SB Nation User Blog: Nestor

Weis Calls Out Petey For Living With A Grad Student In Malibu (Instead Of His Wife)

Nestor — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 05:50:09 -0000

From an interview by Tim Prister, IrishIllustrated.com Senior Editor, which was posted on Rivals.com:

Q: Is it frustrating to you Pete Carroll, for example, portrayed in one way…
CW: Let me ask you this question: You guys know about things that go on in different places. Was I living with a grad student in Malibu, or was I living with my wife in my house? You could bet that if I were living with a grad student here in South Bend, it would be national news. He’s doing it in Malibu and it’s not national news. What’s the difference? I don’t understand. Why is it okay for one guy to do things like that, but for me, I’m scrutinized when I swear. I’m sorry for swearing; absolve my sins.

Was this story out in LA's traditional media before? Would LA's traditional media make a big deal out of this if this story involved Rick Neuheisel?

GO BRUINS.

UPDATE: From Petey's website (HT Patroclus):

He was born on Sept. 15, 1951 in San Francisco. He and his wife, Glena, who played volleyball at Pacific, have 3 children: sons Brennan, 30, who played tight end at Pittsburgh (he previously played at Delaware) and is now an assistant at USC, and Nate, 21, a junior at USC, and daughter Jaime, 26, who played on the Women of Troy's highly-ranked volleyball team which competed in the 2000 NCAA Final Four.

Let's make something clear. Don't think it is cool to speculate on someone else's personal life. However, given that Weis has thrown this out there now, it is news. If this doesn't turn out to be true, then Weis will look really pathetic. However, if there is truth to this, then it is newsworthy given the recent events in sports world. GO BRUINS.

Saturday Late Night Overflow Thread: Go Badgers Open Thread

Nestor — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 04:51:30 -0000

We don't have to explain at this point on why we are rooting for Bucky and his Wisconsin Badgers. What an exciting Saturday in Bruins Nation. Since our last thread got filled up, thought we start a brand new one so that we can focus on cheering on Wisconsin (at least those who will stay up out in West Coast and/or procrastinating over their finals).

Again, if the Badgers beat Hawaii Warriors, that will all but guarantee a bowl appearance for our Bruins. The game is on ESPN 2 right now and you can also keep track of the box score here. Also, our SBN colleagues from Wisconsin are following the game at Bucky's 5th Quarter over here.

Let's end it on a great note with a W for Wisconsin in Hawaii. Mahalo.

GO BRUINS.

Saturday Overflow Thread: $C* Sucks Edition

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 23:55:01 -0000

Looks like our Saturday open thread was filling up. It was filling up for a very good reason. The Arizona Wildcats wiped off the stupid grin of Matt Barkley's face at an empty looking Mosoleum this afternoon. Despite the nonstop rear-end kissing from the ABC announcers, the Trojies came up short, looking pathetic and clueless with game on the line (guess it's not easy to throw bombs when the game is on the line).

Anyway, we still have more action coming up tonight. Alabama-Florida game is still going on. Cal-UDub game started a little while ago. If Cal wins Trojies stay in 6th place and head to San Diego. If the Huskies win Bears and Trojies tie for 5th, and the Bears head down to San Diego for the Poinsetta Bowl.

Plus we have the Wisconsin game coming up later tonight. So here is another open thread to take in more football rest of this Saturday. Always a good Saturday in BN, when someone wipes of the smirk of the Humanitarian's face. Suck on Trojies.

GO BRUINS.

Special Saturday Open Thread: UCLA's Bowl Prospects

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:27:14 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

2 months ago: Wisconsin's David Gilbert (11) celebrates with teammates after recovering a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA football game against Wofford on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Browse more photos »

Well, there is a lot of football games going on today. Pittsburgh-Cincinnati are locked in a huge battle for the Big East championship. Houston (our opponent for next season) is playing an entertaining Conference-USA championship game against East Carolina. Of course Florida-Alabama is coming up in a bit and then later on tonight Wisconsin is taking on Hawaii in a game, that has implications for UCLA. You can check out the full scoreboard from WWL over here.

We need the Badgers to win. Rooting for them will be a weird feeling given our experiences against them at the Rose Bowl (and also at the Sun Bowl). But hey, they have a solid team and some of the best fans in college football (the ones we interacted with before 94 and 98 game were classy and gracious). So yeah, why not. Go Badgers. If you are watching college football today (its snowing out in the East), here is a special open thread.

GO BRUINS.

The Humanitarian Wants UCLA?

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 19:22:09 -0000

No. Not talking about the classless sleazebag.

Talking about the bowl game in Napoleon Dynamite land. From Ted Miller:

The Boise-based bowl wants UCLA, Humanitarian Bowl executive director Kevin McDonald told the Idaho Statesman this week.

UCLA is 6-6. All teams with winning records must be picked for at-large berths before bowls can consider .500 teams. Without 6-6 Notre Dame in the running, it appears the Bruins would be the first choice among 6-6 teams.

