Nobody dishes out pink slips faster than Dan Guerrero.
But when it comes to hiring new coaches, Guerrero favors a more
deliberate approach.
The second-year UCLA Athletic Director is leaving no resume
unread and no reference unchecked in his quest to replace Tom
Fitzgerald with a new men’s soccer coach. Consequently, the
search process which Guerrero and Associate Athletic Director Ken
Weiner had originally hoped to wrap up by today may extend well
into next week.
“We’re leaving no stone unturned,” Guerrero
said. “There is no sense of urgency. Obviously a lot of great
coaches are interested, and we want to make sure that we hire the
right one.”
Guerrero, Weiner and the rest of the search committee are
evaluating whether or not it makes sense to interview any more
candidates in addition to the three they already met last week.
Both men indicated they had no other specific candidate in mind,
but were merely verifying that another potential top-notch
candidate was not still out there.
“It’s not an absolute that we will bring anyone else
in,” Guerrero said. “We need to talk that through, and
determine if it makes sense.”
“We’re still talking to a few people regarding our
interest and theirs,” Weiner added.
Neither one would disclose who they were considering
interviewing.
Loyola Marymount coach Paul Krumpe, UCLA assistant coach Jorge
Salcedo and Los Angeles Galaxy Director of Youth Development Ralph
Perez already interviewed with a panel of Athletic Department
officials Thursday. Guerrero said in his mind there is no clear-cut
front-runner at this point.
He did say each of the interviews went smoothly, and that he was
impressed by what each candidate had to offer.
Impressed, but certainly not awestruck.
“Was I blown away by any of them? No,” Guerrero
said. “I was familiar with all of them, and as I expected,
all of them performed well. All three of them would love to be the
Bruin coach, and all three of them would bring something unique to
the table.”
Reaction to each of the candidates was decidedly mixed at
Monday’s debriefing meeting, according to Guerrero. Members
of the search committee picked apart each candidate’s
strengths and weaknesses, but were unable to come to a
consensus.
The ultimate decision, of course, will come from Weiner and
Guerrero.
“At the end of the day it will be Dan and myself sitting
down and making the call,” Weiner said.
One of the candidates still hoping to be granted an interview is
Cal Poly Pomona coach and UCLA alumnus Paul Caligiuri. A
high-ranking Athletic Department official informed him over the
weekend that he is still being considered, but he has not had any
further contact with UCLA.
“I feel that I’m the best candidate for the job, but
I have to feel that way,” Caligiuri said. “I’m
not sure that I’m necessarily a serious candidate at this
point.”