In Reply to: I have a friend who knew Howland pretty well. posted by ej on July 16, 2026 at 11:07:05
UCLA did not go all-in for "pay for play" and fell behind the curve.
Cronin tried different approaches like mass Euro immigration, and looking for "value" players from low mid-majors. Mara was the only real standout from that group, but wasn't really outstanding until he left UCLA.
2025 seems like the first year UCLA had "real" NIL money, and Cronin was able to recruit some "real" players from the transfer pool. But UCLA still didn't seem to have enough funds to put together a full team. Andrews didn't develop at PG and Mara/Bilodeau weren't a complete center.
Last year, he got Dent, who pretty much lived up to expectations, at least by the end of the season, but lost Mara, who ended up exceeding all expectations.
At the end of this past season, Cronin asked for another $5M in NIL money. Seems like he got it, and it seems like he got a player other big money teams wanted.
Will this be the year we finally find our way out of the desert? As I do every season, I begin with a heart full of hope.