Mora Tyranny — The Reign of Jim Mora is over, after an auspicious start and subsequent collapse, and his mid-November firing indicates the Bruins may be going after Chip Kelly, who may or may not meet the standards of UCLA Chancellor Gene Block
In a shocking move in the aftermath of a tough loss to u$c, UCLA has fired Head Football Coach Jim Mora. Mora started out great in Westwood, but his last two teams have not lived up to the promise shown early in the Mora Era. Lots of injuries caused much of the problem, but that shined a light on a lack of depth, which was Mora’s responsibility. Mora’s hiring of the TROJAN Kennedy Polamalu as Offensive Coordinator was one of the stupidest Coaching decisions in the history of Sports, and ultimately led to the end of Mora’s tenure at UCLA. Mora’s hiring of Defensive Coordinator Tom Bradley, who may have been complicit in the Penn State scandal, was also questionable, and Bradley’s Defense was historically bad against the Run this year, so those two hires, plus all the injuries and lack of depth, added up to a regime change.
I was NOT rooting for Mora to be terminated. I like him in general, and do not have faith that Dan Guerrero will upgrade the position with the subsequent hire. I would have been okay with 2018 being Mora with a new Defensive Coordinator. But if the Bruins are able to land an elite Coach for next year, then I will have no issue with the change. At the top of the list is Chip Kelly, who turned Oregon into a National powerhouse a few years back, even reaching the National Title game.
Kelly’s hurry-up Spread Offense revolutionized the Sport. If he can bring that speed to UCLA, the Bruins would likely be a Playoff contender within 3 years. But there are a couple of hurdles: First of all, Kelly is already in talks to take over the reins at Florida, which might give him a much better path to glory. The other issue is that Kelly has baggage. He had some shady dealings while recruiting, was investigated, and got Oregon sanctioned. They were put on a 3-year probation for recruiting violations. With that reputation, will he pass the Entrance Exam at UCLA? Will Chancellor Gene Block sign off on a guy who is notorious for breaking NCAA rules?
Personally, I would take him, but I would put him on a super-short leash. I would assign extra compliance officers to watch his every move, and to veto ANYTHING that even sniffed of impropriety.
Speaking of impropriety, ex-trojan Rey Maualuga is at it again, this time getting arrested for BATTERY. He has been cut by the Miami Dolphins in wake of the arrest. Sure, three “Bruins” got arrested recently too, but those were kids who had never even played a real game for UCLA, and their crime was non-violent. The list of crimes — many violent in nature — committed by “trojans-for-life” dwarf any type of list you could compile for Bruins. And Rey-Rey is right up there, somewhere between O.J. Simpson and O.J. Mayo, in keeping that list growing.
If you are looking for new UCLA Cheerleader pics, hang tight — there will be more coming soon.