The UCLA defense knows Oregon State tailback Jacquizz Rodgers can be hard to tackle.
Sometimes he’s even hard to find.
“He’s really little,” defensive tackle Brian Price said. “He can hide behind that big line.”
Rodgers, a 5-foot-6-inch freshman, has torched Pac-10 competition this season. He has 945 yards rushing and nine touchdowns. He averaged over 10 yards per carry against USC and Arizona State. He leads the conference in rushing yards and attempts.
And the UCLA defense knows that if they want to beat Oregon State on Saturday at the Rose Bowl, they must find a way to stop him.
“You have to be aware of where he is at all times, whether it’s a run or a pass,” defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker said. “His thing is running the football. We have to do a great job of stopping him, but he has caught some passes too.”
Walker said that defensive coaches dedicated an unusually long session to game-planning their run defense on Monday, and that they planned to meet after practice Tuesday to re-evaluate the scheme.
The Beavers, however, have yet to name a starting quarterback. Lyle Moevao has played most of the season, but he injured his shoulder last week against Arizona State. Sean Canfield relieved him and led Oregon State to a 27-25 win.
But for UCLA the focus is still on Rodgers. Walker said that he doesn’t expect the Beavers’ game plan to change dramatically if there is a quarterback change.
Run defense is usually the basis for the entire UCLA defensive plan. The Bruins figure they can defend the pass if they force their opponent to stop running.
“If you stop the run first you can force them to be one-dimensional,” Price said. “And we have pretty good run defense.”
Walker said that this week’s defensive focus is a compliment to Rodgers’ talent. He compared Rodgers to a young Maurice Jones-Drew, a former UCLA star who now plays in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Price also said that Rodgers is really good and that the Bruins have to limit him to under 100 yards rushing.
“We know we have a task at hand,” Price said.
SUSPENSIONS ANNOUNCED: UCLA announced the suspensions of three players after Tuesday’s practice.
Offensive linemen Scott Glicksberg and Micah Reed and defensive lineman Jess Ward were suspended one game for breaking athletic department rules, coach Rick Neuheisel said.
“It is never fun, never good news, but (it is) important that discipline be administered,” Neuheisel said.
The loss of Glicksberg and Reed will hurt the Bruins most. The team has already dealt with inexperience and a series of injuries to its offensive line.
“It hurts the depth, there’s no question that it does, but we’ve been dealing with that for quite some time,” Neuheisel said.
Reed, Ward and Glicksberg were not available for comment. The Los Angeles Daily News reported that the players had failed a drug test.
INJURY REPORT: Offensive tackle Jeff Baca returned to practice on Tuesday, and Neuheisel said he did fine. Baca had been recovering from an injured hamstring.
Defensive linemen Chase Moline and Reggie Stokes also practiced. Defensive end Chinonso Anyanwu did not practice. Anyanwu is still undergoing tests after suffering stomach problems over the weekend.
For Oregon State, center Alex Linnenkohl and cornerback Keenan Lewis are both expected to return from injuries suffered last week against Arizona State.
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