Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Also coping with angry UCLA fans? Its athletic director

spt-120229-gurrero

Mike Miller

Ben Howland isn’t the only under the microscope in light of unflattering reports surrounding UCLA’s basketball program.

Athletic director Dan Guerrero also is fending off angry Bruins fans. And he should be.

The news that Howland, UCLA’s coach since 2003, was an aloof figure to his players and ignored excessive alcohol and drug use among them wasn’t a surprise to those who’ve watched the Bruins decay recently. A program that went to three Final Fours from 2006-2008 has hardly lived up standards Howland set, let alone what John Wooden did.

So will Guerrero make a chance in order to alleviate any further embarrassment?

“Yeah, there is, there is no question about that,’' Guerrero during a press conference Wednesday. “If you look at the successes of our team during the early part of Ben’s tenure, it was built on a solid foundation commensurate with Ben’s coaching philosophy … the past several years, we have broken away from that … Ben has admitted he made mistakes …. we’ve had to live with that.’'

Another reason Guerrero might make a change is to save himself. That would be standard procedure for any AD under fire.

And if you doubt Guerrero is hearing it, then read this post from Bruins Nation. It essentially rails at him in print form, as if Guerrero were an idiot teenager who never considered how his actions affected others. That’s no small thing given Bruins Nation qualifies as a staunch support of the school.

Howland’s future won’t be decided anytime soon. At the least, it’ll take until the end of another average season (UCLA’s 16-13) and maybe even the end of next season to give Howland a chance with yet another promising recruiting class. But that’s if thing don’t heat up any further.

You also can follow me on Twitter @MikeMillerNBC.