Notable Quotables from USC vs. ucla
by Paragon SC on Nov 29, 2009 10:19 AM PST
in USC Football
20 comments
There are some interesting quotes from last nights game. Particularly about the long bomb that Pete unleashed at the end of the game. Obviously, there are two things to understand when reading these...1) context and 2) honesty. I don't think we will get the real story on both.
Rick Neuheisel's comments betray that he gets it...the coaches always do. But it also betrays the one thing I knew would happen...that this is bulletin board material for ucla. They will have a year of being pissed off.
Anyway here are some quotes from the OCR...
Coach Rick Neuheisel
(On the touchdown)
"I was trying to make them punt. It’s our job to cover. They have every right to throw the ball deep. People draw their own conclusions. It’s our job to stop the play. … I had three timeouts. It was first down, I called a timeout. If they run the ball on second down, I call timeout. I’m trying to get the ball back. If they fumble I got a chance. I don’t blame them for doing it. It’s our job to cover it. I was just trying to keep the game alive."
Like said in the comments earlier...the game goes for 60 minutes. If RN thinks he has a shot then it means he wants to play. Bruins fans who are complaining need to get over it. RN was doing what they wanted him to do since the day he signed on...
Try. To. Beat. USC.
He can't do that if he doesn't have the ball and he can't try if he doesn't try and get the ball.
Like I said, he gets it. And it puts him a box. If he is lying whats that say about his character? If he understands it and would do the same thing what does that say about his character? Bit of a Catch-22
This was Pete's way of saying we heard you! Strong message follows...
Safety Rahim Moore
(On the touchdown)
"I just couldn’t believe it. I just said, Wow. I was speechless. It’s all good. You lose some, you win some. You just got to move on. Of course we were offended. They ended up scoring. We were losing so of course we all were mad. We were shocked how they disrespected and took a shot on us. It caught us off guard. We thought they were going to kneel the ball."
I get this too...this is how Taylor Mays felt when Harbaugh went for two (even though the situations are vastly different). But if Moore has a problem with it, do what SC did on the 2-pointer....DEFEND IT!
All this talk about being disrespected is just that...talk. Mays didn't like it but USC stopped it, regardless of the reasons why Harbaugh did it.
Moore knows the drill...
This one is my favorite...
Linebacker Reggie Carter
(On the touchdown)
"In a way it’s disrespectful but then again their job is to score points, our job is to stop them from scoring points. They did their job, we didn’t do ours. How mad could you be? We called a timeout, we kept the game going, so obviously we wanted to keep playing. We obviously didn’t play hard enough."
Right...this from the guy who said this...
"I don't hate people, I just want to beat them up. I don't hate them (the Trojans), I just want to beat them real bad. It's not hatred, I just want to beat them up real bad. We're just gonna keep throwing punches even if they're knocked out, we'll just keep punching, it don't matter, we're going to keep punching until we cant punch no more."
How does feel when the shoe is on the other foot pal?
Don't be fooled...he gets it too. And if the tables were turned he would not apologize one bit.
All these guys get it...regardless of all their bluster. This is big boy football. Neuheisel hasn't exactly acted with a lot of class since he got to ucla. Pete has pretty much kept to himself unless he has been poked by some of the crap that Slick Rick has pulled.
Pete didn't jump in the mud to wrestle with the pig...he did all of his talking on the field.
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Hmmmm
I wonder…
I honestly think Pete Carroll was perfectly justified in approving the play call after Neuheisel called the pointless time out. However, I think there is a big difference in being justified in your actions and just doing the right thing. As funny and as rewarding as that bomb was he should just take the knees and get out of there. As it stands though both coaches created a dangerous situation and for a few moments it looked like a riot could have broken out on the field.
When it comes down to it both coaches were in the wrong, and sometimes you have to swallow your pride in the heat of the moment. Neither of them showed much, if any, grace at the end of an ugly but hard fought game.
by Laughing Stock on Nov 29, 2009 10:41 AM PST reply actions
I disagree
If Pete really wanted to run up the score, that pass would have come on first down. Instead we took a knee with every intent of ending the game in boring fashion.
Rick himself said that he was hoping to force a punt, get a fumble, etc. Bottom line is that he still saw hope in the game no matter how tiny that hope was. USC responded by taking what they felt was their chance to completely put the game away. If that was the Bruins last timeout, then I agree that we should have simply taken a knee again, and I expect that’s exactly what would have happened.
Being a good sport doesn’t mean keeping your opponents hope alive. It means that you don’t pile on after all hope is lost. Harbaugh went for two when it gave him zero tactical advantage. There was not the slightest difference in that situation being up by 28 or 29 points. In this case, Rick himself indicated that he didn’t consider the game over. If he didn’t consider the game over, why should Pete?
I agree with both coaches. They each did exactly what they should have done.
I respectully disagree
You’re missing the point laughing stock. Pete didn’t have the option to just “take the knees and get ot of there.” With 50 seconds left in the game, we faced first and 10. After the first knee, we face 2nd and 11 with 48 seconds. Another knee would take off two more seconds. A last knee puts us at 4th and 13 with 44 seconds.
