This past week at Pac-10 media day, the central buzz was the resurgence of UCLA football under the guidance of Rick Neuheisel.
In the eyes of many, Neuheisel’s rebuilding efforts will shake up the scene in the Pac-10 conference, and UCLA will have a chance to climb near the top of the totem pole, where the Trojans seem to be resting comfortably.
But then something odd happened, at least odd in my mind. The Bruins were picked to finish seventh in the Pac-10.
Huh? I thought this was our year to finish second or third in the Pac-10? Seventh?
But being a slave to optimism, I disregarded the preseason poll. Besides, these rankings were compiled by West Coast sports writers, no one extremely substantial.
Right?
Then on Thursday, the USA Today Coaches’ Poll was released.
Now I’m worried. UCLA landed nowhere near the top 25, but there are four Pac-10 schools that did crack that list.
Pete Carroll’s bunch came in at No. 4 and received one first-place vote. California dropped in at No. 12, and the Ducks of Oregon are ranked No. 14. Rounding out the top 25 are the Oregon State Beavers, and suddenly I understand why the Bruins weren’t chosen to finish high in the Pac-10.
I looked over the Bruins’ schedule. I looked over the returning players for UCLA’s Pac-10 rivals. I looked at the Bruins’ offense.
I can feel the optimism slowly creeping out of my body.
If you aren’t catching my drift quite yet, let’s review the Bruins’ unfavorable schedule.
UCLA’s first game of the season is at home against San Diego State. The Bruins need to make a statement in this game, and there is no reason they should not. They are at home, adrenaline should be going, and they desperately need to start the season off on the right foot to quiet the naysayers. Not to mention, this game may serve as the least difficult test the Bruins face all season.
In week two, UCLA travels to Knoxville, Tenn., to face the Tennessee Volunteers, a team that will surely have revenge on its mind after it was upset by the Bruins early last season. A week later, the Bruins host Kansas State, and you have to figure any game against a Big 12 opponent will be a challenge.
UCLA then opens Pac-10 play against Stanford on the road. I firmly believe that the Bruins have more than a good chance to defeat the Cardinal, but away games in the Pac-10 always pose a significant disadvantage for the visitor. And that is most likely the reason Stanford was chosen to finish sixth in the conference, ahead of UCLA.
The schedule gets no easier from this point. In their next four games, the Bruins face Oregon, Cal and Oregon State, who are all ranked in the preseason top 25 as mentioned. In addition, Cal and Oregon even received votes to finish ahead of USC for the Pac-10 crown in the preseason Pac-10 poll, which is a testament to those teams’ potential for success this upcoming season.
After that tough stretch, UCLA closes out the season with games against Washington, Washington State and Arizona State before it visits the rival Trojans at the Coliseum.
And let’s hope the Bruins still have some gas left in the tank for that crosstown trip.
See, I’m a fan of facing good competition. I believe in the idea that you have to beat the best to be the best. But honestly, this year’s schedule is not what this Bruin squad needs.
UCLA doesn’t need to be traveling to Tennessee to face Lane Kiffin’s Vols. It doesn’t need four other Pac-10 teams to be ranked in the preseason top 25. It doesn’t need four Pac-10 running backs, Jahvid Best of Cal, Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State, Toby Gerhart of Stanford and LeGarrette Blount of Oregon, to be preseason candidates for the Doak Walker Award, which recognizes the nation’s best running back at the end of the season.
What the Bruins need is a break, something that the Pac-10 football conference is not looking to provide in 2009.
If you created your own football poll with the Bruins at No. 1, e-mail Watson at bwatson@media.ucla.edu.