Some of you may recall about a year ago, when I posted this story about my former Thousand Oaks High teammate – and one of my best friends – Corey Mazza, who had decided to join the United States Marine Corps.

Corey’s beloved grandfather, Gino, had just passed away, and we were all greatly affected. Gino was a wonderful man, still is in our hearts and minds, and even as we watched Corey walk down the aisle with his beautiful wife late last year, we thought of him.

Well, now the day has come for Corey, and he’s handling it better than I am.

Corey is leading a unit to Afghanistan, and in typical Corey fashion, had this to say:

“I am bringing 48 men over and am bringing 48 back. End of story. Thank you for the prayers for our family as we depart on our journey…Semper Fidelis!”

I’m reposting the story of Corey and Gino that I wrote in the Daily News a while back, because it deserves reposting. I’ve never been more proud of a story. I’ve never been more proud of a man.

Come back safely, Corey. We love you. 48-for-48.

Continue reading “OT: Godspeed, 1st Lieutenant Corey Mazza, and Good Luck” »

On Special Teams:
“Jeff is out for the spring, hip surgery 100 percent successful, he’ll be ready to go in the fall. But for the duration of spring the focus will be on Kip Smith and the field goal duties. We’ll work him also as a kickoff guy. Remember also that Kip Smith is a great field goal kicker as well. We’ve got an ace up our sleeve there.”

On the new holder:
“I had asked if Jeff could hold – Jeff is a holder – but they don’t want him to be in way shape or form in harms way, so Alex Masceranas will be the holder for spring football.”

Continue reading “Neuheisel Conference Call Pt. 6” »

On Sean Sheller:
“It was the fair ruling because Sean missed two of his seasons with injury. the NCAA did the right thing and we appreciate that. I know Sean appreciates it. He’s kind of had a second, a rebirth of sorts in terms of his football career. He had some real hard luck early and last year became a starting football player and I know is very excited about extending his career. I’m looking forward to him improving and becoming a real leader for us in front.”

On Glenn Love:
“We want Glenn to have a chance to win a job. Akeem has left and we wish him well, but Glenn being a senior, being a guy who does everything right in the program, I want him to have a chance to win that job. His body is built for a Sam linebacker. He certainly has cover ability. Now its just about the physical portion of the job and being instinctive. We also have Ryan Hoffmeister joining us for the spring and Eric Kendricks who will get a lot of reps at will linebacker.”

Continue reading “Neuheisel Conference Call Pt. 5” »

On Hundley getting too many reps:
“I dont think so. During course of a season you really get more than two quarterbacks practice anyway. With Brehaut and Hundley guys being full go, both will be excited about having as many reps he can get.:

On Hundley getting a chance to start:
“That’s speculative. We’ll know more after we watch him play. He is going to get his chances, thats for sure.”

Continue reading “Neuheisel Conference Call Pt. 4” »

On the use of the F-back:
“The F-back, like I said, there will be multiple personnel groupings. The F is always part of the offense. Is it Barr? Is it John Young, a new tight end? Damien Thigpen? There’s a number of people. Is it Marvray, Embree? The F position will still be a part of the offense, it’s just who’s playing in it.”

On utilizing two-back sets:
“They’ll be times we’ll be in two-backs. You know, Anthony Barr. We want to find out more about Anthony as a running back. We certainly saw the makings of a very talented guy, and want to give him more chances with the ball in his arm.”

Continue reading “Neuheisel Conference Call Pt. 3” »