What seems more awkward is Neuheisel’s story about giving the UCLA administration a list of things that the program needed if it hopes to compete at the highest level, before this season began. Neuheisel says a football facility tops that list and says that programs around the country — read: UCLA — need to set their expectation level and then supply the necessary resources to attain those expectations. Whether Slick Rick makes a good point or appears to be deflecting responsibility for the shortcomings of his tenure in Westwood is for you to decide.

Rick Neuheisel joined The Dan Patrick Show to discuss how he was informed that he was being let go as head coach of the UCLA football team, the decision to coach the Pac-12 title tilt despite the writing being on the wall for him personally, if he would have fired himself based on his teams’ performances, how he was informed that he wouldn’t coach a potential BCS Bowl Game berth were UCLA to defeat Oregon, if he believes that UCLA is all-in as an institution in terms of investing the resources necessary to compete at the highest level of college football, what the program needs most to get over the hump, if he expects to coach next season, being humbled by his latest gig, and whether he’d take Andrew Luck or Matt Barkley first if he was drafting in the NFL.

How were you informed of what was going to happen?:

“On Sunday morning, following the nightmare loss to USC, we had a television shoot to promote the championship game. Kevin Frazier was the studio host and he said, ‘OK, now we’re going to talk about the L.A. Times story.’ I said, ‘Forgive me, I live in a bunker. What L.A. Times story?’ He said there were sources close to the program that said that the decision had been made. So I called over to our Associate Athletic Director and said, ‘Is this true?’ He said, ‘I haven’t heard anything.’ … We set up a meeting for Monday and Dan informed me that it indeed was true and they’re going to go in a different direction.”

Did you have a choice when it came to the decision to coach the Pac-12 title game and perhaps a bowl game?:

“My recollection is they asked me to. But if they hadn’t, I would’ve asked to. I have preached all year long to my team, when we struggled, that tough times don’t last, tough people do. You’ve got to fight through. We’ve had a goal to fight for this championship and here we are with this opportunity — by hook or by crook — and I wanted to finish. I was thankful for the opportunity to do just that.”

What if you won the Pac-12 Championship?:

“It would be a great game, wouldn’t it? … UCLA has got to move on. I probably won’t be a part of [a possible bowl game], but it’d be neat to send the team off in the direction like that.”

So you wouldn’t coach in a possible bowl game?:

“That’s what I was informed, yeah.”

Would you have fired you?:

“I understand this business and the perception of this business. I think, too often administrators are caught in that and feel like they have to make decisions based on the perceptions that exist out there. I think there was certainly enough, within the program, if you’re really looking inside at what we were dealing with and how we responded, to make a case for another year. My contract is for another year. We knew when I took this job that it was going to be tough sledding. … I have no regrets and I’m not bitter. I understand the business.”

Is UCLA all-in to be a football power and stack up with USC?:

“I was asked this year what we needed to get and I gave them a list of things that needed to be done to compete with the powers. I think you make a very good point and I think that point is made probably across the country. You have to decide what your expectation level is and then you have to meet that with the resources necessary to meet that expectation level.”

What was the number one thing on that list?:

“Well, we need a facility. We need a football building that speaks to our commitment to football. Years ago, the dream was to … have all 22, 24 sports to be together. In this day and age, despite all the success of those other sports, football is its own entity because it’s the driver of the financial engine of athletic departments. You don’t want to take a knife to a gunfight. … I think the next guy will have, hopefully, the resources necessary to turn this thing around. And when I say that, I don’t want to make it sound like I didn’t make mistakes. There are certain things that could’ve been better from the coaching standpoint.”

Do you expect to coach somewhere next season?:

“I’d love to. I’m going to take some time to figure out what the next chapter is.” Have you been contacted?: “I was contacted by The Dan Patrick Show.”

