UCLA football hires new quarterbacks and defensive line coaches

• January 12, 2024

UCLA coach Chip Kelly announced the hiring of Billy Fessler and Tony Washington Jr. to his staff Friday.

Fessler was named as UCLA’s new quarterbacks coach after serving as Akron’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach on Joe Moorehead’s staff in 2023.

Akron’s offense averaged 18.5 points and 287.2 yards per game in 2023. Fessler joined the Akron program in 2022 after spending two seasons on the Ohio State coaching staff in 2020 and 2022 as an offensive graduate assistant on Ryan Day’s staff.

Fessler is no stranger to the Big Ten Conference, having played quarterback at Penn State from 2014-18. He replaces Ryan Gunderson, who left Westwood to become Oregon State’s offensive coordinator.

Washington is the new outside linebackers and defensive line coach. He was most recently an assistant coach working with the outside linebackers at Oregon for the past year. He’s also worked as a assistant defensive line coach and the director of player development at his alma mater.

Washington starred at Los Osos High in Rancho Cucamonga before playing for the Ducks from 2010-2015. He was named the Rose Bowl Game defensive MVP in 2015.

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After college, he played for the Houston Texans and the Tennessee Titans. He started his coaching career at Nebraska as a graduate assistant.

Ikaika Malloe was previously the defensive line and outside linebacker coach for the past two seasons before Kelly promoted Malloe to defensive coordinator earlier this month.

The terms for Fessler and Washington’s deal were not disclosed.

​ Orange County Register 

MLK weekend: A few things you may not know about Martin Luther King Jr.

• January 12, 2024

1964 Nobel Peace Prize winner Martin Luther King Jr. would have been 95 on Jan. 15.

“But traces of bigotry still mar America. So, each year on Martin Luther King Day, let us not only recall Dr. King, but rededicate ourselves to the commandments he believed in and sought to live every day: Thou shall love thy God with all thy heart, and thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.”

– President Ronald Reagan in a 1983 speech before he signed the bill making the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. a national holiday. The holiday was first observed in 1986 and not officially observed in all 50 states until 2000.

George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Cesar Chavez are the only other Americans to have had their birthdays observed as a national holiday.

A few other notables:

Birth name

King was born Michael King Jr. on Jan. 15, 1929. In 1934, his father, a pastor, traveled to Germany and became inspired by Protestant Reformation leader Martin Luther. As a result, King Sr. changed his own name as well as that of his 5-year-old son.

First attempt on his life

On Sept. 20, 1958, King was in Harlem signing copies of his new book, “Stride Toward Freedom,” in Blumstein’s department store when he was approached by Izola Ware Curry. The woman asked if he was Martin Luther King Jr. After he said yes, Curry said, “I’ve been looking for you for five years,” and she plunged a 7-inch letter opener into his chest. Surgeons later told King that just one sneeze could have punctured the aorta and killed him. King issued a statement affirming his nonviolent principles saying he felt no ill will toward his mentally ill attacker.

Worker’s rights

King had come to Memphis in April 1968 to support the strike of the city’s Black garbage workers, and in a speech on the night before his assassination, he told an audience at Mason Temple Church: “Like anybody, I would like to live a long life.”

His mother was assassinated, too

On June 30, 1974, as 69-year-old Alberta Williams King played the organ at a Sunday service inside Ebenezer Baptist Church, Marcus Wayne Chenault Jr. rose from the front pew, drew two pistols and began to fire shots. One of the bullets struck and killed King, who died steps from where her son had preached nonviolence.

National Civil Rights Museum

The Lorraine Motel where James Earl Ray assassinated King on April 4, 1968, is a complex of museums that trace the civil rights movement in the U.S. from the 17th century to the present.

You can learn more about the National Civil Rights Museum here.

The King Center in Atlanta, founded in 1968 has many online resources here.

Building the National Monument

You can learn more about the MLK National Monument here.

