Source: Walker wants to stay

A source inside the UCLA football program said earlier today that defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker "wants to stay" and will stay at UCLA unless he is dissatisfied by the contract offer to keep him.

Walker has enjoyed his time at UCLA, likes living in Southern California (he has family in the area) and feels he has not yet completed the job of turning the Bruin defense into the best unit possible. In addition, his son Kevan, has verbally committed to attend UCLA and would be enrolling in the fall.

Assistant coaches Todd Howard (defensive line) and Chuck Bullough (linebackers) have indicated to Walker their interest in staying as well and their enthusiasm for the players coming back for 2008. It is not clear whether new coach Rick Neuheisel, who has reportedly met or spoken with Walker three times, is interested in retaining any of the other assistant coaches.

Neuheisel II: "This is one of those ‘pinch-me’ days"

In a 31-minute question-and-answer session, new UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel impressed a capacity crowd inside the Press Room of the Morgan Center on campus with his sincerity and wit. Highlights:

>> "This is one of those pinch-me days because I have been in the wilderness, so to speak. You leave home, you kind of find your way, you lose your way and here I am back home. I couldn’t ask for a better scenario for myself in terms of wanting the chance to prove that I can do this job, that I can do it in the right way and to do it with my friends and my family."

>> "I was a young coach when I got the [Colorado] job at age 33. Maybe in an effort to prove that I belonged to my older peer group, I did some things that probably weren’t necessary in an effort to try to compete, to show everybody that was going to out-hustle them and so forth. And the mistakes have been well documented, but I certainly take ownership in them and I have learned from them. I can’t change the past, but I can learn from the past. I made sure that both Dan [Guerrero] and Chancellor [Gene] Block realize that if given this opportunity that I would never, ever do anything to tarnish the great reputation of UCLA, the integrity of this program and it would be a thrill to have the opportunity to prove that."

>> "I do know how to lead a program. I do know how to put the pieces together. It doesn’t happen overnight. There are a lot of great kids in this room who are excited about the future, and I just met a few of them out in the hallway before we walked in here. And the message is this: guys, we’re all the same. We got recruited by UCLA – me for the first time! [big laugh in the room] – we got recruited by UCLA for one reason: to come and make the most of this experience. Yes, we want to win and go to the Rose Bowls and do all of those things that bring great honor to this football program, but we would be remiss if we missed out on all the other pieces of the experience, meaning the chance to have this first-class education, a chance to meet a student body that’s as diverse as any in the world, to walk the same grounds that Jackie Robinson walked, that Arthur Ashe walked, that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar walked and go on down the list: Kenny Easley, Freeman McNeil, Troy Aikman, you can go on down the list of great Bruins that not only made a mark as a student and as an athlete, but also making a mark in society."

>> "I owe [Brian Billick, fired today as coach of the Baltimore Ravens] a great debt. He gave me a chance to get back into football. He was very, very helpful in getting my family situated and getting us jump-started if you will. I learned a great amount of technical football in the NFL; it’s a great game. The relationships there are even more important to me, to the players that I got to be a part of. Our family will always be indebted to him."

>> On when he will be re-locating his family: "Susan is going to make all those decisions, she’s the head coach in the moving department. She’s the head coach in most of the things, if you really want to talk about it. She and I will figure out what’s best for the boys in terms of schools and getting themselves situated and make sure they’re on the right path. As soon as its prudent to do so, we’ll do it. We want to be part of this Southern California scene as quickly as is possible. I don’t know if you knew this, but the weather is better here [big laugh in the room]."

>> On his discussions thus far with defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker: "DeWayne is a great, great coach, a great ambassador for this university and he has proven that he’s a capable defensive coordinator. The Bruins have played outstanding defense each of the last two seasons and I know he’s excited about his first chance as a coordinator and would like to continue in that stead. Obviously, with that being said, he is coveted. When you make your mark like he has over the last couple of seasons, there are other suitors out there who would love for him to come and spin his magic for them. So it is a little bit of a recruiting battle, but I’ve got one great thing on my side: UCLA. I don’t have to sell it to him because he has been here and he knows it. We’re in dialogue, we’re going to continue to talk because I would love for him to be a part of this program going forward. I know the defensive players on the team feel the same way in terms of really believing in his leadership. So hopefully that can happen here sooner than later.

"But it’s important for DeWayne to take the amount of time that’s necessary for him to feel really good about the decision, because it’s exciting to be coveted. But we’re going to make him feel like a blue-chipper."

