UCLA has the toughest admission requirements of any public school in the PAC-10 for non-athletes....
FIFY
Cal and UCLA's entrance requirements for football players is much laxer than you'd expect.
I have followed Rick since I played against him in High School. He was the best QB in AZ at Tempe-McClintock (literally next door to ASU) yet was ignored by D1 schools, as were most AZ HS athletes at that time. I rooted for him to represent "us" in AZ well - which he did, walking-on at UCLA and eventually starting as a senior.
However, his coaching stints have been less than brilliant. When he took over at CU, Colorado could compete with anyone on the field AND on the recruiting trail. And although Rick could seemingly recruit, the players didn't develop the same as they did under Mac (or maybe they were over-rated?), but I think it's pretty clear that he left CU in worst shape than when he found it. The last few years were very frustrating, as the team seemed talented enough, but just didn't get over the hump. When Rick left, there was not a single D1 QB on the roster. There was a lot of talent, but not a single QB, which held CU back for 5 more years.
He took over UW, which was a decent team, and left them to flounder badly. He had a couple decent years with talent he didn't recruit, but when he left, that cupboard was bare. Frankly, if he didn't get "wrongly terminated" he would have been gone in a year or two and probably wouldn't have ever gotten the chance at UCLA.
I think Rick has matured a lot and I think he can recruit when he has a product to sell and will get great help from some top assistant coaches. The product is that UCLA is close to home for the SoCal kids and they have some highly respected assistant coaches. It really should allow them to get a lot of kids who fall short of a Trojan offer, which should put them in the #2 spot in the Pac-10 on most Letter-of-intent days.
But, I will want to see compelling evidence before I believe he is a great coach. His track record under close inspection doesn't really suggest that UCLA will become a national power. I've always questioned if his teams were tough enough to win at a high level and I think losing D. Walker as D-coordinator will prove to be a blow. Time will tell.