Through UCLA’s first three games, the Bruins’ lack of a running game was a grim reminder of how much further they needed to go. They had accumulated just 153 net yards on the ground. Something had to change.
So on Saturday, instead of playing one center at a time, the Bruins threw both centers on the field, providing some much needed relief on the offensive line. Senior Micah Reed, who started the first two games at center before injuring his right MCL, rotated at both guard positions while sophomore Jake Dean held down the middle.
“Micah played a lot of guard last year so it wasn’t foreign to him,” coach Rick Neuheisel said. “That way you can spell guys who are young and inexperienced, at least at their positions. It’s just unfortunate that (Reed) had a little run of bad luck.”
Reed’s bad luck stretches back to the BYU game, when he sprained his right MCL and missed the next week’s game against Arizona. Dean took his starting spot at the center position and has started both games since Reed’s injury.
But on Saturday, in an effort to get their best linemen on the field, a recovering Reed took over duties for guards Darius Savage and Scott Glicksburg periodically throughout the game.
Although Dean was in charge of calling out the blocking assignments, the more experienced Reed was on the field with him to provide any needed advice. The end result worked as the Bruins put up 234 yards on the ground.
“He trusted me to make the calls,” Dean said. “It really does give me a lot of confidence, knowing that he’s backing me and letting me do everything. But then again, if I’m having problems, I can easily look to him and he’ll be right there.”
The game plan to have both of them on the field led to a touchdown drive early in the second quarter, but Reed’s bad luck reared again.
“I was blocking down and I had my left foot in the ground,” Reed said. “Somebody ran into my knee, and it just gave. Right then I knew it was the same (injury as before).
“My bad knee is now my good knee, but it’s getting better.”
Now, with a sprained left MCL, Reed is looking at three to four weeks before he’s ready to get back on the field.
When he’s ready to come back, his status as a center or guard has not been decided yet.
“If I come back at guard, I’m at guard,” Reed said. “If I’m center, I’m center. Wherever they want me to go, I’ll go. As long as we win.”
PRACTICE SCUFFLES: There were a couple scuffles during scrimmage at Tuesday’s practice, but senior defensive tackle Brigham Harwell and other players don’t seem to mind.
“Once we leave this football field and go in the locker room, we’re all family,” Harwell said. “It happens. Here and there people are going to fight.
“On the football field, I get into a couple fights during practice, but in the locker room, it doesn’t matter. In the heat of the moment, you get that edge, but it goes away. It’s not a big thing. I’m not worried about it.”