost the conference tournament final and early in the big dance because a tragic injury made overcoming depth issues too big to overcome, for any man or team.  The injury was tragic because Jordan Adams injured himself committing to play elite Ben Howland defense. Adams did not give up before the job was done. The job got done that evening thanks to Adams and the entire UCLA team, but bad breaks can happen to good people. Muhammad got the hype and the honors, Anderson got the honorable mention, and Adams earned the title of the most essential player in 2012-2013 season. (By no means am I forgetting the leadership and record performance of Drew or work ethic of the Wear twins down to the last man on the bench.  If people blindly focus too much on the freshmen, then I must adapt to speak their language.)

Ben Howland was not successful at UCLA because he went to three straight final fours. He was not successful because he trained players that “somehow” do well in the NBA. He was not successful because UCLA won conference titles or tournaments. He was successful because he was a Coach in every essential way Wooden would envision. For those of you who still demand “results,” here is one that a true Bruin should know: John Wooden died on June 4, 2010. Ben Howland was coach of UCLA Men’s Basketball on June 4, 2010. John Wooden went to rest peacefully knowing a man like Howland was coaching his family.

I have a friend that knows Ben Howland professionally and I imagine personally.  While other students, media, and fans criticized him, she never spoke ill of him to me. Far too many would salivate at the opportunity to say negative things in a similar professional relationship. Never once did I hear any malice or regret directed at Coach.  She is a Bruin. In fact, I was lucky enough for her to share with me small things about Coach Howland that made me laugh more than she knows. I never asked for her to share a story to make me smile. She did anyway.

I have another friend who was born with Bruin Blue blood. He was bred into the family. I was lucky enough to be adopted in my teen years. One time at a home game, friends and I spotted Kareem Abdul-Jabbar across Pauley. He was schmoozing with what we thought were little kids. Then we realized Kareem was actually engaged with our die-hard fan of a friend. We laughed. Kareem is really that tall. We were jealous and could not be happier for our friend.

Today, I watched what Jim Mora is cooking. The team played well in the first half while making mistakes.  The players played as a team for each other while honoring a fallen member of their family. Their mistakes were the reason UCLA trailed at halftime. It did not matter. They were already prepared and ready to end the game before it started.  UCLA went back to work in the second half. Beautiful. A Memorial win.

Watch Jim Mora’s post game interview. Ignore the questions and drink in what you feel.  There is not a wasted word, a compromising emotion, or an unearned praise. That is how a Coach should perform. It is no surprise that Mora’s team responded to the model he provides.

Bruin Family, please do not forget the importance of the education we all receive from each other. Please, do not demand a National Championship from Mora.  Expect that he can deliver one, and one day maybe he will.  That will be a nice trophy, but it will be moot to the education that UCLA gives.  We are proud of our versatile education because our educators are professors, mothers, fathers, coaches, and friends. 

It took more seasons for John Wooden to build a championship team than it took for him to set the record for “most championship winning coach.”

Love,

Bruin for Life

The Rose Bowl... The Rose bowl!!!!!

NCAAF

If you watched the Rose Bowl kicking off 2011, you were witness to another excellent defensive performance.  I had planned not to watch the bowl season, an act of mourning for a Bruins' fan.  However, I was enticed to catch the match-up at the Rose Bowl between TCU and Wisconsin.  One of my best buddies attended the university in Madison and was in fact going to the game.  For his sake, I was a Badgers' fan but I was also intrigued with the classic duel between speed and power.  The New Year's day game was advertised as such: TCU's speed and "little guys" title against the Wisconsin power and "big school" label.  A Horned Frog's quick defensive instincts vs. a Badger's ginormous wall. 

Much to my chagrin, defense was non-existent in the 1st quarter.  In fact, I think it was the highest scoring 1st quarter in Rose Bowl history.  As the game continued and settled-down, it was clear it was coming down to the wire.  Late into the 4th, the Badgers made an impressive drive, scoring a touchdown that put them within a 2-point conversion of tying the game.  It was during this 2-point conversion attempt in which the defensive instincts kicked in for a Horned Frog named Tank Carder.  He made a beautiful play on the ball that swatted Tolzien's pass and dashed Wisconsin's hopes for another Rose Bowl victory (Sorry AA, shout out to my homie).

Speed > Power.  That's what was taught.  Power, although powerful, has only one gear: Full Power.  Speed is more carefully graded.  While you can always "put the pedal to the metal" and hit your full speed, the beauty about speed is that it allows you to adjust.  You have ability to make up for lost positioning through superior speed, but you don't have to use full speed in order to be in the best position (coaching helps that one).  It's why I love Defense--its adaptability.  In football, the offense comes at you, often with power, but the defense makes the right read and adjusts the speed dial appropriately.  Well done, TCU.

