Letters: Seems a little early for ‘Bruins in Ruins,’ but UCLA fans already have a Chip on their shoulders

Cincinnati 26 UCLA 17.　 It looks like UCLA forgot the No. 1 rule of college football scheduling — never schedule a patsy you can’t beat.

Rob Osborne

Manhattan Beach

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After watching the UCLA football team’s poor showing against Cincinnati, I now understand why Chip Kelly closes his practices.

Chris Sorce

Fountain Valley

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There is certainly no disgrace in UCLA losing to an Ohio State team. Wait, make that a team from the state of Ohio.

Wes Wellman

Santa Monica

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We can now answer Chip Kelly’s question: the Bruins are zoo tigers, not jungle tigers.　 　

Robert Campbell

Palos Verdes Estates

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Of all the true freshmen in the UCLA-Cincinnati game I didn’t expect Chip Kelly to be the most conspicuous. For every athletic flub by his offense on the field, his gigantic ego would make a mental one from the sideline. Jim Mora would have won this game by simply being sensible.

Mario Valvo

Ventura

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“Justifications” for UCLA’s loss to Cincinnati:

UCLA is the fourth-youngest team in college football.

(Cincinnati is even younger, being the third youngest team.)

UCLA was up against a former NFL head coach who almost won a national championship at Oregon.

(Wait, that’s UCLA’s coach.)

Cincinnati has better talent, as evidenced by the fact that their recruiting classes are consistently ranked higher than UCLA’s.

(No, it’s the other way around.)

UCLA was the visiting team and it’s tough to win on the road.

(Wait, they were playing where?)

Paul Jeong

Seoul, South Korea

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Practically all of those with whom I have spoken agree with Bill Plaschke’s comments about the Bruins. Due to the loss of Josh Rosen, the youth and inexperience of the players and the change of coaches, it seems at this point the only way to salvage UCLA’s season would be a victory against the Trojans.

Irwin Zeke Warsaw

Marina del Rey

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Chip Kelly has pulled off the greatest robbery since the Brinks and Lufthansa capers. Will he take the money and disappear? Oh, he did Saturday.

Bill Singley

Manhattan Beach

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Really? One game and Bill Plaschke already has the sky falling for the Bruins. Really? Do you really need readership that badly? Chip Kelly is not a magician. Most of the team are carryovers from a disappointing squad from last year. He can’t turn a program around in one game. To suggest otherwise is what’s wrong with sports these days. It will take at least two years of Kelly recruiting his style of players to make an impact. Sit back and be realistic. Give him and the team a chance.

Lee Schwartz

Los Angeles

Dodgers ups and downs

Perhaps September 1-2 should become a two-day city holiday to be called St. Matt’s Days, commemorating when Matt Kemp drove the Snakes out of Los Angeles.

Peter Rich

Los Angeles

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I think with the current state of the Dodger bullpen, instead of personal music, they should just play “Eve of Destruction” when the bullpen gates open.

Bruce Kammerich

Simi Valley

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The Dodgers pitching staff is iffy at best. They do not want to admit that Clayton Kershaw is not the pitcher that he once was. Their success can be explained by all of those home runs plus being in a weird division. If they have to face staffs like Houston, Boston or Cleveland they will go back to blaming the manager for everything wrong with the team.

Arthur P. Nelson Jr.

North Hills

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It’s hard to believe that the Dodgers were even thinking of allowing Kenley Jansen to go to Denver. His heart health is paramount to himself and the Dodgers.

And they should not let him visit Machu Picchu in the offseason.

Paul Atkinson

Ventura

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Roberto Duran achieved great success by virtue of his Manos de Piedra (Hands of Stone). Looks as if the Dodgers have a successor behind the plate in Yasmani Grandal. The next time this guy catches a crucial throw home will coincide with the time Roberto decides to come out of retirement.

Herb Schoenberg

Tarzana

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So now that Dave Roberts has 40 guys, are we are going to have to see all these makeshift lineups instead of putting a team on the field that can win the game?

Wendy McCall

Fallbrook

On with the Sho

I was pleased when the Angels won the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes but not so sure it’s worth the circus that goes along with it.

By pitching once a week he throws the entire rotation into a chaotic rhythm. By hitting only three times a week he insures his position can’t be filled by a productive full-time player. Or compromises the only place they have for someone at the end of his career like Albert Pujols.

He’s compared to Babe Ruth, but until he pitches every fourth day or bats every day it’s an unfair comparison. Even Babe picked one or the other.

Robert Goldstone

Corona del Mar

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As Angel fans mourned the thought of Shohei Ohtani rehabbing from surgery, Ohtani gets in the lineup the same day and goes four for four with two home runs, an incredible story and a boost for the fans. Yet The Times makes the headline a downer about possibly losing Mike Trout.

Ohtani is one of the few bright spots for Angels fans this year. Give them something to brag about.

Rich Sieger

Valley Village

Pluck of Irish

Thank you for the excellent article on the Irish GAA footballer, Padraig Carney. An enjoyable read, and testimony to how we need to look outside the box from the traditional sports The Times regularly covers.

Probably 95% of the Times sports readers have never even heard of the sport. The other major Irish sport, hurling, is even better.

Kevin Flynn

Simi Valley

Just argue it

Headline: Nike Kaepernick ad to run during NFL opener.

Reaction: Yet another reason to work out Sundays while watching reruns of “All in the Family” and “Last Man Standing.”

Pete Russo

San Clemente

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Finally, a corporate entity has decided to support an athlete whose only sin was to protest what he sees as a continuing abuse of African Americans in our country. The First Amendment guaranteed “the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” And for that protest, Mr. Kaepernick is labeled a thug. Truly, we have lost our way.

Rodney K. Boswell

Thousand Oaks

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