U.S. views on racism

An October 2021 survey by the Pew Research Center shows that overall, about two-thirds of U.S. adults (65%) say that when it comes to racism against Black people in our country today, racism by individual people is a bigger problem than racism in our laws.

Percentage who say that, when it comes to racism against Black people in our country today, the bigger problem is …

You can find the August 2022, Pew Research Center story “Black Americans Have a Clear Vision for Reducing Racism but Little Hope It Will Happen” here.

Sources: History.com,The Pew Research Center, The Associated Press, Gallup, CNN, Time, The American Presidency Project, UCSB, The Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University

​ Orange County Register 

Santa Margarita football adds St. John Bosco’s Max Amasio to group of recent transfers

• January 12, 2024

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The group of football transfers joining Santa Margarita added its most notable name yet Friday with the confirmed arrival of defensive lineman Max Amasio from St. John Bosco.

The junior, who earned first-team All-Trinity League honors in the fall, said he has enrolled at Santa Margarita.

Amasio (5-11, 255) led St. John Bosco with 14 sacks and finished sixth in total tackles with 61.

Amasio was selected defensive player of the year for the regular season by the Trinity League Football Podcast. He played especially well in the Braves’ 28-0 win against Mater Dei in the teams’ Trinity League showdown.

Santa Margarita, coming off a 5-6 record in the fall, has added several other transfers since the season ended.

Two Mater Dei sophomores, wide receiver Jonah Smith (6-1, 172) and defensive back Jayden Crowder (5-10, 160), have confirmed their enrollment at Santa Margarita.

Smith, a second-team all-league selection, had 27 receptions for 363 yards and eight TDs last season to help Mater Dei capture CIF-SS Division 1, state and national championships. His eight touchdown receptions ranked second on the team.

Crowder had an interception and blocked two field goals.

Los Alamitos sophomore linebacker Ivrick Carrigan (5-11, 205) also confirmed his enrollment at Santa Margarita. He was a first-team All-Sunset League selection in the fall after racking up 79 total tackles and 10 pass breakups for the league champion Griffins.

Xavier Prep junior offensive lineman Elijah Vaikona (6-8, 345) also confirmed his enrollment at Santa Margarita. He started classes at the school Monday.

St. John Bosco has added Servite wide receiver Ethan Naudin (6-1, 185). The junior confirmed this week that he has enrolled at the reigning league champion.

Naudin finished last season with 19 catches for 455 yards (23.9 yards per reception) and three TDs for the Division 2 runner-up Friars.

Please send football news to Dan Albano at [email protected] or @ocvarsityguy on X and Instagram

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​ Orange County Register 

UCLA football breakdown: How the Bruins look at defensive line

• January 12, 2024

Newly promoted defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe played a significant role in bringing edge rushers Laiatu Latu and Gabriel and Grayson Murphy to Westwood, helping make the defensive line a strength for UCLA over the past two seasons.

Latu had 13 sacks for UCLA in 2023, which ranked third on the program’s all-time list for a single season, tying him with Carnell Lake (1987). Latu also recorded 49 total tackles (21.5 TFL), two forced fumbles and two interceptions in 12 games played.

Latu has been projected as a first-round pick in the upcoming NFL draft. The edge rusher won the Lombardi Award, recognizing college football’s most outstanding lineman, and the Ted Hendricks Award, for the sports’ top defensive end, for his performance throughout the 2023 season. He was also voted as the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.

The Murphy twins decided to forgo their remaining eligibility and also declared for the draft.

The Bruins finished as a top-10 defense this past season, allowing 301.5 yards per game. The defensive line also helped produce a solid rush defense that ranked second in the country after allowing just 80.5 yards per game.

Carl Jones Jr. is also expected to be finished with the program after playing several defensive positions during his five years in Westwood but mostly outside linebacker in his later years. He started four of the 13 games he played this season and finished with 39 tackles (5.5 TFL), two sacks and a fumble recovery.

There’s still some level of uncertainty on how the Bruins will manage to make up the same level of production.

