At his press conference Monday, UCLA coach Karl Dorrell praised his defense and special teams for their dominant play in the team’s 40-14 win over Oregon State on Saturday in Corvallis, Ore.
But the most telling of Dorrell’s comments may have been those on quarterback Ben Olson.
Dorrell called Olson’s a play “a big step forward for everyone.”
In his first game back after UCLA’s 44-6 collapse against Utah, Olson threw for 225 yards, completing 14 of his 25 attempts. He threw a costly interception in the third quarter, but rebounded with two touchdown passes to wide receiver Brandon Breazell.
The interception, which came on a third-and-11 after consecutive penalties on the Bruins, was certainly a low point for the offense.
“That was really the dampering part of the second half,” Dorrell said. “But I was encouraged that the offense got that behind them; it wasn’t lingering with anybody.”
The confidence Dorrell expressed in Olson is certainly significant. Backup Pat Cowan is out for this week’s game against Notre Dame with a partially torn MCL, but he may be available when UCLA faces No. 3 Cal at the Rose Bowl on Oct. 20.
Cowan made a very good impression on the UCLA coaches in his only start of the season against Washington, a game the Bruins won 44-31.
But based on Monday’s press conference it seems that Dorrell is comfortable with where the offense is under Olson.
“I was really encouraged with how Ben played,” Dorrell said. “The only mistake he made was that one interception … but how he responded after that was really a big deal.”
BROWN HONORED: UCLA cornerback Trey Brown was named the Pac-10 defensive player of the week for his play against Oregon State Saturday.
Brown had two interceptions and eight tackles in the Bruins’ 40-14 win over the Beavers in Corvallis. It was the fourth time in five weeks that a UCLA player was awarded a Pac-10 player of the week distinction.
California wide receiver DeSean Jackson won the offensive player of the week and Arizona State’s Thomas Webber won the special teams player of the week.
BRUINS PREPARING FOR IRISH: The Bruins (4-1, 3-0 Pac-10) will face winless Notre Dame (0-5) this Saturday at the Rose Bowl. Dorrell said the team is focused on limiting penalties that have plagued the offense at times this season.
“Our penalties will be addressed every which way they can,” Dorrell said.
UCLA committed eight penalties for 54 yards last weekend at Oregon State.
The Bruins will also have to prepare for two different quarterbacks this week in practice, Dorrell said. Notre Dame has used two different quarterbacks in its past two games, freshman Jimmy Clausen and junior Evan Sharpley.
Clausen, a former top-ranked recruit from Thousand Oaks, suffered a hip pointer last week against Purdue but is expected to see some time in Saturday’s game against UCLA.
INJURY UPDATE: The most significant injury to the Bruins on Saturday was to running back Chris Markey.
Markey suffered a toe injury against Oregon State but was still able to carry the ball 19 times. He is expected to miss a few days of practice, but he hasn’t been ruled out of Saturday’s game against Notre Dame.
Senior guard Shannon Tevaga could return this week. Tevaga suffered a torn ligament in his knee early in the season. The veteran’s return could mean a drop in penalties for the Bruins’ offense, which has been called for numerous false starts in his absence.
Fullback Michael Pitre is taking small steps to recovery after suffering a bone bruise in his knee during training camp. The senior took a few snaps towards the end of the Oregon State game, and could see increased playing time on Saturday when the Bruins play Notre Dame.
With reports from David Woods, Bruin Sports senior staff.