African Americans Now Have One Less Prominent Coach On The Field
Karl Dorrell was officially sidelined today as the football coach for the UCLA Bruins and we're none to happy about it. Dorrell was given the choice of staying on as coach of the Bruins through the team's bowl game at Las Vegas against Brigham Young on Dec. 22. If the brotha decides against it, defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker will take over in the interim.
Dorrell had a 35-27 record and his teams went to a bowl game in each of his five seasons. Yet he never established a strong foothold, and even in his best year, when UCLA went 10-2 in 2005, the Bruins lost two of their last three, including a 66-19 by crosstown rival USC.
Among permanent candidates to succeed Dorrell is Boise State Coach Chris Petersen, with Texas Tech Coach Mike Leach and former NFL coach Steve Mariucci also considered strong possibilities.
Dorrell's contract ran through the 2011 season but included a buyout clause that would pay him $2.05-million over a two-year period. Dorrell had never been a head coach when he was hired in 2002. He inherited a program that had high-profile problems off the field, which led to the firing of coach Bob Toledo. Under Dorrell, the Bruins improved in the classroom, and the number of off-the-field embarrassments decreased significantly.
"We've improved our standard in school, we've done very, very well there," Dorrell said recently when asked about the high points that have been achieved off the field. "We've improved our standard in off-the-field incidents. That has been a big, big issue before. And I think we do a lot in the community, where we reach out and try. All those things have fallen into place very well for us."
A source familiar with the program said the academic record and general good citizenship of the Bruins' players were big factors, but the lack of success on the field could not be ignored.
Dorrell's teams regularly collapsed in the second half of the season. The Bruins had a 13-19 record after the sixth game of the season during his career. They were unable to achieve consistency, following up a monumental upset of USC in 2006 with a flop in Emerald Bowl against Florida State.
Dorrell's staff also lacked stability. UCLA has had to replace 10 assistant coaches in the last two seasons.
This season, UCLA returned 20 starters from a team that finished 7-6 and was ranked among the top 20 in every preseason poll. The Bruins climbed as high as 11th in the Associated Press poll before being routed, 44-6, by an injury-depleted Utah team on Sept. 15.
It was a steady decline from there. A loss to a then-winless Notre Dame team brought concern from high-end donors and, after injuries depleted the roster, the Bruins lost three consecutive Pacific 10 Conference games.
Dorrell had a 35-27 record and his teams went to a bowl game in each of his five seasons. Yet he never established a strong foothold, and even in his best year, when UCLA went 10-2 in 2005, the Bruins lost two of their last three, including a 66-19 by crosstown rival USC.Among permanent candidates to succeed Dorrell is Boise State Coach Chris Petersen, with Texas Tech Coach Mike Leach and former NFL coach Steve Mariucci also considered strong possibilities.
Dorrell's contract ran through the 2011 season but included a buyout clause that would pay him $2.05-million over a two-year period. Dorrell had never been a head coach when he was hired in 2002. He inherited a program that had high-profile problems off the field, which led to the firing of coach Bob Toledo. Under Dorrell, the Bruins improved in the classroom, and the number of off-the-field embarrassments decreased significantly.
"We've improved our standard in school, we've done very, very well there," Dorrell said recently when asked about the high points that have been achieved off the field. "We've improved our standard in off-the-field incidents. That has been a big, big issue before. And I think we do a lot in the community, where we reach out and try. All those things have fallen into place very well for us."
A source familiar with the program said the academic record and general good citizenship of the Bruins' players were big factors, but the lack of success on the field could not be ignored.
Dorrell's teams regularly collapsed in the second half of the season. The Bruins had a 13-19 record after the sixth game of the season during his career. They were unable to achieve consistency, following up a monumental upset of USC in 2006 with a flop in Emerald Bowl against Florida State.
Dorrell's staff also lacked stability. UCLA has had to replace 10 assistant coaches in the last two seasons.
This season, UCLA returned 20 starters from a team that finished 7-6 and was ranked among the top 20 in every preseason poll. The Bruins climbed as high as 11th in the Associated Press poll before being routed, 44-6, by an injury-depleted Utah team on Sept. 15.
It was a steady decline from there. A loss to a then-winless Notre Dame team brought concern from high-end donors and, after injuries depleted the roster, the Bruins lost three consecutive Pacific 10 Conference games.