Moore Coaches Added

There were some early reports today about Reggie Moore coming to UCLA as a wide receiver coach. I was trying to find some more information on it, but nowhere did it say he would actually coach the wide receivers at UCLA. He was the receiver coach at North Dakota State, and the report said he would take a "similar position" at UCLA. The official site is reporting that he will join the staff at a position yet to be determined.

This is a particularly interesting development because of how it will impact the current wide receivers coach, Eric Scott. Scott has also been instrumental in recruiting this last year and if he were let go by coach Neuheisel then that could potentially have an impact on the recruiting class. There could also be some options where Scott or Moore coach different positions and changing coaching responsibilities is a common practice at the collegiate level. We'll have to wait and see how this develops.

From the press release:

Moore has spent the last four years (2004-07) coaching the wide receivers at North Dakota State University. He spent the 2003 season as a graduate assistant at the University of Washington (he was hired by Neuheisel but coached for Keith Gilbertson), working with the wide receivers.

During his Bruin career (1987-90), Moore was a three-year starter at wide receiver. He ranks No. 18 on UCLA's all-time list with his 92 career receptions and with his 1,483 yards. He averaged 16.1 yards per catch and scored 10 touchdowns as a Bruin.

Following his collegiate career, Moore played in the National Football League for the New York Jets (1991-93) and the Los Angeles Rams (1993) as a wide receiver and return specialist. He then coached in the high school ranks at James Madison High School in Houston, Texas, for four seasons (1999-2002). He also served as a fire fighter and paramedic with the Houston Fire Department from 1996 to 2003 before joining the staff at the University of Washington.

Moore, 39, earned his BA in History from UCLA in 1991.

Since Reggie was a return specialist as well as a receiver in the NFL, he might be given responsibility over special teams. Gary DeLoach, the current special teams coach, wasn't one of those coaches retained with the Walker rehire, so I have a feeling he is on his way out.

(photo credit: UCLA)

Theft and Guns and Drugs, Oh My!

So, the latest drama in the Scott case is that a "large amount" of drugs was discovered in the area where he was arrested. One of the sheriff's involved in the case, Leonard Rivas, had this latest update:

"We're still trying to make contact with who lives in the house," Rivas said. "We have not been able to do so."

Rivas said no allegedly stolen property was found in Scott's car, or on any of the suspects. They were all arrested outside of the residence in the 11600 block of Pioneer Boulevard.

"We saw some property on the ground, but we don't know if it was just there, or brought out of the house (by the suspects)," Rivas said.

This must have been the dirtiest yard in all of Norwalk! It was littered with guns, drugs, and personal property. That or something fishy was going on and whoever owned the guns and drugs ditched 'em as the cops rolled up. It doesn't sounds like Scott was the one who had this stuff with him, according to the version of events that Scott's attorney, Milton Grimes, relayed to the LA Times:

"Scott never went into that house; he did not know of anything untoward"

Detailing Scott's recap of the minutes before the arrests, Grimes said the three men drove to the home of DeAlba's cousin, and a male came out of the house and briefly talked to DeAlba before going back inside.

Later, DeAlba also entered the house, looking for his cousin.

"[DeAlba] walks back outside, yelling for his cousin, police pull up, and they get Eric out of the car," Grimes said. "DeAlba admitted he took something from the house. I'm not sure what the items were."

Considering that they can't find anyone at this house, and there were no drugs, guns, or stolen possessions on anybody at the scene, I have a feeling that the charges will eventually be dropped. It is sounding more and more like Scott was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I know Scott has a troubled background and, if this version of the story holds up, then it is too bad that he is getting dragged into somebody else's crap. On the flip side, if Scott is going to hang out with people who are involved in "untoward" business then he has to know that this type of trouble could happen. It is hard to make that break and I know he has a lot of ties with Crenshaw kids who might not have followed the straight-and-narrow path. Still, you're a coach at a major D-1 school now. You can't get caught up in something like this.

I'm all for second chances and I think the coaches took a chance with Scott when he was hired. In all fairness, though, if UCLA and Karl Dorrell didn't have a full picture of all his past legal troubles then that isn't cool. I know the University and the program don't want their image tarnished and this type of negative press is never a good thing. Even if Scott didn't commit any crimes in this situation, the fact that he has a criminal past (even if they were misdemeanors) , is now branded in the minds of fans, families, and future recruits.

I guess we'll have to wait and see what comes from this situation. For now Scott is still on paid leave and his future with the program is unclear.

The Latest on Scott

Well, there's a lot being written about the Eric Scott arrest but very few facts are surfacing.

The LA Times has this to say about the incident.