The position group will be tested going forward after it loses most of its experienced players. Defensive lineman Jay Toia is expected to return and will bring a level of consistency and serve as an anchor for the defense. He finished with 28 tackles (four TFL), one sack and forced a fumble in 12 games played in 2023.

The Bruins announced the hiring of Tony Washington Jr. as the new defensive line and outside linebackers coach Friday.

Here’s a full breakdown of UCLA’s offensive line entering spring ball, the fourth in a six-part series by the Southern California News Group examining the post-portal outlook for every part of the roster.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Returning: Jr. DL Jay Toia, Sr. DL Gary Smith III, R-Jr. DL Choé Bryant-Strother, R-So. DL Keanu Williams, Fr. DL Grant Buckey

Arriving: Sr. DL Jacob Busic (transfer, Navy), Fr. DL Collins Acheampong (transfer, Miami)

Departing: Sr. DL Laiatu Latu (NFL draft), R-Jr. DL Gabriel Murphy (NFL draft), R-Jr. DL Grayson Murphy (NFL draft), R-Sr. DL Carl Jones Jr. (5th-year player), R-Sr. Jake Heimlicher (sixth-year player)

TOP QUESTION

Why didn’t the Bruins sign any high school defensive linemen in the 2024 recruiting class? The Bruins emphasized offense during this recruiting cycle, especially with three of 10 recruits being offensive linemen. The Bruins have started to address the need to reload the defensive line, with Acheampong and Busic, through the transfer portal.

Busic’s arrival in Westwood reunites him with former Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo. Busic spent four years with the Midshipmen and was a captain this past season. He was denied a fifth year of eligibility at Navy, which led to his decision to enter the transfer portal.

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THE GROUP X-FACTOR

Acheampong was ranked as a four-star prospect by 247sports as a member of the 2023 class coming out of Santa Margarita High before signing with the University of Miami. The 6-foot-7, 270-pound edge rusher spent just one season with the Hurricanes and didn’t see the field. Acheampong had familiarity with coach Chip Kelly and UCLA from his high school recruiting process. If Acheampong can impress the coaching staff throughout the spring and training camp, there’s potential that he could see some playing time this season as he settles in as a promising player for the future.

​ Orange County Register 

LAPD Chief Michel Moore to step down at the end of February

• January 12, 2024

Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore will retire at the end of February, Mayor Karen Bass said Friday.

Moore has served as LAPD chief since his appointment by former Mayor Eric Garcetti in 2018.

In tearful remarks at City Hall, Moore said he was stepping down to spend more time with his family. He previously had announced his intention not to serve his entire second term after he was re-appointed by Bass.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

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​ Orange County Register 

Galaxy season opener vs. Inter Miami and Lionel Messi sold out

• January 12, 2024

One of the hottest dates on the Galaxy schedule is always the season opener.

When it is against Inter Miami CF, the interest is only increased with Lionel Messi scheduled to make his first trip to Dignity Health Sports Park.

On Friday, the Galaxy announced that single-game tickets for the season opener against Lionel Messi and Inter Miami on Feb. 25, along with all season-ticket inventory that included the game, are sold out.

The six-game packs, which included the season opener, are also sold out.

The club said there is a “limited number of premium inventory options” available for the opener. Fans are able to sign up to be notified if additional seats become available, when any available holds are lifted on seats.

Tickets went on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. Thursday, one day after season-ticket members had the opportunity to purchase tickets.

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​ Orange County Register 

Alexander: A low point for L.A. basketball – really low – Thursday night

• January 12, 2024

The world according to Jim:

• True, it’s important not to overreact in January, and especially not important to overreact to one night’s work – but if you were paying attention to L.A. basketball on Thursday night, how could you not help but think that this is going to be a miserable springtime for two of this region’s proudest teams?

