SBNation.com User Blog: BruinMW

Would Hundley have been #1 in this year's draft?

BruinMW — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 22:40:28 -0000

Would Hundley have been #1 in this year's draft?

QB expert Steve Clarkson believes that if Brett Hundley had been eligible for this 2013 NFL draft, he would have been taken over any other QB. In other words, he's a better QB prospect than Geno Smith and Matt Barkley. But then again, most of us on BN already know that; it's just nice to hear coming from a respected QB coach/analyst.

Mora here to stay?

BruinMW — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 04:11:01 -0000

Hopefully we come to a point a few years from now in which this is an issue. But as of right now, Coach Mora is saying all the right things. I don't know if he truly has no further interest in the NFL, but it's nice to hear.

SI - Early Pre-season Basketball Rankings

BruinMW — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 16:55:55 -0000

SI - Early Pre-season Basketball Rankings

SI projects UCLA as the #20 team heading into next year: "Shabazz Muhammad and Larry Drew II are gone, but if Jordan Adams and Kyle Anderson come back, then the Bruins should be able to challenge for the Pac-12 crown in Steve Alford's first season. Ben Howland recruited a pair of good freshmen, but Alford is also bringing his son, Bryce, who is a potential starter in the backcourt."

Is there anything to suggest that Bryce Alford will be a starter? Is he that good? Does Steve Alford have a history of favoritism?

Ed Rush Fired!

BruinMW — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 06:29:48 -0000

Ed Rush Fired!

Ed Rush, the Pac-12 Coordinator of Officiating, resigned amid calls for his firing.

Bryce Alford commits to UCLA.

BruinMW — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 22:26:23 -0000

Bryce Alford commits to UCLA.

Did Chianti seriously just grant a scholarship to Coach Alford's kid as part of his hiring?

49ers Interview Datone Jones

BruinMW — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 18:41:06 -0000

49ers Interview Datone Jones

"They’re getting a guy who plays with maniacal effort," Jones said. "A guy who wants to be the best, the best guy out there. That’s what they’re getting. I don’t care if DeMarcus Ware is on the team or whoever, I want to be the best player. I’m not saying I’m better than those guys, but I want to be the best on the team. A guy who wants to make every play possible. When you talk about NFL football, I want you guys to talk about Datone Jones."

UCLA Makes a Run in "Kid President's" Bracket

BruinMW — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 03:16:54 -0000

I'll take this UCLA run!

CBS March Madness hype video

BruinMW — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 05:39:17 -0000

Check out the 2 minute hype video by CBS for this year's March Madness tournament. UCLA's Russell Westbrook makes an appearance. I really like the video and the song selection. What do you guys think?

$UC commit offered a car

BruinMW — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 06:14:12 -0000

$UC commit offered a car

Ty Isaac is one of the few $outhern Cal commits who hasn't abandoned ship. In a recent interview when he was asked about his recruitment experience, he quipped that one school offered him a car as incentive to commit.

He did not disclose which school that was, but as an athlete from Illinois with few ties to the west coast, I wonder which school might sink low enough to offer him an illegal incentive... It couldn't possibly be the school with a history of paying athletes, giving them range rovers, and giving their parents houses, now could it?

NFL.com: Barr Among Top Prospects to Watch

BruinMW — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 18:13:21 -0000

NFL.com: Barr Among Top Prospects to Watch

NFL.com's Bucky Brooks gave his top 5 NFL prospects to watch this weekend, including our very own Anthony Barr:

"One of the big factors in the resurgence of UCLA football has been the rebirth of a championship-caliber defense in Westwood. Barr has been one of the catalysts of change after settling into his linebacker position following two seasons as a running back/H-back. Barr's game remains a work in progress, but he has impressed observers with his speed, athleticism and quickness as a pass rusher. With 8.5 sacks in nine games and a host of splash plays off the edge, Barr is drawing comparisons to former Jim Mora pupil Julian Peterson in the scouting community. Saturday presents Barr with an opportunity to get after a pass-happy Washington State squad, giving scouts across the league an opportunity to see if the Barr has the game to match the hype."

UCLA has the 20th smartest student body nationally.

BruinMW — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 06:33:00 -0000

UCLA has the 20th smartest student body nationally.

The Lumosity rankings reflect an interesting approach of measuring the intelligence of the actual students who attend America's universities.

UCLA landed at #20.
Want to guess where U$C is? Keep scrolling...

Lunardi projects UCLA as a 3-seed.

BruinMW — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 19:45:07 -0000

Lunardi projects UCLA as a 3-seed.

In a laughably premature bracket projection, ESPN's Lunardi has UCLA as the 3-seed in the West, playing Utah St. in San Jose. If this actually happens, I'll be thoroughly impressed with Lunardi, and will be happily satisfied.

Russell Westbrook is trying out his acting skills in this ESPN ad. These commercials are great!

BruinMW — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 20:53:45 -0000

Russell Westbrook is trying out his acting skills in this ESPN ad. These commercials are great!

Pac-12: Rushing the Field

BruinMW — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 05:27:27 -0000

Pac-12: Rushing the Field

Recapping Washington's upset win over Stanford tonight, the Pac-12's official website stated in its opening sentence:

"It’s a hallmark of college football when fans rush the field after a big win."

Oh Rose Bowl committee, truly makes you wonder...

Yahoo thinks the Bruins have more to prove, but may contend for the Pac-12

BruinMW — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 05:32:37 -0000

Yahoo thinks the Bruins have more to prove, but may contend for the Pac-12

Scroll about halfway down. We're the first 3-0 team under the "Undefeated but Undefined" category.

Forde evaluates our situation, noting the impressive win over Nebraska and the friendly schedule going forward. He expresses concerns over giving up 200+ yards rushing, but unlike Arizona, sees the Bruins as potential Pac12 contenders.