Is the whole thing humbling?:

“It’s incredibly humbling, but you know what? It wasn’t for a lack of effort. I think everybody does this when they’re confronted with this is the end and failure is going to be how this is termed. I think you look back and say, ‘What would I have done differently?’ Given all the information I had at the time I made all my decisions, I can’t look in the mirror and say, ‘You dumb son of a gun.’”

If you were drafting in the NFL, would you take Matt Barkley or Andrew Luck?:

“They are both fantastic players. Luck gets just a slight edge, and the reason is he’s a better athlete in the pocket. He’ll make more plays when protection breaks down. But Barkley … they’ve done a great job of coaching his tail up.”

Listen to Rick Neuheisel on The Dan Patrick Show here

UCLA is optimistic about the upcoming season despite barely breaking the top-50 recruiting class.  In three seasons at UCLA, Neuheisel had never brought in a recruiting class ranked lower than 14^th, but a lousy record and a heavy turnover on the coaching staff took a toll on the recruiting trail.  He managed to assemble what looks like another great coaching staff, but Neuheisel will have to work with two new coordinators and develop a workable chemistry in a short period of time.

Rick Neuheisel joined WQXI in Atlanta to talk about how recruiting went this year, what direction he is going on the offensive side of the ball and whether they will continue running the Pistol offense, and if they have an up-and-coming player that is going to take over playing quarterback sometime soon.

How recruiting went this year:

“You know what, it went pretty well.  We had a tough season and I made some changes to the coaching staff, so you are always worried about what kind of impact that can have on your class, but towards the end we landed a couple of really important guys on both sides of the offensive and defensive line and had a guy that we thought we were almost going to lose to our arch-nemesis that decided to stay with us.  It all turned out good for us.”

What direction he is going on the offensive side of the ball and whether they will continue running the Pistol offense:

“Well it is an interesting question.  We decided a year ago to try to really commit ourselves to trying this pistol offense with respect to the running game.  We felt like we threw the ball pretty well, we were in the top-half of the conference, I think he finished third in the conference in throwing from the year before and finished 7-6 and gotten ourselves into a bowl game so we were ready to take that next step but we had to have our running game.  We looked around and saw the pistol.  Nevada’s offense was doing really well and running the ball unbelievably well.  We went and studied.  Chris Ault had kind of given us the keys to the kingdom and let us kind of come and study and so forth, so we went with it and it was a very successful experiment in regard to the run.  We ended up with an over 4.4 yard per carry, which was the highest it had been at UCLA in the last 15 years.  We had ranked 19^th in the country in explosives, which are runs over 10 yards, so we had some big plays and helped us beat programs like Texas and so forth, but we somehow in doing it lost our way throwing the football and could not even come close to what he had generated the year before with virtually the same players…”

How impressed he was with Oregon’s offense last season:

“You have to give a lot of credit to Coach Kelly.  Chip, remember his first game at Boise State, LeGarrette Blount punched the kid and he had to suspend the kid for the year that was his first game.  He probably wondered what the heck he had gotten himself into.  Since that time he has gone to a Rose Bowl and a championship game, so things have turned out pretty well for him.  They have done a great job and there are a number of programs around the country that have tried to study them to figure out just exactly how they did it.  They are fast and they are well coached.  You have to give them credit.”

If they have an up-and-coming player that is going to take over playing quarterback sometime soon:

“Well we talked about Kevin Prince just a little bit ago.  Kevin was our quarterback two years ago and as a freshman I thought he did really well.  He started off pretty slow but then led us to a win in Austin, TX, and I thought he was going to have a great season.  Unfortunately, he hurt his knee in that game and was lost to us after one more game of trying to come back.  Richard Brehaut then took over and I thought Richard did a nice job of taking over in a tough spot, had some real good games and made some plays that showed that he can play this game too.  So those two are coming back and then we have got a young man named Brent Hundley, who we recruited out of Arizona, that I think has all the tools to be a very, very special player.  He came in early.  He has been here for a quarter now and then go on spring break and be back here for spring ball, and so I am excited to watch him work.  Those three guys are probably going to get the lion’s share of the work and then Nick Crissman who has had some shoulder problems will also try to get himself back in the mix, so we will just watch and see how that all develops.”