The Lakers were drilled by Phoenix, 127-109, and while it broke a two-game winning streak it’s also the team’s 11th loss in 16 games since the increasingly hollow In-Season Tournament “championship.” The Lakers are back below .500 at 19-20, tied for 10th in the Western Conference with Utah and could drop out of the play-in zone with a loss in Salt Lake City on Saturday night. And just because this franchise made a mid-course correction last year at midseason, is it really feasible to assume that it can do it again? …

• Meanwhile, a UCLA men’s basketball season already circling the drain got worse with a 90-44 embarrassment at Utah on Thursday night. It’s not the worst loss in school history only because of a 48-point drubbing at Stanford in 1997. And Channel 9 sports anchor Darren M. Haynes noted Thursday night that this was the first time since the Lakers moved to Los Angeles in the fall of 1960 that they and the Bruins had lost on the same night by a combined margin of more than 60 points. …

• Nor is it just the records that have been discouraging. UCLA is pretty much unwatchable, and you wonder if maybe Mick Cronin has finally realized that high-volume (as in decibel level) coaching doesn’t work with this particular mix of players. He all but dared players to leave with his postgame remarks after last week’s loss to Stanford, and I’m willing to bet a good chunk of the roster will head for the transfer portal when this season ends.

As for the Lakers? They seem disjointed, out of sync. And no, the coach is not the problem. Neither are LeBron James or Anthony Davis. That still leaves a lot of territory. …

• The talk last week that agents of some Lakers players had registered complaints about playing time and roles brought to mind one of the great stories of the distant past, which turns out to have been apocryphal. The story was that the agent for Green Bay Packers center Jim Ringo visited Coach/GM Vince Lombardi to discuss a contract, and Lombardi excused himself after a few minutes, then came back into the room and informed the agent that his client had been traded to Philadelphia. It turns out the story wasn’t accurate – there was a trade but it wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment negotiation – but Lombardi didn’t discourage its retelling.

Would Rob Pelinka try that threat? Probably not, as a former agent himself. But if he is getting those calls, maybe he should remind the agents that he can arrange more minutes for their clients – with, say, the Pistons or Trail Blazers or Hornets. …

• I hesitate to write this, given the way history has been so cruel to the Clippers, but they could be SoCal’s best hope in May and June given continued growth and – most significantly – continued good health. If you’re a Clippers fan, knock on wood every chance you get, just to be safe. …

• Elsewhere, USC’s men are 8-8, have no resume-building nonconference wins in their bid to make the NCAA Tournament, and now will be without freshman star Isaiah Collier for the next month with a hand injury. There are plenty of games left, but those who thought the Trojans might have a deep tournament run in them (guilty!) might need to recalibrate. …

• SoCal’s best (only) shot at an NCAA Tournament presence could be UC Irvine. The Anteaters are 12-5, 5-0 in conference and the region’s highest-ranked team in the NCAA’s NET rating (No. 71). Then again, the Big West gets one bid, it will go to the winner of the conference tournament, and strange things happen in that conference in March. …

•  As for that NET rating? USC is 92nd, and UCLA is 209th – behind Cal State Northridge (147), Long Beach State (158), Cal Baptist (176) and Loyola Marymount (208) as well as the Anteaters and Trojans. The 10 SoCal Division I men’s programs are 0-29 in Quad 1 games (defined by the NCAA as home games against teams ranked 1-30, neutral court games against 1-50 and road games against 1-75). And UCLA has accounted for six of those L’s. …

• Is Sunday’s USC-UCLA women’s rematch at Galen Center close to a sellout yet? Those teams truly are the best bets to make some March Madness noise from this region. (And if you need additional motivation to go to the 2 p.m. game between the second-ranked Bruins (14-0) and ninth-ranked Trojans (12-1), the only TV coverage is again provided by the Pac-12 Network. …

• UCLA is fifth in the women’s NET ranking, behind South Carolina, Stanford, Texas and Connecticut, the latter of which the Bruins have already beaten. USC is 16th. …

• While the coaching carousel has spun wildly out of control this week – Nick Saban retiring, Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick nudged aside, Washington’s Kalen DeBoer opting to replace Saban at Alabama while Jim Harbaugh hovers above it all – there are crickets from Costa Mesa, where the list of presumed Chargers candidates includes the traditional group of coordinators and no apparent indication as yet that the team is aiming higher.

