Every so often, there is just an overwhelming number of hot topics enveloping the UCLA sports scene. We’re opening the floor to every sport, from football to women’s soccer, in this edition of the weekly showdown between Daily Bruin Sports senior staffers.
Do you think Arizona head coach Mike Stoops deserved to be fired after a 1-5 start?
I can see why Arizona made the decision to fire Stoops. With such a drastic change in the team’s performance from one season to the next, it’s not surprising. Going 1-5 in the Pac-12 is a bit of a shocker even for Arizona, and the team has given up at least 37 points in each of its five losses.
Is Utah still a contender in the Pac-12 South with starting quarterback Jordan Wynn going down for the season?
Utah is really struggling right now, and the Utes were struggling before they lost their quarterback. That being said, there are definitely some winnable games still to be played on their schedule. Their last game of the season will be against fellow Pac-12 South bottom-dweller Colorado in a true clash of the titans.
With these two major events in Pac-12 football, where do you think UCLA will end up?
I see UCLA finishing third in the Pac-12 South, but only because Colorado, Utah, and Arizona are choking worse than George Bush did on that pretzel. I can definitely say that I think the team is improving, though. The defense did more bending than breaking last week, and it will need to keep that up if it wants to finish the season strong.
Which current competing Bruin team has the best chance to win a national championship?
It’s looking like women’s volleyball. The team has shown that it can beat the best teams in the country, and when it gets going, it is hard to slow down. The Bruin defense is stifling and it is also ridiculously deep. Kelly Reeves, Rachael Kidder and Bojana Todorovic are all scary good, and so is the rest of the team, to be honest. They’ve got everything you would want in a championship team.
Men’s basketball media day is this weekend. What are you most looking forward to this season?
Our frontcourt. Reeves Nelson, Josh Smith, the Wear twins, Anthony Stover and Brendan Lane are all huge, and they are going to be a lot of fun to watch. The Wears are going to cause a lot of problems for other teams on defense ““ most teams aren’t used to playing against two post players who can play all over the court.