Small-ball formula has Bruins one win away from title series

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Over the past few weeks, watching UCLA baseball has produced a sense of near-inevitability.

The Bruins’ stellar pitching will keep any game close. They’ll rarely make mistakes. And more often than not, they’ll do just enough to win.

The size of the stage hasn’t changed that. Through two games in the College World Series, they are batting 2-for-27 with runners on base. They have notched one RBI in Omaha. Yet they have scored four runs, beating both LSU and North Carolina State, 2-1.

One more, and they’ll be back in a best-of-three championship series for the second time in four years.

“It’s more mentality for us,” said third baseman Kevin Kramer, who singled in the fifth with bases loaded to score the Bruins’ first run last night. “Like coach says, taking advantage of opportunities. We’re not going to put up any gaudy numbers.” Continue reading →

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UCLA releases full basketball schedule, plays Duke in December

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It’s official. UCLA will play Duke on Dec. 19 at Madison Square Garden.

Exciting as the blue-blooded matchup may be, it’s not one that bodes well for Steve Alford six weeks into his first UCLA season.

The Blue Devils lost three starters (and 47.5 ppg) from last season’s Elite Eight squad, but return promising guards Rasheed Sulaimon and Quinn Cook. They also landed a top-five recruiting class that features elite wing Jabari Parker, who landed on the cover of Sports Illustrated before Andrew Wiggins seized the media’s attention.

Mississippi State transfer Rodney Hood, who averaged 10.3 points as a freshman in 2011-12, will also be eligible.

UCLA has talent too, but still lacks a go-to point guard like Duke has in Cook.

Playing at MSG won’t help the Bruins either. Roundtrip tickets from LAX to JFK start at around $420, while flights from Raleigh cost about half that. Duke fans can also manage an eight-hour road trip up the coast with relative ease.

Other notable nonconference games are at Missouri on Dec. 7, and at home against Alabama on Dec. 28. The two games signal the end and beginning of home-and-home series, respectively.

UCLA will only meet the Arizona and Washington schools once in conference play.

You can see the full schedule after the jump, with away games bolded. Continue reading →

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Pac-12 links: Cal stadium debt a ‘noose around the campus’ neck’

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» Cal’s newly renovated Memorial Stadium has a marvelous press box view of the San Francisco Bay, but the price may be looming, insurmountable debt. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the school would still be short $132 million even if it sold all 2,902 seats. Stagnated at 1,857, Berkeley is now spending $300,000 a year to “professionalize” sales efforts.

The campus had originally planned to raise $270 million of the $321 million cost through ticket sales.

The whole project seemed ill-conceived from the beginning, what with the reliance on non-binding pledges. An absolute face palm of a quote from John Wilton, vice chancellor for administration and finance: “They learned a commitment is not a commitment until you have a binding document. Now we feel we’re better off.”

In other news, the Bears landed 2014 quarterback Luke Rubenzer, a Scottsdale, Ariz., product rated three stars by Rivals.com. He has generated at least one premature comparison to Russell Wilson, which is fine but does little to avert crippling debt.

» Tucson’s city prosecutor dropped domestic violence charges against Arizona running back Ka’Deem Carey, who had been allegedly involved in a December incident with his then-pregnant ex-girlfriend. Carey was an All-American for the Wildcats last season, a card he won’t hesitate to use in the face of trouble.

» Former Washington State athlete and New Orleans Saint Steve Gleason wrote marvelously about his battle with ALS in a guest spot on Peter King’s MMQB. Continue reading →

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Bruins survive LSU with 16th one-run victory

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This is how they love to play.

The Bruins haven’t dominated this season, but that hasn’t stopped the team from reaching the College World Series for the third time in four years. Upon arrival, coach John Savage’s squad showed that small ball works just fine in Omaha too.

Jumping on two errors by No. 4-seeded LSU, UCLA scraped through its CWS opener Sunday evening with a 2-1 victory. The Bruins handed Tigers starter Aaron Nola his first loss of the season, scoring unearned runs in the sixth and eighth inning. Continue reading →

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Father’s Day: What makes a coach’s son?

