2014 is The Year of the Horse, but NOT the TROJAN Horse

The Bruins absolutely destroy u$c and their snarky new Coach 107-73 in Basketball, then ESPN reports that Star QB Brett Hundley will return to UCLA for his Junior year, virtually assuring that SC will continue to be Second Class citizens in L.A. for the third year in a row

It wasn’t only ex-trojans Rey Maualuga, Clay Matthews, and Taylor Mays having bad days on Sunday — It was ALL trojans and their fans.  On a day when three of the most arrogant ex-trojans got knocked out of the NFL Playoffs, their former Football team took a huge hit when UCLA’s Brett Hundley defied Draft Experts by REPORTEDLY deciding to come back to school next year.  And not that trojans care about Basketball that much, but their sorry excuse for a Basketball team and their over-hyped and over-rated new Coach Andy Enfield got schooled at Pauley Pavilion 107-73.  They may not care about hoops, but they cannot be thrilled about getting spanked by the Bruins by 34 Points in a major sport.

Maualuga, aka DUI Rey-Rey starts his vacation today after his Bengals got pounded at home by the blue and gold San Diego Chargers.  Taylor Mays is also on the Cincinnati roster, but on the injured list.  Rey-Rey has a reputation for dirty hits, and celebrating after making them, so it’s always nice to see him lose.  My only regret here is that Bruin Tony Dye is also a Bengal.  Maybe the Bengals wouldn’t have got eliminated if they hadn’t relegated Dye, who (I believe) is linked to a gorgeous, blue-eyed blonde former Bruin Cheer Squad member, to the practice squad, after scoring a Defensive Touchdown a few weeks ago.

I also have regrets about Clay Matthews’ departure from the Playoffs, since his Packer teammates include Bruins Jonathan Franklin, Datone Jones, and Kahlil Bell.  Maybe if Franklin got more playing time, the Pack would still be alive?  Not really, as Running Backs Eddie Lacy and Jonathan Starks have been running well for Green Bay, but Franklin does have that intangible winning spirit.  The Cheeseheads lost at home to San Francisco on a last-second Field Goal, and the guy who snapped that ball on that game-winning kick was none other than Bruin Rookie Long Snapper Kevin McDermott, whose name was flashed on the TV screen right before the play.

The Forty-Niner win means that we are getting closer to a showdown between San Fran’s Jim Harbaugh, and Pete “What’s Your Deal” Carroll in Seattle.  If the Niners win in Carolina, and the Seahawks beat the Saints in Seattle (like they did easily a few weeks ago), Carroll’s team will host Harbaugh’s for the right to go to the Super Bowl.  Frisco just beat Seattle, barely,  in the Bay Area, but the last time they played in the Pacific Northwest, the Niners got blown out.  It would be hard to bet against Seattle with their League-best Home-Field Advantage.  That might end up being a GOOD DAY for trojan fans… unlike yesterday.

Hundley’s apparent return to UCLA is huge for the Bruins, and a killer for SC.  To add insult to injury, the trojans have already had 4 Draft-eligible Juniors announce that they are bailing on South Central for the Pro’s, including superstar Wide Receiver Marqise Lee.  The Bruins are losing only one premature departee:  Xavier Sua-Filo, an Offensive Lineman who will be missed, but not as much as Lee and his three exiting teammates will be.  And since UCLA was clearly better in 2013, and is in line to bring in a better recruiting class, 2014 should be more of the same, especially with the Rivalry Game returning to the Rose Bowl.

Hundley’s encore also means Heisman Hype, and a possible Top Ten Preseason Ranking for Jim Mora and UCLA.  And that’s not even counting the boost to recruiting that Hundley’s imminent announcement could elicit.

Like the good news about Hundley wasn’t enough to claim a “good start” to 2014, the Basketball Bruins broke out the noisemakers as well, with a complete dismantling of the over-matched trojans.  It is possible that the Bruin players and Coach were motivated by some bulletin board material supplied by sc’s new Head Coach.  Andy Enfield made not one, but TWO arrogantly confrontational comments about UCLA that probably came back to bite him on the ass yesterday:  First he said (to recruits) that if they want to play slow, they should go to UCLA;  Second, he said that he wasn’t worried about competing with UCLA Coach Steve Alford, because Alford has been to one Sweet Sixteen in 22 years, while Enfield accomplished that in only 2 years.  After yesterday’s “game,” it looks like Alford will get his second Sweet Sixteen appearance long before Enfield will.  And the Bruins won’t be “playing slow” when they get there.

The Bruins, who average about 85 points a game, had 56 at Halftime, and a 22-point lead.  Shortly after the break, the margin was 31, and the game was over.  Sc did cut it down to 19, but the Bruins re-awakened, and pumped it up to 39 before cruising home to the 107-73 final.  107 points tied their all-time high score against the trojans.

The Bruins get a Triple A rating for their performance, because it was led by (Kyle) Anderson, (Jordan) Adams, and (Bryce) Alford.  All three scored 20 or more, and all three were in double-figures by Halftime.  Anderson added 12 Rebounds/5 Assists, and Adams had 4 Rebounds and SIX STEALS.  Zach LaVine also contributed mightily, scoring 16, including a highlight-reel Rebound/put-back dunk.  UCLA’s suspect Defense looked much better — or sc’s Offense was just pathetic.  That combination led to 17 trojan Turnovers.

UCLA will get a much stiffer test on Thursday night, when the #1 in the Country Arizona Wildcats invade Pauley, where the Bruins are 10-0 so far this season.  if the Bruins can make that 11-0, Coach Alford’s detractors will disappear into the night, like a Football trojan Junior with Draft eligibility.

In order to celebrate a fantastic day to be a Bruin, here are 34 UCLA Cheerleader photos from this past season’s Cal Football game.

Comments

One response to “2014 is The Year of the Horse, but NOT the TROJAN Horse”

  1. UCLADal Avatar
    UCLADal

    GO BRUINS!