For four years, UCLA football coach Karl Dorrell has struggled to get elite quality players to commit to playing for his program.
That appears to be changing this year.
With 25 scholarships open after this coming year, Dorrell has begun stocking his 2008 recruiting class with some blue-chip athletes. The class, with 21 verbal commitments already, has been ranked preliminarily as the No. 1 class in the nation by Rivals.com.
Safety Rahim Moore, the No. 2 prospect in the nation at his position according to Scout.com, headlines the class, which also includes talented running backs Aundre Dean and Milton Knox, as well as quarterback Nick Crissman.
The addition of new receivers coach Eric Scott has appeared to provide a serious boost to recruiting. Scott has connections with many Southern California players, and his infectious personality has been cited by many of the commits as one of the reasons they have committed to UCLA.
It also may have contributed to the boost in wide receiver recruiting.
Dorrell had not been able to recruit elite receivers since arriving in Westwood, but he already has commits from two four-star receivers (Kemonte Bateman and Antwon Moutra) for 2008.
AWARD LISTS: Defensive end Bruce Davis and safety Chris Horton were named to the watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, while running back Chris Markey was named to the watch list for the Maxwell Award.
The Bednarik award is given to the top defensive player in the country, while the Maxwell Award is given to the most outstanding collegiate football player.
Davis was also named to the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Lott Trophy, which are each awarded to a top defensive player in the country. Horton is also on the Lott watch list.
TELEVISION: UCLA has announced the TV schedule for next year, and it comes with a couple of surprises.
Two of UCLA’s games, against Utah and BYU, will be televised on Versus, a network that is only available in 59 percent of homes in Los Angeles, according to the L.A. Times.
However, at least three of UCLA’s games (Notre Dame, Arizona and USC) will be televised on ABC.
PRACTICE TIME: UCLA will open fall football practice on Aug. 6.
UCLA will start with pads on Aug. 10, and begin two-a-day practices on Aug. 11.
All practices between Aug. 6 and Aug. 18 will be open to the public, which includes the first major scrimmage of the fall on Aug. 18 at Drake Stadium.
All practices on Aug. 20 and after will be closed to the public as the Bruins near the beginning of the season.
Last year’s practices were held on the Intramural Field because Spaulding Field was being renovated. There were complaints about the field quality on the IM field from the football players, but this year they will have their practices in the familiar confines of Spaulding.