1. Football: Trailing 33-2 at halftime to USC (Nov. 22,
2003).
Complete domination. USC’s Mike Williams had 11 catches
and 181 yards ““ in the first half. The Bruins only scored two
points off of a botched Trojan extra point attempt. At this rate,
UCLA’s next victory over USC may come in 2015, if that
soon.
2. Men’s basketball: Dijon Thompson’s
free-throw debacle against USC (Feb. 25, 2004).
The men’s hoops season in a nutshell. Thomspon went to the
line needing to make both free throws to send the game into double
overtime. Instead Thompson missed the first, the one he needed to
make, and made the second, the one he needed to miss. A chance to
remove the paper bags off of UCLA fans’ heads once again
escapes.
3. Women’s soccer: Own goal against North Carolina
(Dec. 5, 2003).
A swing and a miss. Goalkeeper Arianna Criscione went up to kick
a teammate’s pass, but forgot something…the ball. Criscione
slipped as the ball slowly rolled into the net, putting the game
out of reach against No. 1 North Carolina in the College Cup
semifinals. Whiff.
4. Football: The offensive futility that was the Silicon
Valley Football Classic (Dec. 30, 2003).
The Bruin offense mustered one score against Fresno State at the
mud-covered Spartan Stadium. In the Bruins’ 17-9 loss, the
offense netted only 156 yards, 97 of them on one drive. At least
they played consistently.
5. Men’s golf: John Merrick four-putts on the last
hole of the NCAA Championships (June 4, 2004).
For the Bruins, it was the finishing touch to a disastrous day.
UCLA entered the day with a five-shot lead, but ended the day in
second place, six shots behind Cal. Merrick’s four-putt from
20-feet on the par-3 18th all but handed the trophy to Cal. If
it’s any consolation, the trophy was wet.
6. Men’s basketball: Loss to lowly St.
John’s (Jan. 31, 2004).
St. John’s entered the game against UCLA with a 4-12
record, their only wins coming against basketball powerhouses like
Stony Brook, St. Francis, and Niagara. But the Bruins, who were 9-7
at the time, managed to lose 71-55. Ouch.
7. Football: Exodus out of Westwood (December,
2003).
Matt Moore, Tyler Ebell, Matt Ware, Tab Perry, John Sciarra, all
gone. This all came after the football team lost its last five
games of the season. If fans are asked not to jump off of a sinking
ship, why are the players exempt?
8. Men’s basketball: Having to root for USC so
UCLA could make the Pac-10 Tournament (March 6, 2004).
Did you ever think you’d see the day when the future of
UCLA’s men’s basketball program was in the hands of the
USC’s men’s basketball program? Then again, these
aren’t normal times. UCLA snuck into the Pac-10 Tournament
when USC defeated Oregon State on the final day of the regular
season.
9. Men’s volleyball: Al Scates griping against BYU
players’ eligibility (April, 2004).
The UCLA coach may have made some good points, but the way he
went around making accusations did not reflect positively on the
coaching legend. A coach who has won 18 NCAA Championships
shouldn’t have to do that. Maybe a sign that it’s
slipping away.
10. Men’s Basketball: Dijon Thompson and Trevor
Ariza declare for the NBA Draft (April, 2004).
Silent laughter.