10 years later

Roger Carlson

It’s not quite to the day, but it’s close enough.

When the Daily Pilot published on June 30, 1991 - 10 years ago, it was

a day without smiles.

We became a three-days-a-week paper (Tuesdays, Thursdays and

Saturdays) and we left all of the South Coast area (Irvine, Mission

Viejo, Laguna Beach, etc., and Huntington Beach (the Sunset League).

Also cut from our coverage were Saddleback and Golden West community

colleges, and our plum, UC Irvine, along with the Angels, Dodgers, Lakers

and national news by way of AP sources and the like. Mater Dei High was

dropped a year or two later.At the time it was just one of a series of

desperate maneuvers the paper took trying to stay alive in the

competitive business world, and our newspaper was losing, big time, over

a course of several owners.

Zeroing in on our Big Four, Corona del Mar, Costa Mesa, Estancia and

Newport Harbor high schools, was a huge bonus, and eventually the saving

grace came when the Los Angeles Times bought the Pilot (again) and

inserted our newspaper into the Orange County editions delivered in the

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach areas.

We still had Orange Coast College and Southern California College, as

well as local golf and tennis, and in time our youth sports coverage has

grown to unheard of proportions when you consider pre-1990.

One of the hardest losses to swallow was UC Irvine.

It took us, and our readers, right out of the Division I ranks, and it

left a void so obvious despite the overwhelming success of the transition

to “Locals Only.”

For reasons I was never able to buy, the Anteaters were deemed by

bean-counters as “no longer local.”

One of the bonuses of longevity, or perhaps it’s a curse, is that you

find yourself witnessing mistakes by newcomers which remain in force

years and years after the Johnny-come-lately has come and done his deed,

then moved on to spoil some other endeavor.

So we found ourselves in the dilemma of knowing the Anteaters were

hosting major college water polo tournaments at Newport Harbor High

School, no less, yet the Pilot was not there.

How could we? Since the Anteaters were officially deemed to reside on

the moon.

Gee, what a difference 10 years (and correct leadership) can make!

In a move designed to give back to our readers, the Anteaters return

to the Daily Pilot. UCI is local.

I had the honor of a vote at a recent meeting, in what in reality was

a unanimous vote, with our publisher (Tom Johnson) and editor (Tony

Dodero) carrying 95% of the weight.

So we’re back, starting today, Aug. 20, 2001.

Some might view this as an expansionist move which could cut away at

the fabric of what we do, and that is my daily concern, that the Sea

Kings and Sailors, Eagles and Mustangs, Pirates and Vanguard University

Lions, maintain a status quo.

There is a surprising number of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach readers

who have ties with the Anteaters, a school which actually borders Newport

Beach on two sides despite the Irvine address. From now on, if you can

hear us from across the street, that’s local enough.

It’s going to feel so good to no longer hear the remark, “How come you

don’t cover the Anteaters?

So ... for starters, just when is there going to be some concern over

the lack of seat backs for the bleachers at Crawford Hall? Seems pretty

bush for a quality program.

A couple of things to help you catch up with the Anteaters ...

basketball standouts Jerry Green and Adam Parada have received notable

distinctions as the season approaches. Green, a 6-foot-3 point guard

entering his senior seeason, is one of 50 preseason selections to the

2001-02 Wooden Award All-American team. He was the Big West Player of the

Year as a junior when he led the Anteaters to a 25-5 record, including

the Big West crown. Parada, a 7-foot center, is competing with the

Mexican National Team in the qualifying tournament for the Confederation

of Pan America Basketball Associations World Championship in Argentina

... UCI’s men’s basketball team will compete in two tournaments during

the regular season and make a return trip to Pauley Pavilion at UCLA. UCI

is at the Pittsburgh Thanksgiving Shootout Nov. 23-25, facing Illinois

State in its opener, and the Wisconsin-Green Bay Tournament Dec. 28-29.

There will be an exhibition game at the Bren Center Nov. 2 ... Big West

Coach of the Year Pat Douglass will take his Anteaters to UCLA Dec. 15. A

year ago UCLA rallied to defeat the Anteaters at the same site, 65-60.

The Big West opener is Dec. 22 against Long Beach State, at the Bren

Center.