For the first time in its storied (one month) history, Ball Quarter is on the road in Provo, Utah. We’re in the press box at Lavell Edwards Stadium, about two hours before the BYU-UCLA kickoff. Here are a few pre-game thoughts. We’ll post after each of the first three quarters, and a full wrap will run on dailybruin.com.
– BYU has not lost in Provo in either of the past two seasons (13 straight), and they have won their past 12 games.
– BYU tight end Dennis Pitta has 361 yards receiving in two games, and he averages more than 17 yards a catch. For a tight end, those numbers seem almost impossible.
– Look for UCLA to pick on BYU corner Brandon Howard. Howard stands just 5-feet-9-inches, and he may have to match up with the Bruins’ taller wideouts, Taylor Embree and Dominique Johnson, who both have a 6-inch height advantage against Howard.
– I’ll be intrigued to see how UCLA’s Gavin Ketchum plays today. He is one of the Bruins most experienced (and tallest) wide receivers, but he missed a good deal of time with mononucleosis. He had a good week of practice, and this will be his first game back. But conditioning will be a big factor, especially with the elevation here in Provo.
– The local media is fixated on Norm Chow, DeWayne Walker and Ben Olson. Chow coached here for 17 years, Walker was also an assistant for a time, and Olson committed here in 2002 as the top QB prospect in the nation. If you need an idea of how long ago that was (in football terms); Olson committed to BYU the same year when Vince Young chose Texas and Maurice Clarrett picked Ohio State.
– I’ve been to a lot of sporting venues, all across this nation, and I have never once seen one as clean as Lavell Edwards Stadium. I didn’t even see many scalpers outside this stadium. This is truly a unique place.
– Just saw UCLA DT Brigham Harwell run a 50-yard sprint during the Bruins’ warmup. He’s not Usain Bolt, but, for a 280-pound lineman, he is very fast.
– Another warm-up wonder; coach Rick Neuheisel, who is 47, was throwing with one of the assistants. He can still throw a tight-spiral, and his furthest toss sailed about 40 yards.