The Skinny: The bruins enter spring ball for the fourth time under Head Coach Rick Neuheisel. Fans in Westwood were expecting a quicker turn around for their football team, and entering year 4, they have yet to see what they were hoping when Neuheisel was hired in December of 2007 to lead his alma mater. Only in the 2009 campaign did the Bruins finish the year with a winning record after appearing in the Eaglebank Bowl. Many supporters and outside observers believe that it is a "Win now-or else" situation for Neuheisel entering the 2011 season. He remains one of the best recruiters, although this year was not so good as previous seasons. It is now time to show progress on the grid iron.What We Already Know: We know that after a rocky 4-8 season, the Bruins did a complete shake up of their coaching staff. Well regarded offensive coordinator Norm Chow was dismissed, as was their defensive coordinator. The firings were the result of what Neuheisel deemed "chemistry issues". The hiring of Chow in 2008 was seen as a very big win for UCLA. And when Lane Kiffin was reportedly trying to bring him back to USC when he was hired to replace Pete Carroll, UCLA stepped up to make sure he did not leave. Only to let him go one season later. Although the head coach remains the same, drastic staff changes can be very damaging. This program can not afford to back track, or Coach Neuheisel risks losing his job.
What We Want to Know: Can they make the pistol offense work? After installing the run and gun attack last season, they showed some what mixed results. The Bruins hired longtime Nevada assistant Jim Mastro to help with the pistol schemes in their offense. Nevada runs the most successful pistol in the country. The hiring of Mastro showed that the Bruins were not going to be one and done with the scheme, and that they wanted to stick with it and make it work. When correctly run with the right personnel, it can be a very explosive and unstoppable force. We will see if their attack improves beginning in the spring.
Potential Spring Star: Quarterback Brett Hundley. Hundley was one of the top-rated dual-threat passers in the class of 2011, and managed to graduate early and enroll in time for Winter quarter. It came down to UCLA and the University of Washington for Hundley, choosing to play for Neuheisel, who has been known to mold star QB's in his time. Anytime Neuheisel has had coaching success, he has had an outstanding signal caller leading the way. Bruin nation is looking for Hundley to finally be that guy for them.
Spring Dates: March 29th- April 21st.
Spring game- April 23rd.
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