We either pick up a first down, or punt. Those are our options. Although it’s unlikely their offense would drive the field in 44, score, and recover the onside attempt, why give them the opportunity. It sure as hell isn’t running up the score when we take a victory knee. If Rick wants us to take another snap, he damn well better have his team prepared to play defense.
For the first time all night, Bates dialed up the right play against the defensive coverage. In an obvious running down, we went play action. It was his best single call of the season because it was unpredictable. Rick brought it on himself for refusing to let the clock run down. He had the option to accept a hard-fought 14 point defeat with dignity. He chose not to. To claim what Pete did was wrong is to be completely ignorant of the situation.
Fight On! Beat the Wolverines!
by USCLink on Nov 29, 2009 11:02 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
100% Correct
Yes ucla would have probably gotten the ball back if SC would have taken two more knees and then punted, but ultimately I still think it would have been the better decision as things looked they could have gotten really out of control.
And like I said, I think Pete Carrol was completely justified in his decision, but that doesn’t necessarily make it the best or right decision. But you guys have very valid points.
by Laughing Stock on Nov 29, 2009 7:37 PM PST up reply actions
Out of Control Bruins
I’ve read a few articles this morning that seem to place equal blame on both teams for the ugly situation at the end of the game. I was at the Coliseum last night and watched the replay this morning, and I’m going to disagree.
There is no doubt that USC players were celebrating and taunting, but they were doing it from their own sideline. UCLA players made it almost all the way across the field with coaches and referees trying to hold them back. Those coaches simply had no control over those players. On the extra point and kickoff, their players were still out of control going out of their way to take cheap shots.
USC might be guilty of some overzealous celebration, but UCLA was out of control. I found it an embarrassing situation for Bruins.
So, we should be concerned about the bruin's mental health?
Sorry Paragon, but the bulletin board aspect of this will have no bearing on how the game will be played next year. Yes, it gets the BN and other extreme elements in their fanbase all riled up, but they don’t play the game. What does worry me is a repeat of the cannibalistic fan behavior we saw at the Rose Bowl three years ago. You can see that Slick is already trying to throw a wet blanket on the firestorm he started, but it is already out of control.
Nice move Slick, but if someone else loses an eye or worse it’s all on you. Bruins love to say they’re the good guys but the evidence proves the opposite. I will be staying home.
A team that plays angry is prone to making boneheaded plays and personal fouls, and in this case things came to a hair’s breadth of spiraling out of control. I guarantee you that tomorrow, Dan Guerrero is going to have some choice words for Slick, who is on the verge of cratering his third football program.
¡Fusílenlo, después veriguamos! - Pancho Villa
I agree Loco with all you said.
You know as players and coaches they sure get it, some fans have figured it out. On the other hand the media needs more than just USC wins, so they are loving it. Actually that game showed the Dee can control mediocre teams, so we shall see if they are back against Zona. USC offense is just all over the map, but the drive with 5:37 to play was against a first rate defense. Matt Barkley either needs glasses or he is the next Jim Evert, he doesn’t see anything but what he thinks is out there. I hope he improves or we will have to go next year with something different, to QBs to give him a challenge next season
But the funniest thing I have ever seen is the flock over at BN, they actually feel that next year will be different YAH RIGHT. They have declared Jihad on SC and like they felt any other way, some wanting PC to die or burn. The other thing is they act as if what they say or think will change the outcome of the game, I guess all that great education is to blame. Well they have already started a count down for next years game, Wow I they got a lot of things to do. So make sure when you order a pizza to check the box at the door, because you never know which BNer is at the door.
The truth is Lavin was an Okay coach but I liked him because Bibby was beating him. I have known Ben since 1978 and when he got to Ugla I knew it was going to be a battle in BB. But know we got Kevin and I think he is better than my friend, and after 3 years we will know. GO Trojans
by so.cal.native1952 on Nov 29, 2009 1:01 PM PST up reply actions
They sure do need some anger management counseling over there
or a visit from Homeland Security! All kidding aside some of the most obtuse drivel is going to incite one of their more psychotic readers to violence
¡Fusílenlo, después veriguamos! - Pancho Villa
by Locoweed 1.1 on Nov 29, 2009 2:25 PM PST up reply actions
Yah you better watch if they see walking down Ocean, Mexi and 102 might slap you to death with their rubber gloves.
After all Mexi was in Santa Monica watching the game and said after he left pub, was looking to fight someone. Thats real mature and maybe he spends night in jail and gets sued, but minimum wage and tips isn’t much.
28---7 2nd & 11 Barkley to Williams, so please Bru-Babes call time out again.
by so.cal.native1952 on Nov 29, 2009 4:09 PM PST up reply actions
Paragon, what's the basis for making this claim
Neuheisel hasn’t exactly acted with a lot of class since he got to ucla
Other than the ridiculous UCLA marketing campaign last year proclaiming the monoloy was over, I am not aware of Neuheisel saying or doing anything to any tem UCLA has faced, including USC, that suggests a lack of class. What specific actions/comments are you referring to for your comment?
