Even though coach Karl Dorrell said Monday that cornerback
Marcus Cassel’s job wasn’t in jeopardy, Cassel still
might need to worry.
The junior was replaced in the third quarter of Saturday’s
loss at California by true freshman Rodney Van after getting beat
on a touchdown pass to the Bears’ running back Marshawn
Lynch.
The substitution left some speculation that Van could
potentially compete for the starting role, though Dorrell said in
his weekly press conference that “(Cassel) is still starting.
He didn’t lose his job.”
But Tuesday, defensive coordinator Larry Kerr said that while
Cassel had one of his better games Saturday, they still expect more
from him if he continues to start.
According to Kerr, the issue that Cassel has been struggling
with has been playing the ball while it’s in the air.
“We want Marcus to know we have confidence in him, but at
the same token we just can’t allow that to continue and have
to give someone else the chance to prove what they can do,”
Kerr said.
“So Marcus is going to go out and do what he does and
hopefully make some of those plays, and if not, the other guy will
get the opportunity.”
Cassel, who is fifth on the Bruins with 29 tackles, has more
than enough talent, but talent alone doesn’t translate to the
starting position in Kerr’s book.
The junior has already had to compete once for the spot, beating
out former Bruin Nnamdi Ohaeri during fall camp.
The two were fighting to fill the void left by Matt Ware, who
opted to leave the program early for the NFL. Ohaeri has also since
left the program.
And yet, it appears Cassel might have to protect his starting
position again, though he says he doesn’t feel his job is at
risk.
“I feel like I deserve the position and I feel like I
haven’t lost it,” Cassel said. “I’m just
going to keep working and whatever happens, happens.”
The one thing that could easily happen would be for Van to see
more significant playing time.
However, Van had his fair share of trouble last weekend against
the Bears as well.
The freshman allowed wide receiver Geoff McArthur to run up the
sideline and score on an 80-yard pass play in the fourth
quarter.
Despite that play, Van still sees an opportunity to make his
case for the starting bid.
“As long as I continue to play well, I feel like I can
challenge for a starting spot,” he said. “(Saturday)
gave me a glimpse. Before I thought it was college ball, and coming
from high school it would be a big step. But once I got out there,
I realized it was just football and it all comes down to
basics.”
The timing of this defensive shake-up has come during an
interesting week for the Bruins.
Instead of previous matchups against successful rushing
opponents where the Bruin defensive line has been vital, this
weekend the secondary will be of utmost importance for UCLA against
Arizona State.
The Sun Devils are a pass-happy team, with over two-thirds of
their average yards coming from the receiving game.
UCLA will need to control the passing game if it wants to be
competitive this weekend, putting even more pressure on the
cornerbacks.
“Basically we have to have good technique and good
focus,” Cassel said. “They’re a good passing team
and they’re going to try to bring it to us in the secondary
and we have to step it up.
“It will definitely be a test after last week, so we can
show we can bounce back and show we have a good
secondary.”