Nothing groundbreaking, but I think it's a fair assessment, and it's always nice to have positive press for UCLA. Go Bruins!

Front Page SI article on Coach Scates

BruinMW — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:22:18 -0000

Front Page SI article on Coach Scates

I opened SI.com this morning to find a great article on Al Scates, UCLA's other coaching treasure. What he's done for UCLA athletics and the sport of volleyball in the last 50 years (50 YEARS!!!) is practically unrivaled. Here's to Coach Scates' 50th and final team making a run in the NCAA playoffs.

Afflalo's career night.

BruinMW — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 07:18:13 -0000

Afflalo's career night.

If there was one Bruin warrior I wish were back on this team, it would be Arron. Scoring a career-high 32, Afflalo nailed all three free throws with 0.6 seconds remaining to force the game to overtime. So calm and composed to nail those FTs at the end. I couldn't care less about Denver, but AA is my favorite Bruin currently playing in the pros.

Russell Westbrook inks an $80 million extension with OKC!

BruinMW — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:10:28 -0000

Russell Westbrook inks an $80 million extension with OKC!

Congrats to RW! Hopefully our athletic guards (cough Powell cough cough) will see this and recognize what immense work between your freshman and sophmore years at UCLA can do for your pro career. Westbrook only became the freak of nature when he transformed his body and mind after his relatively modest freshman campaign in Westwood.

Mora on his continued search for a D-Coordinator

BruinMW — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 22:21:23 -0000

Mora on his continued search for a D-Coordinator

Mora expects to have a defensive coordinator in place in the next few days.

"I’m still working on it," Mora said Thursday night. "I’ve had a Plan B, C and D. You don’t come into one of these things without an alternate plan."

Chanti Dan may be withholding the $$ needed to hire Mazzone.

BruinMW — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 23:43:32 -0000

Chanti Dan may be withholding the $$ needed to hire Mazzone.

Instead of being a done deal, contract terms (aka financial compensation) are keeping Mazzone from signing onto Mora's staff. Instead, Mazzone will be interviewing with the new ASU head coach today. A conflict for ASU may exist, however, as it is being rumored that the OC position for the Sun Devils has already been taken by Norvell. Stay tuned...

Reeves Nelson officially dismissed from the UCLA basketball team

BruinMW — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 19:22:49 -0000

Reeves Nelson officially dismissed from the UCLA basketball team

Just because it's ever so much fun to pour salt on our collective Bruin wounds.

Breer thinks the 49ers will win!

BruinMW — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 21:23:12 -0000

Breer thinks the 49ers will win!

Niners are getting a lot of love recently from NFL.com and the NFL Network. This is the first 49ers victory that I've seen predicted this week. Hopefully it comes true!

Joshua Smith possibly weighs in at 280!

BruinMW — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 00:13:17 -0000

Joshua Smith possibly weighs in at 280!

I feel bad even posting this because it's a completely unreliable source and unsubstantiated rumor, but some "sources" out there claim that Joshua Smith has dropped considerable weight, which can only bode well for our team.

I'm so frustrated with our defense today, but this catch by Nelson Rosario is the most impressive...

BruinMW — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 01:40:45 -0000

I'm so frustrated with our defense today, but this catch by Nelson Rosario is the most impressive one I've seen by a Bruin receiver in some time.

UCLA Basketball - 17 in Yahoo pre-season rankings.

BruinMW — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 15:43:22 -0000

UCLA Basketball - 17 in Yahoo pre-season rankings.

Yahoo just put out their pre-season college basketball rankings, with UCLA at #17. All in all, I think it's a pretty decent spot, as they justify it by pointing out our enormous front-court strength, but relatively thin backcourt and the question lingering of who will step up as a 3-point shooter.

Funny fake ad shown at the ESPY awards featuring our own Kevin Love.

BruinMW — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 20:24:16 -0000

Funny fake ad shown at the ESPY awards featuring our own Kevin Love.

ATV comes home to finish his degree.

BruinMW — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 17:09:51 -0000

ATV comes home to finish his degree.

According to ESPN LA's Peter Yoon, Alterraun Verner is taking advantage of his time off due to the NFL lockout by coming back to UCLA and finishing his degree in Applied Mathematics. It's men like him that make me proud to be a fellow Bruin.

Pac-12 football championship game on campus!

BruinMW — Fri, 27 May 2011 21:37:56 -0000

Pac-12 football championship game on campus!

Maybe I just haven't been paying close enough attention and it's already common knowledge, but this quote jumped out at me in Jon Gold's post about the title game's new logo:

"With our championship game being played on one of our campuses, we already know the fans are going to have a huge impact on the game come December," Pac-10 Chief Marketing Officer Danette Leighton said.

Doyel: Westbrook is a man in a league of boys

BruinMW — Sat, 21 May 2011 00:22:58 -0000

Doyel: Westbrook is a man in a league of boys

Russell Westbrook, who hasn't played especially well in the first two games of the Thunder's series against Dallas, was benched for the entire fourth quarter of Game 2. That's benching your elite All-Star point guard in the conference finals! CBS Sports' Gregg Doyel writes a great article praising RW's maturity in handling the situation. Anybody want to guess whether players from schools like the community college across town would respond in the same way? I doubt it. Way to go Russell!

Guerrero does it again

BruinMW — Wed, 11 May 2011 16:42:32 -0000

Guerrero does it again

Dan Guerrero never ceases to amaze me. He has yet again put our football team in a precarious situation by scheduling a tough opponent on national ESPN coverage on a thursday night in their house. Way to get behind your struggling football team and set them up for success.

"ESPN will televise the Bruins' game at Arizona on Thursday, Oct. 20. Kickoff is set for 6:00 pm PT/MT." - per Jon Gold