Karl Dorrell Fired Despite 43-27 Record - Would They Keep Him If He Were White?

Karl Dorrell took the UCLA program from the dumps to competitveness. Yet even with a 43-27 record, he was fired. While DeWayne Walker -- who's also African American -- will serve as the interim head coach, the question must be asked, would Dorrell be given a better chance to finish his work? He's gotten UCLA into a bowl game each of his five years. Let's se the next coach top that.

But given the fact that Charlie Weis is still around, one has to ask if there's a double standard between treatment of Black and White head coaches in college and pro football?

UCLA fires Dorrell after 6-6 season

ESPN.com news services
Updated: December 3, 2007, 4:23 PM ET

LOS ANGELES -- UCLA coach Karl Dorrell was fired Monday, a day after the Bruins accepted a bowl bid and two days after a loss to cross-town rival USC.

Dorrell was let go despite leading the Bruins to a postseason game in each of his five seasons at UCLA, which had an outside chance to reach the Rose Bowl before its loss to USC.

The 43-year-old Dorrell had a 43-27 record. The Bruins (6-6) will play BYU (10-2) in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 22, with defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker to serve as interim coach.

Dorrell's buyout will pay him just over $2 million. He was under contract through 2011.

"This was a very difficult decision for me," UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero said in a statement. "Karl has represented this program with dignity and class. He is a true Bruin and I respect what he has accomplished in his five years as our head coach, particularly off the field. But, at the end of the day, the focus has to be on results and I felt that a change was in the best interest for the future of our program."

Dorrell's firing leaves five black coaches at 119 major college coaches.

Talk of Dorrell's ouster has been building all year, which included early season losses to to Utah and to a then-winless Notre Dame. If the Bruins had made it to the Rose Bowl, it would have been the first time a team with five losses had played in Pasadena in the "grandaddy of them all."

Expectations were high for Dorrell's 2007 team. They were ranked in the top 25 of almost every preseason poll. They were up to No. 11 in The Associated Press poll before losing 44-6 by Utah on Sept. 15. Then they lost to Notre Dame. The Bruins went on to lose three Pacific-10 Conference games.

His best season was 2005, when he led UCLA to a 10-2 record, with one of the losses a 66-19 pounding by USC.

"I want to thank Dan Guerrero for the opportunity to coach at my alma mater," Dorrell said in a statement. "I know that the program is in much better shape than when I inherited it and I believe that it is ready to flourish."

Information from ESPN's Joe Schad and The Associated Press was used in this report.