As the UCLA football team tries to pick up the pieces after last
week’s disappointing loss in Arizona, there seems to be an
added sense of urgency.
After playing from behind during most of conference play, the
Bruin offense is looking for a spark. Something that will jump
start them earlier in the game so they won’t have to play
catch-up during the second half.
A determining factor in whether UCLA can get into the end zone
earlier in the game will be the receiving corps, which has in many
ways mirrored the roller-coaster ride the Bruin offense has ridden
all season.
“They’ve come up big for us all season, and we need
them to do that again,” coach Karl Dorrell said.
All fans need to do is look at the Bruins’ play this
season, and they will see what Dorrell is talking about.
In UCLA’s victory against Stanford, sophomore Brandon
Breazell beat his man in overtime to catch the winning touchdown,
cementing the improbable comeback.
Junior Joe Cowan has made a habit of getting key third-down
receptions and moving the chains on fourth-quarter drives, while
sophomore Marcus Everett has been clutch all season for the
Bruins.
As a group, the receivers have consistently shown resolve after
a period of stagnant production. Entering Saturday’s game
against Arizona State, the UCLA wide receivers again have a chance
to give the offense a spark.
“This week in practice we’ve been stepping up the
intensity because we want to start quickly on Saturday,”
Breazell said. “I wouldn’t say that we’re happy
to be 8-1 now, but that loss was definitely a wake-up call, and now
we just need to respond.
“And we will respond.”
While the passing numbers against Arizona last week certainly
were not dreadful, much of the workload was carried by senior tight
end Marcedes Lewis, who had a career game with 11 catches for 135
yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Lewis had more catches and receiving yards than the rest of the
receiving corps combined.
“We want to all contribute as a group, without putting all
the work on just one guy,” Cowan said. “Marcedes had a
good game, but we also know that the offense is going better when
we can all make plays as a group.”
INJURY UPDATE: Adding to UCLA’s health
problems, senior outside linebacker Justin London will miss another
game due to an ankle injury that kept him out of last week’s
game.
It was previously thought that London might be able to play
against the Sun Devils, but he wasn’t able to progress as was
initially hoped.
Senior center Mike McCloskey will miss his third-straight game
with a right shoulder strain.
Redshirt sophomore outside linebacker Aaron Whittington will
also be out because of a deep thigh contusion he sustained against
Arizona.
Junior running back Maurice Drew’s MRI was inconclusive,
and he was able to practice in full pads on Wednesday.
OLSON’S STOCK RISING: Senior quarterback
Drew Olson has been named as one of 15 semifinalists for the 2005
Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, presented every
year to the nation’s best college quarterback.
Some other names on the list include USC quarterback Matt
Leinart, Virginia Tech quarterback Marcus Vick and Texas
quarterback Vince Young.