Five questions: Arizona Daily Star’s Daniel Berk talks Wildcats

Sitting near the top of the Pac-12 South, Arizona has quickly become the conference’s biggest surprise. On the other side of the Rose Bowl this Saturday is UCLA, arguably the conference’s biggest disappointment. Both have six wins, but the former has earned its record in far more convincing fashion than the latter. Daniel Berk from the Arizona Daily Star answered five questions about the No. 14 Wildcats.

Nearly three years in now, how has Rich Rodriguez measured up to what most Arizona fans initially expected? How much did the upset of Oregon earlier this month feel like a turning point for the program?

I think two-plus years in, he’s ahead of where most people thought he’d be. The cupboard was pretty bare when he got here other than Ka’Deem Carey, and he managed to win 16 games in two seasons and win back-to-back bowl games. I think fans were willing to be patient and let him build something, but the expectations changed and were raised going into this season after having some success the first two seasons. I think the win over Oregon was significant, but I’m not sure if it was viewed as a turning point, because Arizona has gotten some big wins like that before, but hasn’t backed them up the following weeks. So I think some fans have been waiting for a letdown game. I think a win Saturday would be more of a turning point with some of the recent struggles UA has had with UCLA. A win Saturday would also set Arizona up pretty nicely with the remainder of its schedule.

How has Rodriguez kept the Wildcats’ offense firing despite cycling through a different quarterback each year?

He’s a quarterback guru and knows how to get more out of guys at that position than most coaches in the country. Few, if any, thought B.J. Denker was a Pac-12 quarterback and he turned him into one in less than two seasons. Anu Solomon certainly had some talent coming out of Bishop Gorman High School and had other options, but the fact that he’s playing as well as he is so early in his career is both a surprise and a credit to Rodriguez and quarterbacks coach Rod Smith. Continue reading “Five questions: Arizona Daily Star’s Daniel Berk talks Wildcats” »

Jim Mora hopes UCLA can avoid distractions of ‘Internet and Facebook and Twitter’

Given UCLA’s inconsistent play this season, it’s not surprising that head coach Jim Mora opened his post-practice media session on Thursday by preaching the need to “find the next level.”

Mora talked about the need for the Bruins to focus, and for younger players to adjust to stiffer competition as well as a new environment. That involves, well, thinking a bit more.

“This generation is so easily distracted because of all the access to the Internet and Facebook and Twitter,” he said. “When we were kids, you had to think about stuff. Nowadays, I don’t know that kids have to think about kids for as long as we used to and process them. My point to them is to put that stuff away and think about what we’re doing here. don’t go immediately to the distraction. we have a practice — think about what just happened in the practice instead of going to pick up your phone and looking at the latest Instagram photos.

“That’s a challenge with this generation. I think the’re doing it. I think it’s gradual. You build it. But they’re starting to understand it. I hope they are.”

“I think you guys understand what I mean,” he continued. “You watch kids these days — I watch my own kids — and in the middle of a conversation with them, they’re looking at their phone. We didn’t do that. We used to focus in and talk and comprehend and put things into action. That’s a battle. I’m sure every college coach in America — every teacher in America — faces the same thing.”

Paul Perkins on verge of becoming UCLA’s 13th 1,000-yard rusher

Paul Perkins runs past cornerback Kenneth Crawley for a 92-yard touchdown in the first quarter of UCLA's 40-37 win at Colorado on Oct. 25. (Getty Images)

Paul Perkins runs past cornerback Kenneth Crawley for a 92-yard touchdown in the first quarter of UCLA’s 40-37 win at Colorado on Oct. 25. (Getty Images)

Paul Perkins might not be the flashiest running back around, but the redshirt sophomore is just four yards away from becoming UCLA’s 13th 1,000-yard rusher.

He’ll likely hit that mark on his very first carry at the Rose Bowl this Saturday. The last two Bruins to reach the milestone were all-time leading rusher Johnathan Franklin (in both 2012 and 2010) and Chris Markey (2006).

Perkins is currently second in the Pac-12 with 124.5 yards per game, which puts him on pace to rush for 1,618 yards through the regular season plus a bowl game. That would be the second-best single-season mark in school history, behind Franklin’s 1,734.

See the full list of UCLA’s all-time 1,000-yard seasons below: Continue reading “Paul Perkins on verge of becoming UCLA’s 13th 1,000-yard rusher” »

VIDEO: Gyorgy Goloman talks about adjusting to Los Angeles

A year ago, Gyorgy Goloman had yet to play in a U.S. high school game. Now the 6-foot-10 Hungarian native is practicing with the UCLA men’s basketball team, hoping for a spot in a crowded frontcourt rotation.

He’s also been acclimating to his new home.

“It’s not hard to adjust to Los Angeles,” Goloman said, smiling. “But yeah — Hungary is a whole different world. It’s hard to explain without experiencing it. But I like it a lot here.”

He talked to reporters about what he missed most about his homeland, his favorite American foods, as well as who he thinks he compares to in the pros.