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For Father’s Day, a short read on what it’s like to grow up as a coach’s son — as it was first published in late November. (Taylor Mazzone has since been promoted to quarterbacks coach, after initially replacing Marques Tuiasosopo as Y receivers coach.)
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Taylor Mazzone has a vision. A beautiful home in a football- crazed town, a wife and kids, and a bit of job security.

Simple conditions, but difficult to come by when you’re vying to become a football coach. Mazzone, a UCLA graduate assistant, is no stranger to the profession’s winding path, the packing boxes and new ZIP Codes. After all, he’s a coach’s son. Continue reading →

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Jerry Rice Jr. to finish collegiate career at UNLV

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Jerry Rice Jr. announced his next destination on Friday, tweeting that he will use his last year of eligibility at UNLV.

The former UCLA receiver, who is graduating Sunday, had already decided to leave prior to the Bruins’ spring practices. He caught nine career passes for 69 yards, 30 of which came in a 42-14 win at Colorado last September.

The son of Hall of Famer Jerry Rice will join a Rebels team that won two games in 2012. UNLV returns wideouts Devante Davis and Marcus Sullivan, rising juniors who caught for 854 and 659 yards, respectively. Each grabbed four touchdowns.

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Anthony Barr, Xavier Su’a-Filo to represent UCLA at Pac-12 Media Day

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Linebacker Anthony Barr and offensive lineman Xavier Su’a-Filo will represent UCLA at next month’s Pac-12 Media Day. Sony Studios Lot in Culver City will host the event on July 26.

Neither is a surprising choice given their status as potential All-Americans, but the conference better make sure the mics are working perfectly: Barr is one of the softest speakers on the team.

The rest of the media day lineup: Continue reading →

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UCLA offers Texas 8th grader Lindell Stone

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UPDATE: There’s been dispute over whether or not UCLA actually offered Lindell Stone, though 2017 athlete Dylan Moses still does have offers from multiple schools. Either way, an offer would have had little binding power.
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After missing out out No. 1 2014 quarterback Kyle Allen, UCLA has extended a hand to another out-of-state signal-caller: 6-foot-2, 190-pound Lindell Stone.

He just completed eighth grade at Dawson Middle School in Southlake, Texas.

Offering middle schoolers isn’t a new phenomenon. USC infamously did it with quarterback David Sills, who committed at 13 years old. The Trojans did it again this week with incoming Upland wide receiver Nathan Tilford. Another 2017 athlete, 6-foot-2 Dylan Moses, has offers from: Alabama, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Ole Miss, Nebraska, Texas, UCLA.

Schools have nothing to lose from early offers and commitments, but one wonders if their time might be better spent. Even as the tactic spreads, projecting the development of young athletes remains a bit of a dice roll.

According to ESPN, Stone hasn’t even personally talked to any Bruin coaches yet; all contact has been through his coach. Obviously, a lot can change before he ever actually signs a scholarship: he might not develop as expected; coaches could leave; the world as we know it could end.

Anyway, here are Stone’s highlights. From eighth grade. Continue reading →

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Gerrit Cole debuts with 3-pitch strikeout, 2-RBI single

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Taking a major-league mound for the first time, Gerrit Cole wasted no time filling his highlight quota.

Two years ago, the Pittsburgh Pirates took Cole first overall out of UCLA, where he struck out 346 batters over three seasons. On Tuesday, he did the same against Gregor Blanco, punching out the the San Francisco Giants leadoff man on three pitches.

Cole also connected for a two-RBI single on his very first at at-bat, giving the Pirates their first two runs in an 8-2 win. He easily outdueled former Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum for the victory, finishing with two strikeouts, no walks, two earned runs and seven hits through 6 1/3 innings.

While his overreliance on his fastball could be a concern going forward, the 22-year-old is a potential star on a club chasing its first winning season since 1992.

“He was impressive,” said UCLA coach John Savage, who watched the game with his team after practice. “I thought he filled up the strike zone. He didn’t get ahead of himself. I think you saw a potential No. 1 starter growing up, maturing. I contribute that to going to college, what he went through here, being a Friday night guy for three years. I think he’s just grown up too.”

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