Rick Neuheisel with Pollack & Bell on 790 The Zone in Atlanta

Ben Howland joined Fox Sports Radio with Petros and Money to talk about the turnaround the team has made since their slow start, what the atmosphere was like over the weekend against Arizona, what he thinks of the Pac-10 Tournament, and how important it is to take momentum into the NCAA Tournament.

On the turnaround the team has made since the slow start:

“We’ve improved throughout the year. We’re a very young team and we don’t have a senior in the program. We have a bunch of young players that have continued to improve through just getting experience. They have continued to work hard, they’ve got a great attitude, the chemistry is good, they like each other, we’ve had good leadership from Malcolm Lee, Jeremy Anderson, Lazeric Jones, and we’re playing our best basketball of the year right now, which is what you want to be doing heading into March. That’s what it’s all about. Hopefully we can continue to improve and grow. We have made some changes in terms of our scheme which has really helped us. Our big kid inside, Josh Smith, who is just a freshman has really come on the last half of the season and is playing really good basketball in the low post which is really important for us. There’s only a few really good low post players and they’re hard to get.”

What the atmosphere was like this past weekend against Arizona:

“It was really a special day for us on Saturday. We were playing the 10^th ranked team in the country in Arizona who is first place in the conference and having a really good year. They honored the 1971 National Championship and all the former players that were a part of that team. It was really a special day and to play our best game of the year, which we did on Saturday, both ends of the floor for 40 minutes was very exciting for our fans and our players. Then to have Tyler Trapani, the great grandson of John Wooden, make the last basket in the history of the building in its current state before we remodel it next year was really special for everyone close to the program, who follows UCLA basketball, and it was really touching and moving for me. Coach Wooden’s daughter Nan was there and to have her grandson make that basket was special and really emotional.”

His thoughts on the Pac-10 Tournament:

“I think the tournament is great and it’s just getting more and more momentum. Having it downtown here at the Staples Center is great. I think it’s going to be an exciting tournament this year. All ten teams are invited. I love the tournament. It’s an exciting time of year, everybody is in it this year, it’s a culmination of the conference season, and it leads into March Madness. It’s a big deal and I think our conference is really promoting it well.”

Whether or not it is important to take momentum into the NCAA Tournament:

“Absolutely. That’s why we’re now in March and this may be the toughest road trip in the country. Washington lost their first home game in over a year on Sunday night against Washington State, their archrival, and so they’re going to be really hot coming off a loss. It’s going to be a tough game. Washington State has got a very good team. They can beat anybody in our conference on any given night and has a chance to get to the NCAA Tournament. These are going to be tough games for both the Bruins and the Trojans and we’re going to have to play really well to have success.”

Listen to Ben Howland on Fox Sports Radio here

The first meeting with the Huskies was a nightmare for coach Sean Miller and Arizona. Isaiah Thomas scored 22 points, handed out 10 assists and grabbed six rebounds as Washington handed the Wildcats one of just four losses on the season.

Arizona hosts Washington State tonight, but will likely hold a one-game lead over UCLA in the conference standings when it hosts Washington on Saturday. The Huskies entered today 1.5 games back. Win on Saturday and the final two weeks will be one wild ride.

Sean Miller joined KJR in Seattle with Dave “Softy” Mahler to discuss his sophomore sensation Derrick Williams, the race for Pac-10 Player of the Year, the upcoming pivotal weekend in the conference and if he is surprised only one Pac-10 team is ranked.

On sophomore Derrick Williams, who is averaging 19 points and 8 rebounds per game:

“Derrick, he’s a one-man wrecking crew in terms of getting to the foul line. I’ve never been around a player that just has such a knack of getting fouled. You guys know that fouls, on our end it gives us points. But on our opponents’ end, it has a way to getting into a second line of a team and taking good players and putting them on the bench.”