Well he did call out Pete Carroll
about a rule change that he wanted that he was totally in the wrong about. Neuheisel claimed that Pete was against having coaches kids on the field, even though a rule makes it legal for a child to be on the field if they are performing a game task. He used it to rile up his boosters even though there was nothing there.
He also used Kevin Norton’s name in recruiting earlier this year. If you read Neuheisel’s denial, it is carefully worded. In it he only denies telling petential recruits that Norton was coming to ucla to coach, he doesn’t deny ever using Norton’s name in recruiting, and never opened up to questions on the subject. Norton called out Rick, and Rick slithered out of it. That is a classless way to treat another bruin alum.
Rick Neuheisel has been focused on Pete Carroll since he arrived. He has talked his smack, and it has come back to haunt him again. He is the one that called the timeout when we chose to run out the clock and end the game. He should not be angry with the touchdown that resulted from that decision.
Rick doesn't appear to be mad about it
It’s the media and buffoons at BN that seemed to be all worked up.
Hmmm...
My question was only about how he has ACTED at UCLA that denotes a lack of class. You’ve cited two instances of him bitching about a rule change that he wrongly thought Carroll instigated and using Ken Norton’s name in recruiting. Since he specifically denied telling recruits that Norton was leaving USC for UCLA, I’m not sure what else there was for Neuheisel to say about Norton.
Even assuming that these items denote a lack of class (particularly the second item, which I find to be quite a stretch) I have not heard one public pronouncement (other than perhaps UCLA rally stuff along the lines of “we’re going to win”) from Neuheisel that was anything other than complimentary of what USC has become under Carroll. He has repeatedly (ad nauseam IMHO) explained that he wants to get UCLA to USC’s level, restore the rivalry, etc., which seems to me to be respectful of what USC is and has done. I haven’t seen or head anything about Neuheisel’s in-game comportment or game management against anyone while at UCLA that has caused a raised eyebrow or suggested poor sportsmanship. If you have something other than the comments you cite I’d sure like to see them.
I can't disagree with anything here
Remember how much credit Ohio State gave Tressel when he specifically pointed to the Michigan game in front of a basketball crowd when he first arrived. I love the fact that Rick has brought some personality and energy into the rivalry. I admit that I love to hate the guy, but that’s the whole point of the rivalry. If he didn’t point to USC’s success, then he would be blamed for ignoring the obvious.
You and I have discussed this both on and off blog a number of times
Just because he has denied it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen exactly the way people claim.
Also depends on your definition of class…
I think Neuheisel has an ulterior motive anytime he opens his mouth. I think he is calculating and craves attention…he won’t make a move unless he weighs all the potential ramifications. I also think that his personality is such that he is a gambler (no pun intended) he will take risks in order to achieve his goals…its his nature.
I don’t buy it for minute that he didn’t know about the ad in the LAT. I think he said throw it out there and see what happens. I have hard time believing that at an institution such as ucla with an AD like DG who knows all goes on that the ad simply fell through the cracks…right. RN made a move, it backfired and DG had to make it look good…he gave RN a long leash and right out of the box it was an epic FAIL….in the eyes of us outsiders.
But was it really? The point of the ad was to give ucla some pub…mission accomplished. It seemed like a circus side show…
Calling out Carroll at that Booster thing (“we’re going to reel him in…”) I do think shows a lack of class…it targets an individual not the program. The whole Norton thing is still puzzling but it is clear that it was meant to make KN look uncomfortable or bad…take your pick. There wasn’t anything benevolent about it…
Pete Carroll has not gone out of his way to antagonize anyone who didn’t do it first…all he has done is win and build his program. it isn’t his fault if the other programs couldn’t keep up…though the are now. Props to them.
Anyway not too far off of what others have said…these are the same opinions that we have discussed in the past…nothing has changed.
frak, please also note that I didn't raise the issue of
the end-of-game shenanigans. I am simply interested in why Paragon seems to think that Neuheisel has acted without much class since arriving at UCLA. I’m not interested in trying to argue the other stuff.
Its all good
I don’t think Rick is the classiest of guys. I do believe that he spoke Norton’s name to potential recruits as a possibility for the open DC job this season. I do believe that he misrepresented that fact when Norton called him on it. I believe he spent the pre-season talking trash and throwing down numerous verbal gauntlets to Pete. He threw down the challenge, and now he is living with the consequences. He said that he does not forget things. I believe that statement was a comment that he was angry with Pete’s call to throw it deep and score again.
Rick has acted terribly in the past at Colorado and Washington. People at ucla tend to give him a clean slate since he arrived in Westwood, but his track record, and his character speak for themselves. He has lied, he has circumvented NCAA rules and ethics, and I believe he would do it again if he were assured of not getting caught. I don’t believe a man of his age is going to change much. His character is firmly established. His behavior might change, but the person he was in Washington and Colorado is still there roaming the ucla sidelines.
by frak on Nov 29, 2009 4:01 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Yes Alex I will take that question and the answer is Rick Neuhiesel wrong the Weasel.
Here come the Weasel oh yah
28---7 2nd & 11 Barkley to Williams, so please Bru-Babes call time out again.
by so.cal.native1952 on Nov 29, 2009 6:02 PM PST up reply actions
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