I was also impressed with how TCU finished the game.  The Horned Frogs finished on offense, gaining a first down to seal the game.  As they were kneeling to run out the clock (officially ending the game), Gary Patterson, predicting a Gatorade splashdown turned and faced his players who were sneaking up on him with the oh-so-common orange bucket.  He told them to knock it off.  Not because he didn't want to celebrate or get wet (don't worry he got doused), but because they were going to splash him before the clock hit zero.  He told them to keep their cool and wait for "the fat lady to sing."  Sang she did and the players got their sweet revenge for all those wind-sprints in the form of an ice-cold sticky bath.

The Rose Bowl game was one that ought to be remembered.  It was the only bowl in which TCU had never played before.  Although TCU went undefeated and won the "Granddaddy of Them All," they will not win a national championship.  A team did all it could in every game they played.  The players came together as a team and won each battle.  I guarantee you, they loved this season despite their final ranking.  A favorite scene of mine from Remember the Titans illustrates what true teamwork achieves.

Coach Boone: "It's all right. We're in a fight. You boys are doing all that you can do. Anybody can see that. Win or lose... We gonna walk out of this stadium tonight with our heads held high. Do your best. That's all anybody can ask for"
Big Ju: "No, it ain't Coach. With all due respect, uh, you demanded more of us. You demanded perfection. Now, I ain't saying that I'm perfect, 'cause I'm not. And I ain't gonna never be. None of us are. But we have won every single game we have played till now. So this team is perfect. We stepped out on that field that way tonight. And, uh, if it's all the same to you, Coach Boone, that's how we want to leave it."
Coach Yoast: "Yeah. I hope you boys have learned as much from me this year as I've learned from you. You've taught this city how to trust the soul of a man rather than the look of him. And I guess it's about time I joined the club."

TCU's season record = perfect.  Yet the winner of Auburn vs. Oregon will take home the national championship trophy instead.  That winner may be better than the Horned Frogs, but how can TCU not even be considered? Because of the BS structure of the BCS.  If you want to keep your bowls as they traditionally were, that's fine. Pac-10 vs. Big Ten was classic.  But don't you dare crown a national championship based on the judgment of "experts."  Probably the same "brilliant minds" that "knew" Wisconsin would win the Rose Bowl.  In fair sporting competitions, championships are decided by teams of players, playing the game they love.  Let their play decide who deserves it and stop ending their dreams because they didn't go to a powerhouse school.

My Holiday Sports Wish List: Part 1

NCAAF, NFL

Cheers! It's football season yay!  Oops, my bad again. What I meant to say is it's holiday season, Woohoo!  You'll be happy to know that these two seasons are not mutually exclusive.  Yes, you can have it all... God bless America.  With the holiday season comes gifts.  Gifts can be tough.  You can strike gold with some spot-on surprises, or you can strike-out, receiving polite but awkward "thanksss...."  It's much easier if you can peek at one's wish list.  However, I couldn't even construct a comprehensive one of my own.  An unnecessary phone upgrade for my suddenly archaic 3G iPhone (thanks for nothing AT&T network) and a Wesley Sneijder Dutch national team jersey (in the Dutch orange of course) are as far as I got.  I had more fun constructing a new type of wish list. It's a "sportacular" one.

My Holiday Sports Wish List:

Coaching for kickers.

Sounds like a charity, and I say it should be treated like one.  These guys need some help, so give it to them!  Kickers have been crumbling under pressure ever since the inception of the field goal or the beginning of Brett Favre's career, whichever came first.  I'm not talking field goal attempts in the Candlestick wind or a Foxboro blizzard, nor the understandably difficult 50+ yarders. I'm talking about the ones that are "supposed" to be automatic. For example, playoff Nate Kaeding of the San Diego Chargers or Boise State's Kyle Brotzman (too soon? too bad, my blog).  In fact, the Brotzman breakdown inspired me to readdress (a.k.a. blog about) this "kicking issue" that I'm tired of ranting to my buddies about.  I'm getting really annoyed with watching teams fall to more and more kicking debacles and then blaming it all on the kicker as if the coach were helpless.  FALSE!!!!