>> On how the process of being hired worked: "I called Bobby Field, an old colleague of mine and Dan’s right-hand man here in the [football] program. I just wanted to let it be known that should UCLA have an interest in me at all that I would love the opportunity to talk to them. I certainly understood if they felt like there was another direction they needed to go.

"I begged, pleaded and all that other stuff and basically let them know who I was. I said to Dan [Guerrero], ‘I know there was a moment when you got this job as the athletic director of your alma mater where you closed the door, sat down and probably put your feet up on the desk for the first time and just kind of leaned back in awe about what kind of an opportunity this was and what kind of an awesome responsibility you were undertaking. And somewhere in that thought process, you made yourself a promise that you were never going to do anything to tarnish the great reputation of UCLA.’ I’m no different. I’m hopeful that I get to have that same moment.

"While doing that, I will fight, scratch and claw to get us back to the national scene. That’s a solemn promise and I looked him in the eye and fortunately, he listened.

"There was a second interview. I was called and asked to come out to California, on a Monday. In the NFL regimen, Tuesdays are player’s day off. So it was the day to do it where it would make the least amount of commotion. So I got on an early morning flight which was cancelled at BWI, so I got in a cab to try to get to Dulles in Washington, D.C. and there were two accidents along the way, so I missed that flight and then I got onto a flight that got in at 2 o’clock and then I had a meeting with some of Dan’s support staff at about 3:30 that day and then had the opportunity to meet Chancellor Block and share my vision for the program at his home, which was a thrill.

"In all my years, I’d never been in the Chancellor’s home, so that was kind of a cool thing. Really cool artwork in there [big laugh in the room]. I think it’s a Warhol picture of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, right? Just a monster one; you just want to stare at it. Then I got on a 10:45 flight back, landed at 7 and went right to the office to start the next day’s practice and just go on.

"You’re hinging on every phone call, hoping that it’s good news, hoping you’re still in it. You have to give them their chance to do the process, but you’re also in this island waiting for good news. Fortunately, this past Saturday, the good news came. I never stared at a fax machine longer in my life. ‘The fax is coming Rick’ and I just stared at it. All of a sudden it started to click on and the agreement came across the deal and it didn’t take me long to sign. And it went back and you stare again. I hope they didn’t change their mind. I wish everybody could have the thrill."

>> On whether he will ask for a relaxation of the entrance requirements on behalf of specific players: "My job is to work within the framework of the institution and to do everything I can to compete successfully in a great conference. I certainly understand there’s frustration at times when you see somebody you believe in and they don’t meet the necessary requirements. But rather than spend my time worrying about that, I want to spend my time worrying about all that’s good with UCLA. You only have a limited amount of time. So use it to focus on that which can help you rather than focus on things which will be difficult. The powers-that-be will make those decisions and they will make them with the best interests of this institution. And it’s my job to work within that framework."

>> On whether UCLA should be concerned about taking a chance on him? "No, because I know how I am going to go about this. I know the mistakes I’ve made, I know how I made them and I’m not going to make them again. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to make a mistake. But it’s not going to be because I’m trying to do anything that’s shady or under the table. I’m going to do everything I can as aggressively as I can because this program deserves that.

"As Dan said to me in our talk, ‘I don’t want some robot coach. I want your swagger, if that’s the right term, I want you, but you have to understand you’re going to be under a microscope.’ I said, ‘Dan, I’ve been under a microscope now for a long time and I understand it. Rather than being upset about it, I’m trying to look introspectively about what I can do better the next time.’ Did they take a chance? Only time will tell. I’m hoping it was a really good decision."

>> On whether he will continue to recruit in inner-city Los Angeles: "If I sat in one meeting with Terry Donahue, I sat in 100 . . . ‘there’s no reason to travel to the ends of the Earth if everything we ever needed was right here at home.’ In our meeting with Chancellor Block, he really wants to reconnect with Los Angeles. So I think it’s just a ready-made goal of all of ours to have UCLA be Los Angeles’s university, to be a place where the great student-athletes want to come to compete in the same places that Jackie Robinsons and the Arthur Ashes and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbars and the Kenny Easleys and the Freeman McNeils, where they competed. That’s the job, and I have great relationships with the high school coaches in this area. I’m hopeful of re-connecting very quickly and make sure that this is an open place, that we want very best and brightest."