Who is the Pac-10 Player of the Year?:

“I think there’s a few guys, but one of the fun parts with six games, or five games, remaining in the season, to me the champion of the conference has to get the most credit. I think if Washington is able to win our regular season championship … and you look at the role Isaiah Thomas has played, he’d be a heavy favorite. If we would be fortunate to win the conference, you certainly would have to give Derrick Williams a lot of credit. Ditto to UCLA on their end.”

If it feels like a pivotal weekend in Pac-10 play:

“I think it’s a big week for everybody just because you’re no longer dealing with a half a season or a lot of different variables and games left. … You have a lot of information gathered, so to speak, and then you have a four-game season. … We’ll know a lot more after this weekend and who plays well this weekend and is successful will determine the next two weeks.”

Is he surprised only one Pac-10 team is ranked?:

“Yes, but I’ll tell you that I have a feeling that there will be more than one ranked when it means the most, which is in a couple of weeks. … Washington is a great team and they’re a great team nationally. They’ve proven that by winning in the NCAA Tournament a year ago.”

Listen to Sean Miller on KJR in Seattle here

Neuheisel joined ESPN Radio Los Angeles to talk about his team’s ‘pistol’ offense that amassed over 200 yards of rushing against the Longhorns, the team’s continued struggles in the passing game out of the formation, what the ‘pistol’ offense is exactly, how it’s similar yet different to what the Oregon Ducks run in Eugene, and his deaf running back Derrick Coleman, who nearly racked up 100 yards on the ground this past Saturday.

On UCLA’s ‘pistol’ offense that racked up plenty of rushing yardage in the win, but left plenty to be desire in the passing department:

“You know what? Let me say this to you – we’re not sure. We’re neophytes. We knew we needed to generate more running yards, we had to be able to control the line of scrimmage, and there are some other weapons that don’t necessarily show up on the scoreboard. One is time of possession, one is field position. And when you can run the football, and when you can generate first downs….and the other one is wearing teams down. Because you’re out there and you’re taking on blocks, and you’re taking on blocks, and you’re taking on blocks, and the time of possession is starting to mount, it’s hard to sit in there and want to go toe to toe. So you have to keep preaching the physicality of the game. We’ve had success running the football through the first portion of the season, every time out. We’ve unfortunately not been great in the turnover margin. But with respect to pounding it we’ve done well. We all agree we’ve got to be better throwing it, but as that game wore on, and we were able to control the ball, control the clock, control the field possession, it wasn’t necessary to do it. Now, we want to make sure all these other great, talented kids on our team get a chance to touch the ball. We’ll keep working towards that, but for a first third of the season, it’s been okay. We’ve just got to figure out the yin and the yang of when to mix the throws into it.”

On what the ‘pistol’ offense is in a nutshell to those who may not be aware of the term:

“Well it’s basically as is the case with any option football, it’s adding one more to the numbers of the offense. You’ll hear often times on television, the talking heads, people talk they’re going to plus-one ya, they’re going to add a safety to the box, things of that nature. Basically all that is is the defense adding one more guy than the offense has to block. But when the quarterback becomes the runner, or has the ability to run the football, then you’ve now equaled the numbers. And the more you work on the slight of hand, and the ball faking, and so forth, the more you create a little hesitation for the defense. And when the defense has to be more still than just aggressive hitting the gap knowing that they have one extra, then you can add some thrust to the deal. So if you preach the physicality, and you get at the ball handling and that kind of stuff, when they add to the box, then there comes some great opportunities on the outside to throw it. And it’s just finding that balance before you can become really proficient at it.”

On if there’s a lot of similarities between his offense and the one deployed by Oregon:

“Yeah there is. From a  conceptual standpoint it’s certainly very similar because their quarterback is certainly a weapon. So your numbers, you’ve got equal numbers there. They are a more lateral team. Their back for the most part, not always, but most of the time is off-set and is running lateral, sideways on the field. So they get a lateral stretch and their quarterback becomes a vertical weapon. When Masoli was there, he was a huge weapon running up inside. And their read, meaning the defender that they leave unblocked that their quarterback reads as to whether it’s a keep or read decision – they probably change that up more than we do, they read interior defensive tackles and things of that nature. But they’re further along. Mike Bellotti, when he decided to change offenses, he went and hired a guy that had been doing that his whole life in Chip Kelly and it’s obviously paid off as Coach Kelly’s been very, very successful.”

