Answers, Part I

Hey, folks. Finally, the season is just about here, and I can’t wait for it. I’m curious to see how things go. As for the questions, again, there were a bundle of them. I will have 12 sets of answers today, and few more that spill into Saturday.
Without further ado, here is the first set of answers:

how would you describe the relationship between Jordan Farmar and Ben Howland when Jordan was a Bruin
Farmar wanted to play as much as possible, and Howland played him as much as possible. They got along fine. Both are ultra-competitive guys and sometimes disagree about things, but the common goal was to win, and they got along fine.

How do you see the Tenn. game unfolding? What do you think UCLA’s plan of attack on off/def will be?
I see UCLA being conservative on offense and trying to win the field position battle. I am not looking at a wide open game, and I think the Bruins defense will try to keep away from allowing the big play. As far as the game plans, since I am at practice I know what the game plan is, but part of being at practice is the agreement writers do not divulge game plans.

I heard rumors that some of the players didn’t take to Jordan to well, which shocked me because i felt Jordan embodied what a leader is supposed to be. What was the relationship with Farmar and the other UCLA players?
Some players got along with him, and others did not. Farmar is an intense competitor at everything he did, and he wasn’t shy about blaming teammates for problems, even if it appeared like Farmar may have made the mistake. I don’t think everyone was lining up to hang out with him afterward, but he had friends on the team.

what do the familes of recruits say when coaches talk about thier sons in media. What was the forceirs’ reaction after hearing, from the coaching staff, that Chris is not picking up the offense?
I don’t know. I don’t talk to the families of players about everything. But I can’t imagine what Forcier’s parents could say since Chris, himself, said it was true and he needed to work harder off the field to learn the offense.

Is Ben Howland a UCLA football fan? We know that Rick Neu loves college basketball, do you think we may see Howland at a football game anytime?
Howland goes to most of the football games at the Rose Bowl. In fact, he often stops by the press box to say hello. He’s a huge college football fan, and the only time he misses a home game is when he is out recruiting, or his team is practicing or playing.

Rick Neu did not recruit with great consisentcy at CU or UW. Do you think this speaks to Rick as a recruiter? And do you think that Neu will ineviatable recruit better at UCLA simply because the talent pool available in California is superior?
I’m curious on this as well because I do not think he recruited great at his two previous stops, but he’s had plenty of time to take a step back and analyze everything about the programs he ran. I think it is much easier to recruit SoCal when the school is in Socal, and the talent pool should help, but there are plenty of other factors at work, like talent evaluation and also finding players who can make it academically at UCLA.

Its apparent that Walker is going to get a college head coaching gig within the next few years, but are the rumors true that he could possibly leave for the NFL as a D-Coordinator?
I don’t deal in rumors, but I could see him leaving for an NFL defensive coordinator’s job. That is usually a big-time paying job and could lead to an NFL head coaching job. That said, I don’t know if teams would think he is ready for coordinate in the NFL after spending three years as a college coordinator.

if the opportunity to cover Rutgers became available, would you leave your UCLA job?
Nope. I love Rutgers and can be a fan. Getting involved covering a team I care so much about on an emotional level is not something I want to do.

ever consider departing from the Daily News and managing your own independent blog? You have the popularity to do it
No, because a big part of the reason I can get the information I get is because I am employed by the Daily News, and the respect the newspaper gets from folks I talk to.

When is the Daily News going to incorporate video into this blog? Is that something you have resisted?
I want it to happen, and have suggested it, but so far there has been little movement on it. Also, I don’t think the way to do it is for me to have a camera and do the interviews. I think the best way is for someone else to shoot the video.