>> "On the subject of recruit calls – you’re going to be impressed that I know these rules [big laugh in the room] – we’re in a ‘dead period’ currently, though there can only be one phone call. Dan and Bobby made sure the coaches left that phone call to the new head coach and so I get to make those calls this week. This coming weekend becomes a ‘quiet period’ that you can see recruits on campus, but not off-campus. So I’m hopeful that we can encourage a lot of them and their families to come to campus this weekend and so I can get to meet everybody, kind of share my vision for what this is going to be all about and why it makes a heck of a lot of sense for them to stay with their commitment and come to this great institution and that they’re going to have the ultimate college experience.

In the meantime, I’m going to be taking a test to make sure that I’m current with the NCAA rules so that when the time presents, I can get off-campus and go about the work of recruiting."

>> "I got a chance to meet a lot of [the assistant coaches] this morning. Obviously, there are some anxious moments in terms of what their future holds and we just have to deal with that. The hope is that we’ll get a chance to meet with everybody Wednesday and Thursday, certainly no later than Friday and we’ll hopefully have some moves. You don’t need to go so fast that you make hasty decisions. I’ve made hasty decisions in my past and as I said, I learned from them. We’ll take the necessary amount of time and do this the right way."

Roll hurt again

From UCLA Sports Information:

"Junior guard Michael Roll reruptured his plantar fascia in his left foot today in practice and will be out indefinitely. An MRI has been scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 2nd."

However, the news was not all bad:

"Lorenzo Mata-Real returned for a full contact practice today for the first time after straining his left groin in practice on Dec. 26 and missing the UC Davis game on Dec. 29.

"Mustafa Abdul-Hamid also was cleared to practice today, though he will only go for half of practice. Abdul-Hamid suffered a stress reaction in his right foot on Dec. 6 and has missed every practice and the last five games since the injury.

"Darren Collison is practicing today for the first time without the knee brace on his left knee after he sprained his MCL in the first exhibition game on Nov. 2."

Neuheisel I: "the greatest thrill"

A wildly enthusiastic audience at the Morgan Center that included more than a dozen current and former players heard Rick Neuheisel speak and answer questions for about 45 minutes as he was formally introduced as the new Bruin head football coach.

Reflecting on his Bruin career that started as a walk-on and moved slowly toward his final game in which he was the Most Valuable Player of the 1984 Rose Bowl, he said "Today I stand before you experiencing the greatest thrill, to come back and be the head football coach at my alma mater, the greatest university in the land, UCLA."

Neuheisel brought all of the energy, enthusiasm and wit that was expected of him and broke up the audience repeatedly. He also received six ovations during his 12-minute opening remarks. Some highlights:

>> "I can’t thank you enough for that jersey [his no. 10, presented by Dan Guerrero]. It’s not the one I started with at UCLA. When I walked in 1979, they didn’t have a jersey for me, so I got 24X. 24, you’ll recall, for those of you who are great Bruin fans, was Freeman McNeil’s number. Now Freeman and I don’t get confused often, but we had the same number, 24, and then all of a sudden a young guy who was in my same freshman class, a guy by the name of Donnie Fisher went back to Port Arthur, Texas. He was homesick. And so I got his number and for the entire year I was Donnie Fisher, no. 20."

>> He had plenty of thanks to the Bruin coaches who came before him. Of Terry Donahue, for whom Neuheisel played and later became an assistant coach: "I owe him the greatest debt of gratitude, for getting me into this business, for believing in me as a player, believing in me as a coach and encouraging me to pursue this as a career.

"We’re going to try to take back the city in the same way you did in the early 80s and see if we can’t get ourselves into those New Year’s Day games on a regular basis, just like Terry Donahue did."

>> Of his immediate predecessor: "I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Karl Dorrell right now. Karl was a teammate and a great teammate. He wasn’t very talkative. He wore no. 8 and I wore no. 10, so our lockers were that close together and he was a sophomore before he said hello [big laugh in the room].

"I called him immediately upon hearing the news [of his hiring], before it had reached the public because I wanted to him to know that we’re going to carry on his legacy. He meant a great deal to this program and will always mean a great deal to this program. He’s a great man and a great leader and he’ll always be a Bruin. As long as I am in charge of this program, we are going to speak of Karl Dorrell in reverent tones."

>> Of Chancellor Gene Block and Guerrero, Neuheisel said that he appreciated that they were willing to look past his previous errors in judgment and thanked them for believing "that I can do this job and do it in a way that UCLA deserves it to be done, with the highest level of integrity and we can do it in a way that we can all enjoy it and be proud of it and also win, I can’t thank you enough. This is a dream come true for me and my family."