On Derrick Coleman, his mostly deaf running back that had a big game against Texas:

“You just have to remember, most of the time when you’re coaching a running back, you’re behind them. They’re hitting the hole and then you’re trying to tell them what he’s doing, you’re yelling at him as he’s going up through there. You have to wait for him to turn around because he’s an expert lip reader. But you have to be sure that he can see your mouth. And the other thing you have to do is the quarterback has to be aware that Derek’s in the game because if we’re changing plays and he’s standing behind you, you’ve got to turn around and make sure he sees what we’re doing. But we also tell Derek, don’t be bashful now, go pat him on the head and tell him you need to know what the heck we’re changing to. He’s a remarkable young man, he got hurt the other day, and had a little concussion and neck sprain. But this is important to him; he wanted to be back and came back against one of the top-1o teams in the country and runs for just under 100 yards, and made three big tackles on special teams. So I think he’s got a future. I think he can play after his collegiate days.”

On how this win changes the trajectory of the remainder of this season:

“Well, it has everybody buzzing. But we have to make sure that buzz doesn’t become something that’s false bravado and false confidence. We are the same team, same guys that were being maligned after losing to Stanford in a horrendous game. And we’ve got to figure out how to make sure we keep the standard that we’ve set the last two weeks in terms of the intensity with which we play. And I’ll be disappointed if we don’t come out and play with everything we’ve got this weekend, even though the buzz might not be the same because it’s not Texas. Washington State will be using us as an example of their ability to turn their fortunes and it starts with belief. So I’m very excited about getting out to the practice field tomorrow and making sure our guys know that if you want to keep tasting this stuff, here’s the cost. And hopefully we’ve got a hungry team.”

Listen here to Neuheisel with Mason & Ireland on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles

Steve Young didn’t win a Heisman, but he is a Hall of Famer. Philip Rivers didn’t win college football’s grandest award, but he is one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL right now. Ty Detmer did win the Heisman, but an NFL career never matriculated from it. Only Carson Palmer used Chow’s tutelage to win a Heisman and become a Pro Bowl quarterback at the next level.

Now with a chance to start for the Arizona Cardinals, Matt Leinart has a chance to join Palmer. Or Detmer. What’ll it be?

UCLA offensive coordinator Norm Chow joined ESPN Radio Los Angeles with Mason and Ireland to discuss the biggest challenge right now for his Bruins’ offense, the loss of center Kai Maiava to broken ankle, the most important attribute of a quarterback, the NFL struggles of Matt Leinart, why some of his understudies succeed in the NFL and some don’t, Leinart’s accuracy in throwing downfield and what it will take for UCLA to have a successful season.

On his biggest challenge with the UCLA offense:

“Probably the football season (laughs). I’m kidding, We have had a good few weeks of practice. It’s staying healthy. Unfortunately we’ve been snake-bit a little bit with injuries. Injuries happen to a lot of programs, it’s just the nature of the game. We’d like to get to a point in our program where we have the depth [we need] and right now we’re not [there].”

On losing center Kai Maiava for most of the year:

“It’s big because Kai is not only our physical leader but our emotional leader. He brought a lot of toughness to us. He brought a lot of knowledge to us. He knew the center position and knew all the calls that he had to make. And off the field he was an emotional, spiritual leader that we really need to keep the team together. Other guys have to take up that spot.”

On the most important attribute for a quarterback:

“I think it’s just the smarts. Someone that can take over a game, someone that can show leadership, someone that can get out of a bad call, get out of a bad look. We make a call and anticipate a certain defense and then see something completely different and his ability to get out of that. I think that’s the common thread amongst all the good quarterbacks — the ability to think and make adjustments.”