LA County Sheriff Sgt. Craig Harmon said, "A neighbor saw the three suspects on the porch of a single-family home, then saw them force their way in. When deputies arrived, the three were seen walking from the location, and were found with property from the house they admitted to taking."

Here is a totally different account from Rick Kimbrel over at Bruin Blitz.

The home of the alleged burglary is, we are told, actually the residence of DeAlba's cousin. A neighbor saw DeAlba and Williams walking around the house and phoned the police. When the police arrived, they questioned DeAlba and Williams. Scott was waiting his Mercedes Benz for his two former players and when he saw the police talking to them, he joined the conversation to try and sort things out. The reason for the arrest is they couldn't find DeAlba's cousin.

The Daily News has a similar account from their sources.

Sources said DeAlba's cousin lives at the house, and when the group stopped by to pay a visit, DeAlba walked around the property in search of him. Sources added Scott remained in the car until police arrived, and was arrested only when he exited the car in an attempt to learn what was happening with DeAlba, 23, and Williams, 23.

"We're actually still trying to figure this thing out ourselves," Sheriffs Sgt. Leonard Rivas said. "We have no victim. They're charged with burglary, but it's still an ongoing investigation. We're still trying to figure it out ourselves."

Rivas said a handgun was also found on the property. The handgun was not registered to Scott, DeAlba or Williams, and it was unclear whether the gun belonged to a resident of the home, he added.

Maybe I'm biased with my middle-class suburban background, but I don't think the cops would just arrest someone and charge them with felony burglary because they happened to be milling around in front of someones house. At the very least it would be trespassing. They must have taken something out of the house, right?

It was also brought to light that Scott has had four prior arrests from 1994 and 2005 and he pleaded guilt on two of those charges, both misdemeanors. One was a concealed weapons charge and the other was for disturbing the peace. The gun charges originally started out as felonies but his lawyer got them reduced to a misdemeanor after he challenged the legality of the search the cops performed.

Brian Dohn also reported that UCLA may not have know about all the prior arrests. That's probably true considering they were misdemeanors and you typically only have to report felonies on a job application. Still, makes you wonder if Guerrero or Dorrell do background searches on candidates they are hiring. It always amazes me how the press can dig this information up in just a few hours, but it catches the employer off guard.

Karl Dorrell announced yesterday that he put Eric Scott on administrative leave until the facts are all sorted out.

“I have decided to place Eric on administrative leave while the matter is being investigated,” said Dorrell. “We will continue to gather information regarding the case and will make a determination on Eric’s status at the appropriate time.”

Dorrell added some comments this afternoon at PAC-10 media day.

"One of my assistant coaches I put on administrative leave yesterday, given an allegation against him that is out there...we can't really comment much about what has happened, but I'm the type of guy and coach that the players and coaches are held accountable at UCLA....we're gonna' find out more about that case and those issues...I'm going to act as the receivers coach, if it ever gets to that point. It's not going to affect this team, and our expectations of this program this year....I'm very optimistic about how this outcome [the Scott situation] will be uncovered."

If the Bruins do lose Scott as a receiver coach that probably isn't that big of a deal for the team this season. As coach Dorrell stated, he can take over the job. Dorrell was a receiver coach in the NFL. The bigger hit is the job Scott has done in recruiting this year.

It sounds like there might be some misunderstanding from this whole thing and coach Scott got caught up in a bad situation. However, you expect more from a grown adult, especially someone in a position to influence young players. Even if the charges are dropped this is a black eye for the program.

WR Coach Scott Arrested

CBS has reported that Wide Receiver coach Eric Scott was arrested for residential burglary last night. More details are coming but this was taking form the arrest report:

“He was brought to Norwalk station and booked on residential burglary and bonded out,’’ said Tera White, the LASD’s station watch commander. “Deputies were called (to a house). It was a call for service. It wasn’t an observation on deputies’ part. They were called there by neighbors.’’ White said two other men, Jesus DeAlba and Timothy Williams, were also arrested.

These are felony charges and Scott was released on a bail of $50K. If you go to the LASD website and search for Eric Scott, you'll get the details of the arrest. It is possible that Scott was involved in some type of property dispute or he was helping one of the other men move items that were in dispute. The arrest time was in the early morning, as he was booked at 12:30 in the afternoon. That doesn't sound like someone robbing a house but with so few details at this point, it is hard to say.

Scott has had a big impact on recruiting and he has helped UCLA land some of the top recruits in the 2008 class. It is uncertain how this will impact the decisions of those recruits to attend UCLA. Coach Scott could face a suspension or be fired all together if the allegations prove to be true. This could leave the team without a wide receiver coach for the fall camp and possibly the season.