Quick, name three coaches who are the most excited in the country about the 2008 football season.
Did you say Bob Stoops, Urban Meyer, Jim Tressel?
No? You said Mark Richt, didn't you?
Well, those are the obvious choices. They'll likely be fronting Top 5 programs comes August. But there's one name out there I bet didn't cross your mind.
Rick Neuheisel.
UCLA believes it has found its man and that man couldn't be happier to be home. The former Arizona all-state prep baseball, basketball and football star, Bruins quarterback, Rose Bowl champion, UCLA assistant and USC law school alum is back in Los Angeles and feels he's fallen into his dream job.
Neuheisel stepped in after former college teammate Karl Dorrell was let go. In an eerie role reversal, Dorrell the receiver threw Neuheisel the quarterback a perfect ball by leaving behind a talented roster.
"We’ve got some really good players. I’m hopeful, as we say in the coaching world, some difference makers will emerge. The guys that can elicit victory where it might not have been otherwise," Neuheisel said. "Recruiting is the lifeblood of any program. It’s critical we go out and get the guys that can compete with the very best on our schedule."
The former Washington and Colorado coach is no stranger to competing with the best. His 2000 Washington team will always be able to call itself Pac-10 and Rose Bowl Champions, something Neuheisel -- who earned those honors as a player, as well -- aims to do again.
This time around, he's armed with knowledge gained after two years with the Baltimore Ravens. As quarterbacks coach, he worked with Steve McNair to lead Baltimore to a 13-3 mark. The next season he served as offensive coordinator, a role he found rewarding.
"I think there’s a lot. The thing you have to be careful about is how much," Neuheisel said of what he could bring to the college game. "The difference between college and pro football is that in college you don’t need to have as much. Coaches can be like car mechanics, where they keep tinkering away and tinkering away to the point where they get away from what makes a good football team. But I came away with a lot of schemes, some of which I’ll implement."
Despite being armed with new knowledge and a solid talent base, Neuheisel has had some early speed bumps and faces hurdles out of the gate.
First, UCLA’s offense has been anything but stellar in recent memory.
"We kind of studied the numbers ..." Neuheisel said. "I have full confidence [offensive coordinator, hired by Neuheisel] Norm Chow is capable of putting together an efficient and effective offense ... You know, it wasn’t too long ago that the UCLA defense was statistically terrible. When [defensive coordinator, still on staff] DeWayne Walker stepped in, it was turned around."
But Neuheisel knows it's not an overnight process: "One thing I have learned is patience. If we’re not a finished product right away, we’ll get there. We can’t get so caught up right now, that we lose sight of where we want to be."
And those speed bumps? At the end of spring, he lost his two experienced quarterbacks -- Ben Olsen and Patrick Cowan -- to injury, in the same practice. Cowan is out for the 2008 season with a knee, but Neuheisel said he expects Olsen to return after a successful foot surgery and rehab. If not, he’s not worried.
"It’s very heartbreaking we lost Patrick Cowan for the season. But you know it’s a very old story in college football that someone steps up, someone usually unexpected. Of the remaining quarterbacks in the program, someone has to rise to the occasion," Neuheisel said. "Whether it’s Kevin Craft, Chris Forcier, Osaar Rasshan or even a freshman. They have to see this as an opportunity. They have to see they have the magic that the quarterback needs to have. When UCLA really got rolling in recent memory is when Cade McNown came in as a freshman quarterback and took over. Who knows who the next Cade McNown is. Eventually someone’s gotta step up."
The names on the depth chart can also look to their mentor. Neuheisel was a walk-on who worked his way to becoming a Rose Bowl MVP. But the coach won't use his story to inspire anyone.
"They all want to play, which is a good place to start …" Neuheisel said. "The question is: Whose name is on the back of the jersey? The good news is the front will say UCLA."
It's statements like that which truly highlight Neuheisel's excitement to be back in Southern California. But what excites him most?
"It’s wearing blue and gold again. It’s been a while to wear the colors that feel most natural. It’ll be special when we step into the Rose Bowl for our first game, but only for a few moments before I realize it’s Tennessee on the other sideline."