On why some of his quarterbacks make it at the next level and some don’t and whether he feels Matt Leinart will make it:

“I tell you what, don’t write [Matt Leinart] off. I’m still convinced that he will have an extremely, extremely successful career. You know, he started out well and then whatever happened, happened, but I still think he’s going to have a terrific career. … I’ve talked with him over the offseason, I know how hard he’s working, how much this means to him. I don’t have any question in my mind that he’s going to be successful at that level. … I know Matt Leinart will be a success in the NFL because he has that ability to do the things that are necessary, just as Philip Rivers did. Carson [Palmer] got a chance to sit and learn from [Jon] Kitna and Philip got a chance to learn from [Drew] Brees. Matt was thrown right into the fire, then he had a chance to sit behind [Kurt] Warner and now it’s his turn to take it over.”

On Leinart’s confidence, particularly in throwing accurately downfield:

“I don’t know that, but that would surprise me because one of Matt’s big assets in his accuracy. I’m not so sure you can teach accuracy. You teach footwork and you teach velocity and all that. I’m not so sure you can teach accuracy and I always thought Matt Leinart was very accurate with his throws.”

On what would constitute a successful season at UCLA:

“If you’re looking at wins and losses, I have no idea. I think success comes with when our guys are playing as well as they can play. The ball bounces kind of funny. … We were 7-6 last year and we have to do better than that. So if you want to assign a number, I’m sure it would 8-4, 9-3, whatever. … We feel like we’re a lot better.”

Listen to the interview with Norm Chow on ESPN Radio Los Angeles here (Interview starts just after the 20-minute mark)

One of the teams that’s hoping to take advantage of that situation is UCLA. Despite being picked to finish eighth in the conference by the voters, UCLA Head Coach Rick Neuheisel is very confident that he can elevate his football team to the top of the conference and build off their terrific run at the end of last season.

Rick Neuheisel joined XX Sports Radio in San Diego with Darren Smith to talk about how tough UCLA’s schedule is this season, whether or not his team can exceed expectations, and talks about how sick he is of answering questions about Lane Kiffin and USC.

On how tough the schedule is this year for UCLA:

“It has been regarded as one of the top two or three toughest in the country. You’ve got Bill Snyder back at Kansas State, he’s had another year to recruit, and he’s one of the great junior college recruiters in the country. Then you have a very, very talented Stanford team with their quarterback Andrew Luck.  Then Houston with Case Keenum. I was hoping he was gonna be in the NFL Draft last year but he decided against that. So that’s a very tough challenge. Imagine going from playing Stanford’s offense that ran the power like 12 straight times against USC last year to a team that won’t even have a back in the backfield. It’s a unique challenge for our coaching staff and the players, but the good thing about a schedule like that is that it gets everybody’s attention. It’s not hard to motivate them in the weight room during the summer months so our guys are eager to get going.”

On elevating the Pac-10 to an elite conference again:

“Those people don’t travel too much. They don’t go out and see what’s going on in the SEC. When we went to play Tennessee there were 102,000 people signing rocky top in unison literally singing rocky top. It was a spectacle and that goes on at every venue in that part of the country. There’s no reason we can’t get there on this side. We just have to continue marketing ourselves and creating an event that people can’t see themselves missing. Certainly the caliber of the athlete is up to snuff. All you have to do is look at NFL rosters to see that, but we have to go out and brand ourselves as the top spot rather than just saying we’re just stuck in the time zone that’s inconvenient.”

On how he feels about his team’s chances in the Pac-10:

“There’s no question that everybody feels very good about their chances in this conference the last time we go as the Pac-10. Every game is going to be close, every game’s gonna be hard fought, so if you’re well coached, you don’t beat yourself, and you have a good kicking game…and fortunately that’s a huge strength for us, you’re gonna be tough to beat and that’s where we’ve got to start.”

