Fox College Football tweeted that “The Jerry Neuheisel Era has begun with the Bruins.”
ESPN personality Pat McAfee joined the chorus of adoration for the new UCLA player, tweeting that Neuheisel “just might be a football wizard.”
Other media outlets and sports betting sites tweeting about the Bruins' rise from 0-4 to the darlings of the college football world widely posted photos of the blond assistant coach.
That was enough for sports media site Awful Announcing to ask, “Does anyone know what Tim Skipper is actually the interim head coach at UCLA, not Jerry Neuheisel?
Concerned about saving the season, Skipper admitted that he was blissfully unaware of any stories about who did what to trigger his team's turnaround.
“I think it's good that I don't use social media and everything right now because I don't feel that way,” Skipper said Monday when asked about not getting enough recognition. “But I don't really know what's going on in the outside world. [because] I'm in it [practice] We are building so much.
“But I love what I do, I just work man, and I just try to put us in the best position to be successful on Saturday.”
Part of any credit misstatement may be due to Skipper presiding over The Bruins lost to Northwestern 17-14. after replacement for DeShaun Foster. The following week, Neuheisel was promoted to playcaller, helping the Bruins (2–4 overall, 2–1 Big Ten) revive a terrible offense and score a total of 80 points in wins over the Bruins. Penn State And Michigan.
In truth, there have been enough fingerprints on UCLA's revival to leave countless stains.
UCLA coach Tim Skipper stands on the sidelines during the Bruins' win over Penn State on Oct. 4.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The skipper showed energy, meticulousness and determination, as well as his motivational tactics, including leaving printouts asking: “ARE YOU A ONE HIT WONDER?? in the players' seats on the team's plane last week — had the expected effect during a runaway win over Michigan State.
Neuheisel has undoubtedly strengthened the attack, which had struggled under his predecessor. Very sunseri.
Kevin Coylede facto defensive coordinator who was named before the Northwestern game to replace Beautiful big Blodemonstrated an aggressive, disciplined style that largely compensated for the shortcomings that had previously been identified.
There were plenty of others involved, too, from the scouts who helped identify the weaknesses that led to the successful outside kick against Penn State to the security guards outside Drake Stadium who continually encouraged players to show up for practice amid loss after loss to start the season.
And, of course, do not forget about the players – the defender Niko Yamaleavaleadership and poise along with many others that have risen to this point after struggling for so long early on.
On Saturday at the Rose Bowl, the Bruins will beat Maryland (4-2, 1-2) for the first time since facing New Mexico, and it's easy to imagine their success snowballing. But Skipper said he has no intention of pitching the idea of creating a bowling game as his next motivational tool.
“I care about the moment you're in, man,” Skipper said. “… This week, it seems, [the mantra] this is the standard, this is the standard, and success does not get boring. We have to keep doing what we do and always be on the rise, you know?”
As he neared the one-month mark since his promotion on Sept. 14, Skipper admitted he was initially worried about keeping his squad intact as players could enter the transfer portal or redshirt.
“When I first took over, every time I talked to you guys everyone was asking, who's redshirting, who's going to go into the portal?” – said Skipper. “That was the theme that was, like, the No. 1 issue. And we were able to keep the team intact, you know, and that's an everyday thing. I think we showed them that, hey, we can do this, create a good environment here, even with all these changes and everything, just stick with us and we'll be fine.”
A clean dressing room, smiles and excitement after a win were among the big changes in the aura around the team that Skipper said he had noticed since taking over.
“The guys seem to be in good spirits and stuff like that and they know it's going to be a work day tomorrow and they better be ready to go,” Skipper said. “But I think we give the guys the 'why' and the reasons why we do things and it helps them know what to expect.”
Let me in, coach
Late in the third quarter, UCLA came out with a potent offensive weapon against Michigan State.
It was Siale TaupakiA 337-pound defensive lineman who was used as a blocker when the Bruins reached the red zone. Transition to movement in a straight line linked to running backwards Jayvian ThomasTaupaki brought down a defender as Thomas scored the second goal.
“He was begging for an opportunity to do something offensively,” Skipper said of the redshirt junior who bounced between the offensive and defensive lines during his seven seasons with the team. “Of course he came out and did his job, so that gave us a little bit of strength on the sideline, which was good to see.”
Etc.
Skipper said the improvement in tackling in recent weeks was more a result of fundamentals than scheme. “We do training when we get [individual] time that is specifically designed to use your weapons—your eyes, your legs and your arms,” Skipper said, “and we learn how to wrap up and move our legs on contact because the hardest part is getting our legs moving again when they stop.” … The UC Regents plan to meet in closed session Tuesday in San Francisco to discuss the compensation package to be given to UCLA's next coach.