>> He thanked his family at length, starting with his wife Susan and thanking her for her support during five years of being in the football "wilderness." He said he told her that "Tough times don’t last, tough people do and that we were going to get through it." He introduced his three boys, Jerry, Jack and Joe, all of whom were nattily (if not comfortably) attired in khaki pants, white shirts, blue blazers and yellow striped ties.

He broke up the room again when he introduced his parents, Dick and Jane Neuheisel. "How about that, Dick and Jane. I was this close to being named Spot."

And of his sister Nancy, he remembered "We played [Arizona] in that Rose Bowl run in 1983 and we missed a field goal – I’m here to admit to John Lee it was a bad hold, my fault (laugh) – but Nancy was a cheerleader for U of A that day and she came over and even though her team won, she was sorry for me, so thanks for that. Nancy has finally found the error of her ways; she’s moved to California, so she lived here now. It’s a very big family thing for us, it’s home."

>> Of the actual job of being football coach, he said "It’s time now to get to work. I have a sense of calm about this because I have done it before.

"It’s going to be a very good fit for all of us. We’re going to have two rules. One rule is to get the job done, no matter it takes and the second rule is to enjoy each other’s company and laugh every day, because this is a special place.

"I ask for your patience in terms of all the things that need to be done, to make sure we set the foundation for this program, but fortunately for me, a lot of it is already in place, because of my predecessor and because of the fabric that is UCLA."

He ended his opening remarks by saying again "How excited I am to get about the task of taking back the City of Los Angeles and getting even with those guys across town."

Guerrero: "We brought Rick Neuheisel home"

Rick Neuheisel was formally introduced as UCLA’s new head football coach in what was billed as a news conference, but was just as much a pep rally with more than 160 people in a room that was set up with 70 chairs.

UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero was an enthusiastic as anyone had ever seen, saying "Today we have another opportunity to celebrate. We brought Rick Neuheisel home."

He also joked about the deliberate pace of the hiring process after Karl Dorrell was excused on December 3: "I want to thank all of you for your patience as we went through this thing. I looked in the "How to Hire a Football Coach" manual and for some reason, it didn’t say you had to do it in three days, five days or ten days or whatever.

"I can assure you with the highest degree of confidence that we did come up with the right decision. We are thrilled to death to have Rick Neuheisel back at UCLA. We’re forever grateful that he accepted this position and we’re looking forward to what the future will bring."

He then surprised everyone by handing Neuheisel a copy of his no. 10 jersey, which was instantly donned by Neuheisel’s middle son, Jack.

After the session ended, Guerrero added two points in response to questions:

>> "There’s a mitigation clause" in Dorrell’s agreement that would reduce what the university owes him on a dollar-for-dollar basis by what he might be paid in another coaching position. There have been published reports in Texas that Houston Texans coach Gary Kubiak – who coached with Dorrell at Denver – may consider him for the position of offensive coordinator.

>> As to UCLA’s ability to pay enough to keep assistant coaches like DeWayne Walker and others, Guerrero said "We’re giving him [Neuheisel] the resources to be very competitive in the marketplace and I don’t think that’s an issue for us to be honest. Not at all."

Sunday syllabus: the week that was and the week ahead

Hello 2008! The Bruins have a new football coach and basketball is heating up with the start of Pac-10 play:

Baseball:

>> Last week: UCLA junior shortstop Brandon Crawford was tabbed as a pre-season, third-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball this week. Crawford hit .335 with seven home runs and 56 RBI as a sophomore last season. The Bruins open their season Feb. 22 at Jackie Robinson Stadium against Oklahoma.

Football:

>> Last week: Former Bruin quarterback and assistant coach Rick Neuheisel was selected to be the Bruins’s head football coach Saturday after a lengthy search. He called the selection "a dream come true" and will be formally introduced at a news conference Monday on campus.

>> This week: Neuheisel will be trying to secure the services of defensive coordinator and interim head coach DeWayne Walker for the future. After that, he’ll be interviewing the remainder of the existing coaching staff and begin speaking with recruits.

Men’s Basketball:

>> Last week: No. 5-ranked UCLA finished its non-conference schedule at 12-1 with a 76-48 rout of UC Davis on Saturday. The Bruins showcased a balanced offense with four Bruins in double figures, led by guard Darren Collison with 14 points. Freshman center Kevin Love had 13 points and nine rebounds.

