Photo by Daily Bruin Senior Staffs
By Joshua Mason
Daily Bruin Staff
TUSCALOOSA, Ala.: It wasn’t always like this.
Just minutes after his team marched off the field celebrating
Saturday’s 20-17 victory over Alabama, head coach Bob Toledo found
himself defending the spotty play of the Bruin offense.
This was definitely a change of pace for Toledo, whose teams had
never won with so low an output since he took over in 1996. Rather
than fielding questions about defensive lapses, it was now the
offense that was being placed under the magnifying glass.
Despite talk leading into Alabama of a well-balanced offensive
attack, Toledo was now asserting that the game plan was always
geared toward a more conservative scheme.
"Our offense did what we wanted to do in this game," Toledo said
"We wanted to control the football and run the football, and not
have to throw it a whole bunch. That’s what we planned to do."
Junior quarterback Cory Paus was less than impressive, finishing
the night 8-of-22 for 123 yards and one touchdown, while senior
split end Brian Poli-Dixon dropped several passes. And as the game
wore on, Paus stopped throwing him passes altogether.
"We didn’t throw the ball well and we didn’t catch the ball
particularly well," Toledo acknowledged. "But Cory made some big
plays when he had to make some big plays."
Even senior tailback DeShaun Foster, who last year ran for 187
yards against the Crimson Tide, was held in check most of the game,
until a 40-yard run in the fourth quarter padded his overall
numbers.
Despite the scrutiny, the Bruins can feel relieved for the time
being. Washed away, they hope, are the defensive inconsistencies of
the past.
"Our defense has a lot more confidence this season," said
cornerback Ricky Manning Jr., who made several key plays in the
game. "We have a lot of seniors and a lot of experience. With the
playmakers we have this season, we’ll be able to do a lot of
things."
What made UCLA’s defensive performance most rewarding was the
fact that the Bruins came into the game uncertain of what offensive
looks theywould get from Alabama.
"We didn’t know what they were going to run at us exactly, and
that complicated things," senior linebacker Ryan Nece said. "We had
to make a lot of mental adjustments preparing for the option attack
we thought they would run."
Though the Tide totaled a respectable 458 yards of offense, 149
passing yards came from two misreads in the secondary. The running
attack, which was the primary focus of Franchione’s option-based
offense, only averaged 3.5 yards on 46 carries.
"Phil Snow and the entire defensive staff really did a nice job
of adjusting to what they were doing," Toledo said.
The ability to make such crucial adjustments on the road is a
telling sign of the maturity of this year’s Bruin defense. Just as
significant was UCLA’s composure at Bryant-Denny Stadium, which
enabled the veteran defense to commit no penalties and force two
turnovers ““ both of which eventually resulted in field
goals.
"It’s good to know if we put up 21 points we can win this year,"
Foster said. "The defense pulled it out for us today."