Saw Jim Mora's name for the first time on the Texas board.
What are they saying about him?
They want him. I was hoping for a statement from Tim.
I'm glad they'd want him. It most likely means others think he's doing a good job.
The problem here with being a Bruin fan is obvious - that other schools probably think they can get him. UCLA fans have not any delusions of poaching Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, etc. from the top programs.
I'd assume Texas makes a run at him. He makes $2.5M at UCLA right now and supposedly they are prepared to pay what it will take to retain him and his staff (particularly OL coach, Adrian Klemm). Then again, they said they'd pay what it would take to get a top flight basketball coach, too...
Doesn't make sense to leave UCLA for Texas. If he's going anywhere, he's going back to the NFL. That said I hope he stays put for a few years to get the program back on it's feet and running a solid system.
It makes sense to leave about 99% of the programs in the nation for Texas, UCLA included.
No sure about that. Expectations are sky-high (MNC high) as is the pressure from the fans and media. Think about big-time boosters breathing down your neck at other schools, then multiply that by 10 at Texas. Expectations at UCLA are to compete for the conference every-so-often. LA does not have Texas pressure.
Talking to people that went to the game, they said even when UCLA was down 21-3 the players were still out there dancing around, having fun and playing loose. If Mora is successful and having fun at UCLA, he will get paid. Why leave?
There are parallels in other sports as well. Kentucky came calling for Gillespie from a 3rd tier basketball school with some small success. Guy flames out in 2 years and is basically fired into the sun. There is some risk in that, no matter the money involved that you could end up holding nothing but a suitcase and your #### in your hands if you bomb at a top tier program.
Now throw on top of that the network they have and the time commitment the coach has to pay to that. Its like taking two full time jobs.
It's absolutely not a slam dunk that a 2nd/3rd tier upcoming HC just jumps up and takes the gig.
you guys are crazy. Mora is the exact type of coach Texas is going to go after. The idea that he will "get paid" at UCLA just isn't realistic. Wiki shows his salary at $1.9m btw. The discrepency is likely tv appearances, etc but all coaches get that stuff. That makes UCLA one of the lowest paid major schools out there and they are located in one of the highest cost of living areas.
The UCLA AD revenue was $66m last year and they subsidized from academics to break even. They simply can't pay him the way other schools can. And they can't get into a bidding war especially given the contract they just handed Alford. Mack Brown makes $5.3m. His assistants probably make more than UCLA's whole staff including Mora. To be blunt, if Texas pursues Mora, it would be shocking if he doesn't accept.
I'm not sure why Wiki shows his salary at $1.9M, but that's not accurate. The
Mercury News and
L.A. Times have him at $2.4M and $2.5M, respectively. Although, the Mercury News report was prior to the contract extension Mora signed in July.
In addition, UCLA just reached new highs for assistant salaries totaling $2.442M, which will need to continue to increase.
Thus far, UCLA has met every salary demand that Mora has made, both for himself and for his assistants (see the L.A. Times article above). That being said, I already said I was skeptical they'd continue to meet them, but people a lot closer to the UCLA AD than I believe that the AD, after the last decade plus of dog#### football and basketball, is willing to pay to keep the staff around.
And, while the revenue you cited is certainly low, it's also coming off a decade plus of awful coaching and football, which plays at least some part in the low revenue stream and a huge part in the lower donations. It also is based off the lower revenues that the Pac-12 schools are receiving from the TV contract. Those will go up in the next few seasons.
UCLA can't outbid Texas. I'm pretty sure nobody can. One of the main reasons UCLA can't is that there is apparently some ridiculous UC Regents salary cap for head coaching salaries. I believe it is $3M right now. That needs to change, obviously.
Jim Mora may leave at some point and it may be for Texas. I have no idea. He has no ties to UCLA other than the last two years and having been around the program as a kid when his dad was on the UCLA staff.
But, UCLA can offer a few things that very few schools can. As noted above, there are no sky high expectations. The UCLA fanbase has been beaten down and just wants to win. It doesn't expect to win national championships, though, and doesn't demand it. It has a beautiful campus in a beautiful area. That area also happens to sit on one of the most talent-rich, if not THE most talent-rich, areas for football in the country. And, as 6 out of the last 7 years have shown, UCLA can, even with a terrible product on the field, bring in top 10-12 ranked recruiting classes each year.
So, UCLA offers a low stress job with the opportunity to bring in a great deal of talent each year (which is what it takes to win consistently) pretty easily. As long as UCLA can pay a competitive salary to the HC and staff, those factors should make it a pretty appealing job.