>> This week: The Bruins go on the road to start the Pac-10 season against Stanford (11-1) and California (9-2) on Thursday night and Saturday, respectively. It will be only their second and third games on an opponent’s home court, as their three other away games have been on neutral courts.

Men’s Volleyball:

>> This week: Al Scates’s volleyballers head to Hawaii for the Outrigger Tournament to face Ball State on Thursday, Penn State on Friday and host Hawaii on Saturday.

Women’s Basketball:

>> Last week: UCLA (6-7) split its Pac-10 opening weekend, losing Friday to No. 24 Arizona State, 62-59. The Bruins were unable to score in the last 1:35 after freshman guard Darxia Morris gave the team a 59-58 lead. Morris led the Bruins with 14 points; senior forward Lindsey Pluimer and freshman guard Doreena Campbell had 12 each.

However, UCLA defeated Arizona in Tucson, 68-59, behind a sensational performance by freshman forward Nina Earl (pictured). She had 23 points on 8 of 14 shooting, 6 of 7 from the foul line and led the Bruins with 10 rebounds in 38 minutes on the floor. Pluimer added 10 for the Bruins, who cruised home after piling up a 42-30 halftime lead.

>> This week: The Bruins entertain No. 2 Stanford at Pauley Pavilion on Friday and California on Sunday.

Women’s Gymnastics:

>> This week: The Bruin women will be favored in their first event of the season, the Vegas Cup, in Las Vegas on Friday. UCLA returns four All-Americans from its national fourth-place team of a year ago and will face No. 11 Oregon State and No. 18 Arizona State in this week’s matchup.

Women’s Soccer:

>> Last week: Tired of hearing about Bruin sophomore striker Lauren Cheney? Get used to it. She received her second "Player of the Year" award in collegiate soccer this past week from Soccer Buzz magazine. She is still in the running for two other national player of the year honors in the Herrmann Trophy (one of three finalists) and the Honda Award (one of four).

Women’s Swimming:

>> This week: The dual meet season continues for UCLA (5-1) with a match Friday against UC San Diego.

Nina Earl photo courtesy UCLA.

UC Davis-UCLA: Post-Game

In the all-time series, 12-1 UCLA now leads 2-0 as there was a meeting in 1939-40 with the Bruins pulling out a 34-32 win. Other notes:

>> Bruin freshman center Kevin Love had four blocked shots today, a career high. His prior best was one.

>> UCLA had 20 assists on 33 baskets today, tying a seasonal high (Youngstown State).

>> The 37 field-goal attempts by UC Davis were the lowest UCLA has given up in a single game this season (previous low was 44 vs. Michigan State). It’s also the lowest total by UC Davis in a game this season (previous, 43 twice).

Quotes from UC Davis Head Coach Gary Stewart:

"There is no moral victory. We’re kind of disappointed that we couldn’t get the job done. But there are some things that we can build on. This is a good tape for us to evaluate our team.

"This is a great test to play against Division I opponents like UCLA. We’re only going to get better by playing against teams like this. We hope to make strides from this experience.

"The two freshmen, Max Payne and Ryan Silva, got into the heart of the defense and made some good decisions. Overall, we are going to look at this film and take away the positives. We shot 50% against a team like UCLA. That shows us what we’re capable of."

Quotes from UCLA Head Coach Ben Howland:

"UC Davis played tough tonight. They spread us out defensively, by running a Princeton-style offense. I was happy the way we responded, especially in the second half. It’s great to have the non-conference schedule behind us.

"We did a good job forcing turnovers without gambling tonight. I felt our man defense was aggressive and got them to do things they were uncomfortable with. Our 1-and-2 guards (Collison and Westbrook) are some of the most athletic in the country and they did a great job pressuring defensively. I also thought Alfred Aboya did a great job tonight. He plays so hard; I get excited watching him and the others pressure the ball.

"I was also excited with the way Darren [Collison] looked. He was unselfish to a fault and did a good job regaining his conditioning. He should be taking his brace off for practice Monday. I felt that the whole team lost a little bit of their conditioning with the break for Christmas; we will get up to speed by this weekend.

"Mike Roll also did a good job tonight. He had a couple of uncharacteristic passes, but I was most excited about him drawing his first charge ever.

"The Cal and Stanford trip is going be extremely tough. They have four NBA-caliber big men between them. Both teams also have good players around their front court. Stanford is a very solid team that is very well coached. They have some depth this year and their stadium is always a hard place to play in. Cal is very similar and will also be a tough game for us."