On whether or not he feels sorry at all for Lane Kiffin:

“No. He’s got a great job. It’s a tremendous opportunity for him to weather the adversity. Adversity comes with these jobs. You don’t necessarily always know when it’s coming but every time you hit an adverse situation it’s an opportunity to show how you can navigate it and this is a tremendous opportunity for him.”

Listen to Rick Neuheisel on XX Sports Radio in San Diego here

Being USC’s rival is not an easy task.  As you can imagine, both UCLA and USC seem to fight over the same blue chip recruits year in and year out, but things may have changed since last Thursday.  Recruits usually choose USC over UCLA because they want to play for a National Championship and want to have a chance to play in the NFL.  Now that USC will be banned from playing in bowl games for the next two years, these recruits will have to decide whether UCLA will give them the best option.  It will be up to Neuheisel and his staff to try and figure out a way to use USC’s sanctions to their advantage and lure athletes to come to UCLA and play football for the Bruins.  In ’08, Neuheisel bought a page in the L.A. Times for a large advertisement that read, “The Football Monopoly in Los Angeles is Officially Over.”  The chance is here and the time is right but will Neuheisel be able to capitalize?

Rick Neuheisel joined the Dan Patrick Show to talk about how he thinks he is going to use USC’s punishment to his benefit, how close he was monitoring the possible Big 12 and Pac 10 merger, and what he thinks about Utah joining the Pac 10 and whether he thinks it is a good fit.

How he reacted when he heard the news about USC:

“It had been so long and had been so many rumors about it, I just kind of took the news in stride.  The idea that there was going to be some sort of sanction.  It had been well documented around here but I don’t think it changes the game very much for what we have to do and that it what I focus on and the things that we have to do.”

How he thinks he is going to use USC’s punishment to his benefit:

“I don’t think we try to use it to our benefit.  I think we just try to do the best we can.  We have been competing against USC for every recruit since I arrived here.  It is up to the recruits to decide what that means to them and what they decide whether that comes into play, they make their decision between the two.”

On using USC’s violations to his advantage when he talks with recruits:

“I don’t have to use it against them.  What I get to do is just talk about the two universisites.  The realities of what the two universities have going for them are apparent to the recruits.  The recruits get to decide what is the best situation for them.”

What he thinks is more painful for a program: taking away scholarships or bowl games:

“That is an interesting question.  It would probably be best posed to Alabama, who was the last team to have faced this sort of sanction.  I think reduction of scholarships is a hard pill to swallow.”

How close he was monitoring the possible Big 12 and Pac 10 merger:

“I was like all other people watching ESPN.  It was fascinating to watch.  I am thrilled that Colorado is in the Pac 10.  Having coached there I think it is a great school and a good fit for the Pac 10 conference.  I was interested to see how the rest of it would fall into place.  It may be down with it for this year but I don’t think it is down forever.  I think eventually that these conferences, just as they almost did, will come into play.  That is my own personal opinion.”

Rick Neuheisel on the Dan Patrick Show on changing landscape of Pac 10

Kareem Abdul Jabbar joined ESPN Radio in New York with Michael Kay to talk about the passing of John Wooden, whether or not the lessons he learned from Coach Wooden have carried over into his personal life, and also chimes in on the first two games of the NBA Finals.

On the loss of John Wooden:

“Yeah, it’s kinda funny Michael.  Over the past couple of months we saw this coming and you kinda scale yourself for it, but no amount of forewarning can really remove the sense of loss that we just lost a very great man.”

On the idea that he was more of a teacher and motivator than a screamer and yeller:

“No you got it right.  He was a teacher.  He had the game broken down into its finer points.  He just worked us on the little points that connected together to make a bigger whole.  By doing it that way, we got to progress in terms of your fundamental skills and your ability to work with the other guys.  His whole thing was to get everybody doing the right stuff at the right time as a group.  We had to do these drills and it seemed like every day he increased the speed just a little bit until we were flying up and down the court.  Very difficult to prepare for a UCLA team when you play them because the pace was relentless and they really knew how to work the fast break.”

