Chow as Utah OC?!?!

[myboynoah]

I wonder if UCLA would really pay a million dollars to a QB coach. I read somewhere that if they fire him, they have to pay him his full salary minus whatever Utah pays him. Utah should pay him $1 and let UCLA pick up his salary for the next two years.

I read the same thing. So under those circumstances why not keep him on as QB coach? Off course they won't settle on such an extreme, so I suspect right now UCLA is deciding on how much it is willing to pay of Chow's salary over the next two years. Conversely, Utah needs to decide the same thing and Chow needs to decide what works for him.

[LA Ute]

I read the same thing. So under those circumstances why not keep him on as QB coach? Off course they won't settle on such an extreme, so I suspect right now UCLA is deciding on how much it is willing to pay of Chow's salary over the next two years. Conversely, Utah needs to decide the same thing and Chow needs to decide what works for him.

If every CUFer kicked in $50 to the Crimson Club, Chow's homecoming would be that much closer to reality. I'm just sayin'....

[myboynoah]

If every CUFer kicked in $50 $5,000 to the Crimson Club, Chow's homecoming would be that much closer to reality. I'm just sayin'....

Don't you dare try to short change Norm Chow. UCLA is learning its lesson right now.

[myboynoah]

Update from ESPN Rumors:

At the very least, Rick Neuheisel finally confirmed what many have suspected: that Norm Chow will not be UCLA's offensive coordinator next fall. Neuheisel told T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times that "it's unlikely" that Chow returns in his present position, which means he can either accept a demotion to QB coach or take another job.

Neuheisel also told Scott M. Reid of the Orange County Register that he is close to offering a job to Mike Johnson, the reported new OC, with the holdup apparently being what Johnson's title will be (and, no doubt, how that impacts UCLA's ability to get out from under Chow's contract).

With the firing of Seattle Seahawks OC Jeremy Bates by Pete Carroll, Michael Lev of the OCR wonders if the Pacific Northwest might be a possible landing spot for Chow. There was a report last January that Carroll was trying to get Chow to go to Seattle with him, but there's no buzz to that effect now, even though Chow is much more available.

As for defensive coordinator, Neuheisel acknowledged to Simers that his plan had "gone awry," suggesting that he didn't have anyone in mind beyond former Stanford DC Vic Fangio (or perhaps beyond Fangio and new San Diego State coach Rocky Long). Why he hasn't been able to pinpoint another candidate is beyond us.

[LA Ute]

Update from ESPN Rumors:

Utah can't compete with NFL money. All it can offer that the NFL cannot is the opportunity to live within the shadows of the everlasting hills.

[myboynoah]

This is an interesting read linked from the ESPN rumor:

Rick Neuheisel has some serious clean-up duty at UCLA

I ran into Chow on Saturday at the Century Plaza after Frank McCourt had publicly cussed me out. Chow was helping a recruit check into the hotel.

I asked him which school he was recruiting for these days.

It got a chuckle, but then I got the patented Chow hang-down look. Same thing happened at the end of his time at USC. Is Chow the problem, or the guys who hire him?

When I asked Chow about his situation at UCLA, he raised his head long enough to say he has no idea where he stands.

Why doesn't Chow just tell Neuheisel he's out of there already?

[TripletDaddy]

This is an interesting read linked from the ESPN rumor:

Rick Neuheisel has some serious clean-up duty at UCLA




Why doesn't Chow just tell Neuheisel he's out of there already?

$$$$$

[U-Ute]

One way or another, it appears that something is happening.

UCLA, San Francisco 49ers assistant Mike Johnson reach agreement

Mike Johnson has reached an agreement in principle to become an assistant coach at UCLA, according to a person inside the program who was not at liberty to speak on the matter.

[LA Ute]

Stewart Mandel tweets:

UCLA officially has a new offensive coordinator. Yet Norm Chow has not left. Staying, daring them to fire him? Utah job still open.

Official release from UCLA:

UCLA officially names Mike Johnson OC

Norm Chow's status with the Bruins remains unclear. He is still on the Bruins staff and Neuheisel told ESPNLosAngeles.com earlier this week that the "likelihood is that he would take a different role" than the offensive coordinator post he's held for the past three seasons.

A source with knowledge of the situation said that UCLA has reached out to Chow's representatives, but the status of those discussions is unclear at this time.

[BoylenOver]

Seahawks hired an OC, and UCLA's hired Mike Johnson as their OC.

There's nowhere else to go for Chow. If this isn't settled by next weekend, I hope he resigns so he can officially become a part of Utah's staff by signing day.

[myboynoah]

More abuse of Chow reported in LA's linked ESPN article:

UCLA ranked 99th in total offense and 104th in scoring in an injury-plagued 2010 season.

"I have the utmost respect for Norm," Neuheisel said in an interview with ESPNLosAngeles.com earlier in the week. "But it hasn't worked. That's why we're going to need a reorganization.

"We've tried a number of things and certainly you can make the case for 'If this guy had stayed healthy or that guy stayed healthy,' but putting that aside, we just haven't been as clean an operation as we need to be, to be successful at this time in the Pac-10 and soon to be the Pac-12. There's ways to clean that up and that's my goal, to clean up the pieces of our operation that have kept us from being at the top of our game."

It's just a matter of time now. I can't imagine anyone sticking around and taking this no matter how much he's getting paid. I wonder if this is UCLA's strategy, to abuse Chow until he finally resigns.

I'm sure something will get done in the next 30 days.

[Surfah]

More abuse of Chow reported in LA's linked ESPN article:



It's just a matter of time now. I can't imagine anyone sticking around and taking this no matter how much he's getting paid. I wonder if this is UCLA's strategy, to abuse Chow until he finally resigns.

I'm sure something will get done in the next 30 days.

The weasel is just trying to salvage his job.

[BoylenOver]

Chow's in:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/spor...ordinator.html

[ERCougar]

Does this recent issue with UCLA make Ute fans nervous at all? If I understand correctly, you already have a budget mess with Boylen. Now you're picking up a guy who may be on the decline, but has shown that he wants his promised money. Seems a little risky.

[LA Ute]

Does this recent issue with UCLA make Ute fans nervous at all? If I understand correctly, you already have a budget mess with Boylen. Now you're picking up a guy who may be on the decline, but has shown that he wants his promised money. Seems a little risky.

Here's what I hope is true (and it's all conjecture):

• Because Chow has known Kyle and the Whittingham family for a long time, Norm's famous prickly personality will not be an issue
  
• Chow really wants to make a go of things at Utah and intends to stick around for 5 years or so, and isn't just marking time in a last job before retirement
  
• Chow can be a mentor to guys like A-Rod and Brian Johnson, who are fools if they don't try to soak up as much as they can from Norm
  
• This means our offense will no longer be the chewing gum and string contraption it seemed to be last year
  
• We'll be able to attract some serious offensive talent because of Chow's presence

We'll see. This definitely will be an improvement.