Football returned to the UCLA campus on Aug. 24, as the team
donned its gear to play an intrasquad game for two hours before an
audience of about 2,000 fans.
Spaulding Field was standing room only for the scrimmage, but
those fans willing to stick it out were treated to an early glimpse
at the 2002 Bruin football team.
“It was a complete change from practice,” said
freshman safety Eric McNeal, who, along with the rest of the team,
had just returned from a week of practice in Thousand Oaks only two
hours before.
“Your legs hurt, but everything feels right, and I feel
pretty good. It’s ultimately for the fans, but it’s
still a practice. You don’t want to mess up.”
As expected, the defense dominated, coming up with plenty of
interceptions and fumble recoveries. But the offense struggled to
gather a rhythm, as coaches used myriad lineup combinations to help
make a clouded depth chart picture clearer.
“We’ll evaluate this scrimmage, and we’ll take
a look,” head coach Bob Toledo said. “We don’t
want to rush into things. We still have a week and a half to plan
for Colorado State, and that’s more than enough.”
There were several bright spots for the UCLA offense. Tight end
Mike Seidman shined in his new role as an offense player;
quarterbacks hooked up with him quite often. Toledo also revealed
the new formations that will feature freshman sensation Marcedes
Lewis, who caught five passes for 41 yards during the game.
Five-foot-nine running back Tyler Ebell had the most rushing
yards of all the tailbacks, with 82 on seven carries, most of which
came on one dazzling 53-yard run, featuring a cutback that drew
oohs and aahs from the crowd.
Freshman Junior Taylor got the same accolades for a
catch-and-run that saw him cut and weave his way from one side of
the field to the other ““ and into the end zone.
Still, for the majority of the scrimmage, the offense was
stagnant.
“The first scrimmage is always like this,” said
senior offensive tackle Mike Saffer, who, as a senior, is going
through his fifth scrimmage.
“This is nothing like an actual game. We’re holding
back the quarterbacks a bit, we don’t run the ball as much,
and the defense is solid. We’ve just got to get the kinks out
and we’ll be fine. This happens every year, and we’re
always ready offensively for the first game.”
After the scrimmage, fans crowded Spaulding Field to talk to the
players and get autographs. Some even took the opportunity to take
pictures with their favorite Bruin football players.
“I love this,” Lewis said. “I love playing in
front of people who love to watch me play. It makes it worthwhile,
and we appreciate it.”