I'm sure at least once you've seen an opposing coach "icing" a kicker by calling a timeout. Why do opposing coaches do this? Simple, Mental Warfare.  What appears to be the next "Call of Duty" game is actually the most important aspect of an integral part of football: field goal kicking. Kickers may be an afterthought, but you can't ignore that whenever they hit the field it's because of a scoring opportunity (except kick-offs). And you can't ignore that the whole "scoreboard thing" is how you determine who wins.  In fact, the only reason we consider kickers an afterthought is because we all assume, nay, expect a make-able kick to be converted.  "It's not that difficult." "They do it all the time." "It's like a free-throw?" "These guys are getting paid boat loads to make these, no excuses."  My counter: "Don't underestimate pressure!"  Make-able kicks turn into choke artist displays because it's all in the head.  Guess Chubbs from Happy Gilmore was wrong on this one. The physical demands are relatively the same each time, hence the he-should-make-it assumption, but the mental factors are not so stable.  Game on the line, season on the line, and everything changes.  The mental attack is how you get to these kickers.  That's why in the past couple of years, it's been trendy to get that T.O. timing down to a Goldilocks "just right."  Games have been won, lost, and "Sportcentered" because of coaches mentally phasing a kicker. 

O.K. coaches, you've clearly demonstrated that you are aware kicking is mentally influenced. So, PLEASE,  play some DEFENSE and protect your kicker! Stop letting the other coach get into your guy's head.  Stop letting the crowd get into your guy's head. And stop letting the flow of the game get into your guy's head.  Well, how do I do that?  The same way you help your precious young quarterbacks; simplify.  Just like you cut down the playbook so as not to overwhelm the QB's thinking, cut down what the kicker has to think about. Your field goal kicker should only have one worry: kicking a field goal from X many yards.

Here's my proposal.  Isolate your kicker. Don't let him watch the game, nor let him be aware of the score, etc. They should be keeping warm, and listening to their headphones playing whatever jam helps them stay focused.  I'm not privy to all the NFL rules and sideline iPods may not be kosher, but you get the idea. Make him a waterboy, I don't care. Just coach him, basically distract the kicker so as to limit the mental pressures.  Glancing at the scoreboard should be a no-no (the prohibited kind, not the Roy Halladay type).  Sure, one might be able to sense a big kick from the crowd feel.  But at least he won't be entranced watching a Montana-esque drive, talking to himself, letting the pressure build, and folding before he even steps onto the pitch.

I apologize for putting you under the microscope again Brotzman, but I guarantee you would not have missed your second field goal attempt had your coach followed my rule.  Brotzman would have been bummed, sensing the magnitude of missing the first one, but his mental breakdown would have ended there.  He would not have been mulling over the fact that his miss with one second left in regulation cost Boise State's chance to basically wrap up their most "glorious" season ever.  Come the overtime attempt, he wouldn't even have known it was OT. Lining up, he certainly wouldn't have been aware that he could be single-handedly responsible for losing the game (and season) with another miss. His performance showed that he obviously felt such pressures.  Under my rules, Brotzman would have worked with "Big Kick, Big Kick," that's it. Instead, he got "National Championship Hopes Kick and Entire Season Kick." Ouch.

Forget focusing on more BCS hoopla (save us Mark Cuban) and let's transition to a Super Bowl Champion coach.  Yes, I got beef with Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints.  Payton committed a cardinal sin when playing the Falcons earlier this year.  He allowed his young field goal kicker Hartley to kick from the right hash on first down in overtime!  He chose not to center the ball?  I absolutely hate this. I understand kicking it on an early down because any field goal under the regular season sudden death OT rules results in Game-Over.  It makes sense to eliminate the turnover risk and kick the "automatic" field goal once you're in range.  Good call, but c'mon Payton, take it a step further and coach the kicking game by...simplifying!  A Drew Brees kneel to center the ball would be so easy with Hartley any risk. A chip shot slightly to the left turns into a chip shot down the middle.  If you saw Tampa Bay beat the Saints last year in OT, you would know that a short field goal from the right hash is not exactly Hartley's forte.

So, next time Payton, if you got it, flaunt it and take the opportunity to center it.  It's not like it's that important... Hartley's miss only cost you a loss to a division rival and depending on how their Monday night rematch goes, it may have cost the Saints the division and home field advantage in the playoffs, which the Falcons (of course) seem to be walking away with. Big swing from just kicking huh?

I admit I watch far too much football, but I'm merely a spectator and not a coach (yet!).  However, I'll diagram for you my expectations via my loving equation approach:

NFL Sunday Ticket + 47" TV + purposely never having Sunday plans + Dominos/whatever delivers to my door = I expect to watch some awesome football
Awesome football = awesome playing + awesome coaching
Awesome coaching = making the correct decisions (a la Bruce Bochy 2010)

Therefore, when I see a much needed coaching change, I shall demand it.  Now that my charity group for kicker coaching is off and running, I'd like to direct you to my next wish/post, a potential coaching revolution: The Four Down Offense.  It's exactly what it sounds like.  Expect some Peyton Manning love as well as more kicking hatred.  Enjoy the Holidays and stay tuned.