After Ben Olson went down in UCLA’s loss to Notre Dame, the Bruins were down to one option at quarterback: redshirt freshman McLeod Bethel-Thompson.
It’s that lack of depth that the Bruins don’t want to face again.
Right now, Olson, the Bruins’ original starter, is hobbling around in street clothes at practice, knowing he won’t play in a game for at least three weeks because of the knee surgery he had last week.
The only other experienced signal-caller, Pat Cowan, seems to be in playing shape after missing the last two weeks with an injured knee of his own. If he’s healthy he will start UCLA’s next game against California. But the coaching staff, perhaps having learned its lesson from the Notre Dame game, is preparing multiple quarterbacks ““ just in case.
And that puts three young, ambitious quarterbacks in a strange situation.
Bethel-Thompson isn’t on scholarship but he is the next in line behind Cowan and the only other Bruin quarterback to see the field this year. Even after Bethel-Thompson’s struggles against Notre Dame, the coaching staff is still confident in his ability to lead the offense.
Bethel-Thompson is especially motivated to improve after the disappointment of the Notre Dame loss.
“I have taken more from that game than I have from any game in my life,” he said.
The next option is redshirt sophomore Osaar Rasshan. Rasshan has always wanted to play quarterback but he was switched to wide receiver this preseason because of his athletic ability and size. That position switch seems to seriously hurt Rasshan’s chance at playing quarterback soon. But he’s back behind center now to give the Bruins another option at quarterback.
Then there’s the true freshman, Chris Forcier. He might be the fastest quarterback on the roster, but the coaching staff may want to redshirt him this season so he can gain experience. As a result, Forcier has been running the scout team and hasn’t had a chance to run the Bruins offense in practice.
But since the coaches want all three backups to be ready to play if needed, Bethel-Thompson, Rasshan and Forcier are each getting a shot to work with the first team.
“It’s all about getting reps,” Forcier said. “It’s not hard to learn at all once you get the reps; that’s when everything starts clicking and you start to see things better. It’s so much easier than just looking on paper.”
Until last week, Bethel-Thompson, Rasshan and Forcier weren’t getting those reps. During a typical practice, the first team offense takes two-thirds of all the reps and the second team takes the other third.
But with Olson and Cowan out during the Bruins’ bye week, the three backups were finally given valuable opportunities.
“You’re supposed to take something from every rep,” Bethel-Thompson said. “The more reps you get, the more comfortable you’ll feel with every play.”
“When you just get one look at a play you sometimes lock onto your first receiver. When you get it three times you’re going to see the second and third receivers.”
All three of the backups relish the chance to run with the first team in practice. That’s how they can establish timing with the top receivers and prepare to be the team’s starter.
“It feels good to be in there with the first team for the first time,” Rasshan said after Tuesday’s practice. “I can get up closer to game speed, and that’s exciting for me.”
“It’s the first time I’ve ever played with the first team.”
The most important thing for the Bruins is that all three of these quarterbacks feel comfortable being thrown into the fray. The only way for that to happen is for each of them to get enough snaps during practice.
“It could be tough if it’s a spur of the moment thing,” Forcier said. “But that’s why I’m taking more reps, to get prepared for that type of situation. I’m just working hard to be ready for that.”
The hardest part for the three quarterbacks is the uncertainty. Each knows that if Cowan can play, he will. But they all know that the team needs them to be ready for anything.
“If (Pat) is healthy he’s going to start. That’s the plan,” Bethel-Thompson said. “And shoot, after the way I played (against Notre Dame), I understand that.”
RALLY TIME: The UCLA Rally Committee has planned a rally for the football team before Friday’s practice. Students will congregate at 12:40 p.m. at Spaulding Field, before the Bruins’ practice.
There hasn’t been a rally like this in a long time. The committee, which plans the rallies on campus, hasn’t been as involved with the football team since the creation of The Den. The only other rally planned for this season is the Beat ‘SC rally, before the Bruins take on the Trojans.