The lungs of the City of Angels are choking again as the wildfire continues to leave its mark on the West Coast. At least eleven dead, and countless injured, and it hits right at home for the Bruins head coach. The UCLA Bruins lost against the Maryland Terrapins on Friday 79 to 61, but Mick Cronin had a different tragedy in mind. As the authorities evacuate houses, panic is flooding through residents of LA, including Cronin. The UCLA head coach talked about the fires and how they were affecting his loved ones and his helping gesture.

In the post-game press conference, Cronin was candid about his state of mind after the Friday night clash. “Man, listen. My house is getting real close to being evacuated, like I have no idea what you’re talking about. You don’t live where we live. It is literally an unbelievably horrible situation. We lost the other night, and I went home and packed. Bags are still at the door of my house, valuables and things like that. That is my only concern.”

Rightly so, as the scale of the tragedy transcends sport. A lot of his loved ones are suffering because of this calamity, including his friends and family.

To provide a deeper perspective, Mick Cronin talked about a friend affected by the fires. “I was giving a friend of mine my Nike account password yesterday so he could get clothes for his family. That somebody is a really good friend, and it is beyond tragic, and it is not over is the scary part… High winds are coming back again, and it’s really scary.” 

In the dying embers of his matchup against Maryland, Cronin got hit with two quick technicals and got promptly ejected. When asked about it, the Bruins head coach explained that he rushed to call his long-time girlfriend and to figure out what the situation was at home.

“The fire is coming over Mulholland to Encino,” he explained, putting his neighborhood in a precarious position.“The basketball stuff [is] secondary,” for the UCLA head coach, and we can all get why.

Calamities like these are when people band together, and what Coach Cronin did for his friends exemplifies that. It is definitely traumatizing when your loved ones are suffering and you are far away. Mick Cronin and the Bruins have a few more days on the road. Here’s to hoping that all stays well for the coach and his loved ones. The UCLA Bruins are not the only team concerned about LA, however; this tragedy has affected many.

USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb sends prayers to LA as Trojans continue their road games

Although rivals to each other, just like UCLA, USC too is worried about its city. Lindsay Gottlieb sent prayers to the affected in LA after her Trojans beat the Terrapins on Wednesday. The USC Trojans are undefeated in the Big Ten conference and won a beautifully close matchup, but their head coach shined the spotlight on the tragedy occurring back home.

“We’ve been on the road now for whatever it is now, five days, and our city is on fire.” The Trojans head coach said. “It’s been hard to be away and watch those scenes.”

Gottlieb sent her wishes to the victims and the first responders on the ground. “Just wanna send our thoughts and prayers to the first responders, to those impacted—I have friends that have been displaced, I know our players probably do too. That’s more important, obviously, than what we’re doing.” 

It is a similar story with any coach that’s based in California—it’s personal for them. The fires have affected JJ Reddick, Steve Kerr, Mick Cronin, and many more renowned coaches. While Reddick had to evacuate his Palisades rental where he moved after taking the LA Lakers job, the Golden State Warriors head coach lost his childhood home to the fires.

This tragedy directly affects the South California-based teams and their schedules. With authorities postponing sporting events like the NBA and NFL, it remains to be seen whether USC will host Penn State at Galen Center on Sunday. LA coaches, players, and citizens alike are praying for this crisis to get over quickly.