Bruins Have to Do a Lot Better Than This

Let me see if I understand this. Everyone knows that UCLA simply scalped 4,000 Rose Bowl tickets through a third party (obtaining a $100,000 “scholarship contribution” from booster Angelo Mazzone, who then apparently sold the tickets for several times that amount), yet the official line from the athletic department is this:

Knowing that a year ago the University of Washington had been stuck with several thousand Rose Bowl tickets, UCLA administration panicked and sold the 4,000 tickets to Mr. Mazzone to avoid a similar catastrophe; this, despite the fact that a year ago Washington was competing in its third consecutive game, its campus is located a little farther from Pasadena than UCLA, it was more than a month until the game, ticket brokers had already advertised that they needed tickets, and season-ticket holders and alumni had already been told that additional tickets were unavailable.

UCLA cannot have it both ways. It cannot graduate superbly educated alumni, and then expect them to believe a phony story like this.

LEONARD LEVINE

Los Angeles

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The Rose Bowl ticket scandal is but further proof of the utter intellectual and moral bankruptcy of the UCLA athletic administration. Their consistent attitude of arrogance and contempt toward alumni, students and fans has led to massive disaffection, dwindling ticket sales and revenues, and now this crass and venal episode.

These are truly the Dark Ages of UCLA athletics, where mediocre, unpopular coaches have their contracts extended, respected head coaches and assistants are forced out and successful minor sports are callously sacrificed. There will never be a Bruin renaissance until Peter Dalis and his cohorts are removed from power.

WILLIAM PLATT

Sherman Oaks

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I found it interesting that when asked about the ticket sale to Mazzone and whether tickets were later scalped, Chancellor Young stated, “It’s not illegal to scalp tickets. Why should I ask him?”

This sounds a bit hypocritical, coming from the head of a school that, as part of the UC system, is one of the proponents of political correctness. I suppose that this “as long as it’s not illegal, it’s OK” attitude applies only to school administrators, but not to students.

LANCE CLARK

Lancaster