Two potential snags: Wisconsin must beat Hawaii today and Navy must beat Army on on Dec. 12.

Here is the article Ted was referring to (emphasis added):

If Hawaii loses, it appears likely that UCLA will land in Boise. Humanitarian Bowl executive director Kevin McDonald said Friday he will wait until Dec. 12 for the Bruins if he has to. There’s a chance the deal could get messed up if Army beats Navy on that date.

"They are the team we want," McDonald said of the Bruins.

Guess we will have more clarity in this bowl game picture after tonight. My personal preference would be the GMAC bowl, but any bowl game will be beneficial to our program for reasons we have discussed ad nausea here on BN.

GO BRUINS.

Bracing For Kansas: Early Thoughts & Notes

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:27:07 -0000

It's a pretty big football Saturday around the country as number of conference championship games are taking place around the country. For us the relevant game will come on later tonight when Wisconsin takes on Hawaii on ESPN2 around 8:30 PST. I think for the first time ever many of us will be rooting for the Badgers (trying to set aside bad memories from 94 and 98). Hey, at least Wisconsin has some really great fans (had great experience tailgating with them out at the Rose Bowl). So, at least for me it will not be that difficult to root for Bucky.

Now this morning my mind is on hoops. We have a game tomorrow which comes after probably the most turbulent week in recent history of UCLA basketball. I am not going to hash over all the passionate discussion that has taken place on BN last few days spanning hundreds of comments. I am also not going to be delusional about our chances tomorrow afternoon against Kansas Jayhawks, who are going to come in with their number 1 ranking and 6-0 record. However, I have to admit there is a sense of drama right now around our program, that is going to make tomorrow's game lot more compelling than I thought it would have been even after that mind boggling loss against Long Beach State.

Kansas fans are licking their chops (and you can't really fault them for having that mindset). Those who are not associated with UCLA and Kansas, will peer in solely for the purpose of rubbernecking at our Bruins. As for us, we have no idea how our guys are going to respond. I'd like to think our guys will come out and play classic Ben Ball. Yet just when I start thinking that I keep thinking of the scores against Concordia, Fullerton, Portland and Long Beach State. No, the Butler score doesn't make me feel all that better considering what followed afterwards. So, I am not sure we can realistically hope for any kind of immediate relief from the agony we have experienced for more than a week after tomorrow afternoon. Yet, for some reason I still can't wait to watch the game tomorrow afternoon.

I think if anything else with the Gordon story tomorrow afternoon could present an opportunity for collective catharsis for UCLA basketball. Tomorrow not only we will need our players to show their pride and passion for the four letters, we are going to need that from the entire crowd in the House that Coach Wooden built. I sure hope the entire student section is filled up and ready to go crazy for every defensive stand, every rebound, and every dive for the loose ball on the court.

Going back to Kansas, here are the capsule notes from Sportsline.com:

WHAT WE LEARNED IN NOVEMBER
No surprise, the Jayhawks look even more talented than last year, when they captured a fifth straight Big 12 title and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The return of C Cole Aldrich and G Sherron Collins, coupled with the emergence of G Xavier Henry, a freshman who can be deadly on the wing, makes this a complete, and deep, squad. Two other freshmen, F Thomas Robinson and G Elijah Johnson, have earned minutes.

DECEMBER AT A GLANCE
With UCLA struggling, the Dec. 6 trip to Los Angeles doesn't look risky for the Jayhawks, who play two other majors, Michigan and California, at home later in the month. Visits in early January to Temple and Tennessee provide additional character tests for Kansas, though veterans like Aldrich and Collins figure to be ready to step up. By the end of December, KU coach Bill Self should finalize a rotation he hopes to whittle to no more than nine players.

PLAYER ROTATION
Usual Starters - F Marcus Morris, C Cole Aldrich, G Xavier Henry, G Sherron Collins, G Tyshawn Taylor. Key Subs - F Markieff Morris, F Thomas Robinson, G Elijah Johnson, G Tyrel Reed.

While their fans are giddy about pounding UCLA, their coach - Bill Self - is being gracious in public:

"I think it’s a big-time test," Self said. "The Memphis game was a good test for us. I think this will be a much more difficult game for us, going on the road."

Self can imagine what Howland and the Bruins must be going through.

"If you’re UCLA or if you’re Kansas, Carolina or Duke, and you lose a couple of games in a row, you’re gonna come out fighting," Self said. "We’ll get a great effort from them."

Self seems like a good guy in general. He has always come across as a gracious person in general more in the mold of Tom Izzo rather than ESPN created personas like Roy Williams, K, and Calipari. So, I think the respect he is showing our team in public is genuine.

Self noted how KU faced a stiff challenge from Memphis this season. That was a neutral court game in St. Louis (although I am sure they had a heavy KU contingent in Missouri). Tomorrow afternoon is going to be the first true road game for Kansas this season:

"I’m anxious," KU senior Sherron Collins said. "I think they’ll handle it well. They’re freshmen. The butterflies will come, but once the ball gets in the air, it’ll be all right."