UC Davis-UCLA: Second Half

This is a fairly slow game and the Bruins are up 66-39 with 2:56 to play. After the 37-24 halftime, the Bruins went on a 20-3 run  after a Shane Hanson 3-pointer for Davis and extended the lead to 57-30.

>> In the end, UCLA shot 53.2% for the game with a blistering 63.% second half. Davis ended the game at 48.6% and was held to only 8-22 in the second half (36.4%).

>> UCLA's leading scorer was Darren Collison with 14, backed up by Kevin Love with 13 and Josh Shipp and Luc Richard Mbah A Moute with 10 each. Love had nine rebounds to led everyone and UCLA had a 31-16 edge on the boards.

FINAL SCORE: UCLA 76, UC DAVIS 48

UC Davis-UCLA: First Half

This game is pretty slow to start, but the announcement of Rick Neuheisel as head coach got a nice ovation with seven minutes to go in the first half.

>> On the court, the highlight has been a flying right hand facial applied by Josh Shipp flying down the middle of the lane on a fast break with 8:20 to go.

>> The Bruins lead 30-19 with 2:42 to play in the half, shooting only 44.8% from the field. Davis is shooting 61.5% from the floor, however.

>> At the half, UCLA leads, 37-24, shooting 45.7% from the field. Davis shot 66.7% (holy cow!), but had only 15 shots in the first half, compared to 35 for the Bruins. UCLA led in rebounds, 16-8 and the Bruins forced 12 turnovers compared to just five on offense.

>> Luc Richard Mbah A Moute and Darren Collison led the Bruins in scoring with 8 each. The Aggies were led by guard Mark Payne with 7.

Neuheisel: "Walker is my no. 1 recruit"

"It’s been a long process," said new head football coach Rick Neuheisel. "I am elated to accept job as new head football coach at UCLA. It’s a dream come true for me.

"It means the world to me and my family. We are excited about the prospect of coming home."

Neuheisel was direct about his past and what he expects in the near term as he takes over the reins at UCLA:

>> "I missed college football for the last five years it’s something that’s been in my blood for a long time. It’s a thrill for me to return to my alma mater and take over a program that can be and should be one of the best in the country."

>> Neuheisel sais that during his initial interview, he had a lengthy discussion to "set the record straight on exactly what had taken place, where I had made errors in judgment and what I had learned from that.

"I’m not sure you can say anything [to alleviate everyone’s worries]. Talk is cheap; you have to walk the walk. I made it clear I am committed to make sure we do this 100% the right way." He told Guerrero during the process that violations such as those from the past "will never take place again."

He added, "The mistakes I made at Colorado were youthful mistakes, trying to out-hustle other coaches. I just made some silly mistakes. I still feel I can be a very effective recruiter doing it the right way."

>> "I have told Dan that DeWayne Walker is my no. 1 recruit. I am very impressed with the defense he played the last couple of years. That the team played as hard as they did in Las Vegas in the bowl game was impressive. Those are all things we’d love to keep at UCLA.

"I want him to finish what he started; I know he is coveted, sought-after guy. It’s important to make him feel welcome." Neuheisel said he had tried to contact Walker twice thus far, but unsuccessfully.

>> Asked when he would be able to contact recruits – and Neuheisel was well aware of the quality of the class that has been lined up – he said he didn’t know exactly, "but I guarantee I’m going to check to make sure before I do."

Guerrero added that Neuheisel would have to pass a standard NCAA coaches’ exam before he could actually start and joked, "so we’re going to throw the book [NCAA Manual] at him."

>> Asked about whether he was irritated by nicknames such as "Slick Rick," he said: "Slick Rick is not who I am; it happens to rhyme with my first name. Sometimes you don’t have a real say in how you’re termed, but I have big enough shoulders to handle the name-calling. Some of it I deserve."

>> Asked about how he’ll coach the offense, Neuheisel said he hadn’t decided whether he would be the play caller himself, but did say that "you cannot line up in the Pac-10 and not be able to control the ball on the ground and be successful. In my fourth season at Washington in 2002, we got away from that and paid the price. You have to be proficient enough to make the defense stop the run. It’s rare to see a team not have a good run game playing on New Year’s Day."

Neuheisel said he would be finishing up the season with the Ravens tomorrow in their final game of the season with Pittsburgh. "I’ll be able to say my goodbyes to an organization that’s been very good to me," he said, adding that he expects to get to UCLA quickly in order to help the Bruins "get back in the national scene."

A formal news conference has been scheduled for 2 p.m. on Monday.