On whether or not the lessons he learned at UCLA carried over into the NBA:

“Certainly.  When I got into the NBA I was fundamentally sound.  I had been drilled on all the aspects of the game about shooting, passing, ball handling, and how to fit in with the other guys in terms of getting something done on the court.  That’s all Coach Wooden ever worked on.”

On whether or not he was able to see Coach Wooden before he passed away on Friday:

“Yeah, I was in Europe doing some promotional stuff for the NBA.  I got home on Friday and went straight to the hospital.  I got there about 2:30 and spent an hour in the room with him.  He was sedated at that time but he was still alive.  I left and three hours later he had passed.”

On the series so far between the Lakers and Celtics:

“Gonna be an interesting series.  The Lakers were snoozing yesterday.  They decided they weren’t going to guard the Celtics guards.  That was a bad choice of action there.  They’re gonna have to do a lot better on defense if they’re going to win this.”

On Kobe Bryant:

“Kobe has certainly distinguished himself as an individual and now it’s the team success that he would like to enjoy.  As an individual he’s fearless and absolutely one of the dominant players of his era.”

Listen to Kareem Abdul Jabbar on ESPN 1050 in New York here

While that is a compliment in itself and I feel honored to be a part of the celebration of this impressive life, I understand that it is best to let those who truly knew the man to share the stories, anecdotes and quotes that helped to define life of what was this nation’s greatest living sports figure.

Ben Howland joined Into the Night with Tony Bruno to discuss John Wooden’s life and his impact.

On Wooden’s role recently with the UCLA program:

“Coach Wooden is the UCLA program. He’s synonymous. Each coach that has since been here, he has been unbelievably supportive of. I am the current steward, but this is and will always be his program. What he did for the university here and what he has done for so many people, not only involved with the game of basketball, but way beyond basketball, with his teachings and his philosophy and all the great books that he has shared and written, the Pyramid of Success. A couple things strike me that were so special about him. He was always so giving of himself. He was always thinking of others. For the people who really knew him well to see his humble little two-bedroom apartment in Encino where he has lived since he retired and has been decorated exactly the way that his wife left it when she passed 25 years ago. Just his dedication and love for his family and his wife and his children, it’s incredible to think about. It’s overwhelming.”

On what Wooden’s presence meant on campus:

“He had such a grace about him. The thing that was so great about Coach was his great sense of humor. What a fine man. What a great person. He’s an example that everyone can try to follow in terms of how to life your life. He really had so many great qualities. He’s one of the greatest Americans ever. That is the best way to put it. His life transcends way beyond the game of basketball. People who’s lives he’s touched that had no involvement in sports, yet learned and benefited from his wisdom.”

On how much prospective recruits know about John Wooden:

“Most of these kids, their parents have all instilled the legend of John Wooden and UCLA and what he meant to the game of basketball. One of the greatest things that I have really enjoyed is talking to his former players and their appreciation of him as a mentor and a man and a head coach and how that grows every year as they get older. His philosophy of doing your very best. That’s what success is. That’s the goal. To be your best and do your best. Then win or lose takes care of itself. To have that feeling that I’ve given it my all is really what it’s all about… His philosophies are timeless.”

On Wooden’s later years:

“It’s amazing how sharp he was mentally. His ability to recite poetry and recall. He would go back. I think he was coaching in South Bend baseball team where he was the head coach. He could remember every starter’s name from 1932 or whatever year it was. It was just incredible his mind. Part of that was because he was engaged every day. He was always meeting with people. He was always giving, always active, always writing letters, unbelievably active, just a brilliant, brilliant mind. One of the greatest things in his mind that he accomplished was to be the Big Ten scholar athlete of the year his senior year. That meant a lot to him.”

And on what he will remember about Wooden:

“Just a humble man. He was very religious. He is definitely with God as we speak.”

Listen to Ben Howland on Into the Night with Tony Bruno.