Belichick or Carroll – and possibly Harbaugh – would almost certainly seek a certain amount of influence in player personnel, and I would need to be convinced that such a request wouldn’t be a deal-breaker with Dean and John Spanos. Thus far, I am not.

[email protected]

​ Orange County Register 

Ducks head to Tampa Bay for Alex Killorn’s return

• January 12, 2024

The Ducks made their way down to Tampa Bay, where winger Alex Killorn spent 11 seasons grinding for the Lightning, whose crowd will surely embrace him warmly in his return Saturday.

Killorn picked up two assists during Tuesday’s 5-3 win in Nashville to kick off this six-game road trip, the Ducks’ longest of 2023-24, but was held scoreless and shotless with a minus-three rating on Thursday when the Ducks fell 6-3 to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Both teams struck quickly en route to a 3-3 score, with Carolina scoring twice in 15 seconds during the first period and the Ducks tallying two goals in 45 ticks of the second. But the Ducks were overmatched overall by one of the East’s deepest and most tenacious teams. They needed acrobatics fit for Cirque du Soleil from goalie John Gibson, who made at least three highlight-reel stops in the first period and more still before he exited the game with an upper-body injury.

“Gibbie kept us in the game, it easily could have been five-nothing after two periods,” coach Greg Cronin said.

Though no goalie was recalled Friday, if Gibson were to miss any more time, he would be the latest admission into the Ducks’ triage unit. They placed Trevor Zegras (broken ankle) and Pavel Mintyukov (separated shoulder) on injured reserve Thursday, where they joined forward Max Jones. Those absences, combined with the uncertain health of Tristan Luneau and departure of Jamie Drysdale in the Cutter Gauthier trade, have left an already inexperienced and not-so-deep roster in even more of a bind, despite notching an impressive eight goals in its past two outings.

“Nobody’s going to magically appear and score goals for us,” Cronin said. “We’ve got to get them out of what we’ve got currently, for players, and we’ve got to find creative ways to create offense. It is what it is, it’s an offensively challenged group.”

Cronin pointed to the contributions of Carolina’s defensemen to its offense, 28 goals this season, as one significant difference-maker. The Ducks’ have received a modest dozen goals from the blue line this year and in less than convincing fashion. Six of those goals have come from rugged Radko Gudas and four more have come from rearguards that are either injured or no longer with the team, meaning the existing group outside of Gudas has a meager two goals, both by Cam Fowler.

There could be some offensive relief in the form of center Leo Carlsson, who was a full participant in practice Friday. He sustained a knee injury Dec. 22 that was to sideline him for about a month, but 2023’s No. 2 overall pick has healed quickly. Isac Lundeström, who missed 35 games (Achilles), scored his first goal since February of last year on Thursday, and Brett Leason notched his first point since being a healthy scratch for two games.

Next up, the available version of the Ducks will square off with the Lightning, who brought two championships to Tampa Bay and lost in two more Stanley Cup Final series during Killorn’s tenure, which spanned from 2012-13 to last season. In a letter he penned to the Tampa fans after signing a four-year pact with the Ducks this past offseason, he said he “always imagined being a Bolt forever.”

“When I was drafted in 2007, I never would have imagined all the accomplishments and memories that were made with this organization,” Killorn wrote on social media. “I am so proud of these memories and they will last forever.”

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Those memories may seem a bit distant for all parties, however, since the Bolts are clinging to the final wild card spot in the East. Among teams currently occupying a playoff position, only the New York Islanders have a worse goal differential than Tampa Bay.

Winger Nikita Kucherov sits atop the NHL scoring leaderboard, continuing to fend off a surge from Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon, who has outscored Kucherov by two points since Nov. 1 and by eight since Dec. 1.

Ducks at Lightning

When: 4 p.m. Saturday

Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Fla.

How to watch: Bally Sports SoCal

​ Orange County Register