The Jayhawks are coming off a 98-31 bashing of Alcorn State on Wednesday night that was hard on the eyes. Playing the Bruins will offer KU a chance to measure its improvement since squeaking out a 57-55 win over Memphis on Nov. 17.

"We’re going to find out more about who we are as a team," KU freshman Thomas Robinson said. "The season starts now. We’re about to get into some big games these next couple weeks."

Well either way KU is going to have matchup advantages virtually all over the court. They are perhaps even deeper and more talented from previous season. I think for us to have a shot tomorrow afternoon we are going to have it slow it down, and mix it up on the defensive front by playing some zone using our height down low. If we stay man-to-man the whole time tomorrow we might set a new record in terms of blowout losses tomorrow. I imagine Howland and his coaches know this.

It is going to be very interesting to see how our guys come out tomorrow. Last few days undoubtedly have been probably the most challenging period Howland has ever experienced as a basketball coach. I am anxious to see how our guys come out and respond tomorrow afternoon. I am not expecting anything tomorrow in terms of the scoreboard at this point. However, I think the way our guys come out and play tomorrow could present an opportunity for catharsis Bruin basketball and the UCLA basketball needs desperately after a very long week. Not sure, we are going to get it tomorrow, but if our guys come out and fight and get all out support from the crowd at Pauley it could be a start of something positive.

GO BRUINS.

On and off the court, UCLA was the best year of my life.

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:12:18 -0000

On and off the court, UCLA was the best year of my life.

Kevin Love

Special Friday Night Open Thread: UCLA Bowl Prospects

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 01:03:51 -0000

More photos » by Al Goldis - AP

Let's scout the Chippewas (just in case). GO BRUINS.

Browse more photos »

Well a heartbreaker for our women's soccer team who were just eliminated in the NCAA college cup by Stanford. Bruins showed heart against undefeated Stanford team by tying up the game after falling behind in second half. Unfortunate it was Stanford's night who move on to the finals. Congrats to them but more importantly congrats to our women for another outstanding season. They will get that championship sooner or later and they look like they have enough young talent on the team (Leroux was amazing to watch) to make another run season.

For now though let's shift our attention to back to football. orlandobruin laid out the bowl scenario earlier today. Looks like our prospects got even better as Notre Dame has officially decided to back out of a bowl game (HT hicalliber). If we do get to a bowl, one of our likely destination will be the GMAC Bowl, where we might take on Central Michigan University. Well CMU is on ESPN2 right now taking on Ohio Bobcats in the MAC Championship game.

If you are watching it, why don't you use this thread to give us some early info, just in case we need to gather notes.

Fire away.

GO BRUINS.

Sunday should be really fun against UCLA. I mean, when you get a chance to beat up on another...

Nestor — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 21:19:26 -0000

Sunday should be really fun against UCLA. I mean, when you get a chance to beat up on another "national power" or "blue-blood," you should savor it - which we will.

Licking their chops @ Rock Chalk Talk

Quest For Bru-105: Chock full Of Bruin Tourney Action This Weekend

Nestor — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:14:23 -0000

Football regular season is over and we are I guess holding our breath right now to see how bad it can get against Kansas on Sunday. Before Kansas games get here though there are lot of important tourney actions involving UCLA athletics going on starting today. From the official site:

The weekend begins with the UCLA women's soccer team playing in its seventh consecutive NCAA College Cup on Friday, taking on Pac-10 rival Stanford in a National Semifinal match in College Station, Texas at 2:30 p.m. PT. The match can be viewed live on ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN360.com. You can also follow along with Gametracker.

The Bruins (21-2-1) will look to end the undefeated season of the Cardinal (24-0) and exact revenge on a 2-0 loss at Stanford on Oct. 18. The Bruins have defeated Boise State (7-1), San Diego State (5-0), Virginia (3-0) and Portland (2-1) on their way to the National Semifinal contest.

Later Friday night, the women's volleyball team opens postseason play at Pauley Pavilion against Long Beach State in the first round at 8 p.m. The match will be preceded by Georgia Tech against Baylor in the other first-round contest at 5:30 p.m. Gametracker and free audio and video will be available at UCLABruins.com.

So that's just tonight. Tomorrow we have men's waterpolo and men's soccer action going on over here in the East Coast:

On Saturday, the UCLA men's water polo squad plays in a National Semifinal contest in Princeton, N.J. against Loyola Marymount at 2 p.m. PT. The match will be video streamed online at NCAA.com.

The Bruins (22-6) advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004, earning an automatic berth as champions of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament. UCLA bested Pepperdine (8-5), USC (10-6) and California (10-7) on consecutive days last weekend.

About an hour after the men's water polo team leaves the pool, the UCLA men's soccer team takes to the pitch to face #3 Wake Forest in Winston Salem, N.C. at 4 p.m. PT. You can follow all the action with Gametracker. If the Bruins win, they will advance to the College Cup next weekend, which will be played just down the road in Cary, N.C.

More details over here. Good luck to all of our athletes in question for Bru-105.

GO BRUINS.