On a first-down play midway through the second quarter, UCLA quarterback Kevin Prince dropped back to pass, and when he couldn’t find an open receiver downfield, he took off running down the far sideline.
It was a situation Prince was presented with last week at Oregon State, except that time he opted to throw across his body to tight end Logan Paulsen instead of running for a first down.
The result?
A near interception and stern talking-to by coach Rick Neuheisel.
So when Prince found himself in a similar position on Saturday against Washington, he learned his lesson and tried to gain a first down with his legs.
And that’s where the recollection gets fuzzy. Prince suffered a minor concussion, as a result of a helmet-to-helmet hit by Washington’s Donald Butler, and was forced to the sidelines for the rest of the Bruins’ 24-23 victory over the Huskies at the Rose Bowl.
Prince said that he was knocked out for “a second or two” and that he felt a little drowsy and dizzy while standing on the sideline. While he admitted he would not have been able to return to the game, he said he was confident he will be able to play next week when the Bruins face Washington State.
The talk after the game was about the hit on Prince, which resulted in a personal foul penalty on Butler and some heated Bruin players, and the consensus was mixed.
Neuheisel called it a “tough play,” stating that while the NCAA is trying to eliminate helmet-to-helmet contact, it is not an easy thing to do.
“When you’re in the midst of full-speed action, I think it’s impossible to try and say I’m targeting that head,” Neuheisel said. “You can’t get mad at anybody, and certainly I don’t think there’s any need for discipline.”
Wide receiver Terrence Austin also thought it was a difficult situation to determine whether the hit was malicious or not.
“I was pretty upset that Kevin got hit like that, but also I couldn’t blame Butler for it because he’s an aggressive guy, and that’s his style of play,” Austin said. “I’m pretty sure he wanted that play back after what he did. I don’t think he intentionally tried to take that hit on Kevin.”
However, offensive guard Jeff Baca was of an entirely different opinion on the hit. While Prince was still on the ground, Baca could be seen yelling at a group of Washington players, visibly upset with what he thought was a cheap hit on his quarterback.
“That was just uncalled for,” Baca said. “The linebacker definitely knew he was going to slide. He’s not a running back, he’s not a receiver, he’s not going to duck his head and get in there. I think it was late first of all, and then second of all, I think he really had the intent to hurt him.”
Baca added that he has heard players on opposing teams vocally say they are going after Prince’s jaw, which he fractured on Sept. 12 against Tennessee, and that the hit by Butler was another case of that.
Prior to suffering the hit, Prince was arguably having one of his most efficient games of the season. Continuing the strong play he showed in the fourth quarter of last week’s loss to Oregon State, Prince completed 13-of-17 passes for 212 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
“You could feel it in Corvallis a week ago that this guy was emerging,” said Neuheisel of Prince’s performance. “And he came out and then showed it, and that’s what’s fun. You see quarterbacks evolve.”
Leading the Bruins to their first Pac-10 win of the season after Prince went down was redshirt senior quarterback Kevin Craft. Oft-criticized last season as one of the main reasons the Bruins struggled, Craft completed 10-of-14 passes for 159 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
After Washington scored a touchdown to push its lead to 23-14 near the beginning of the third quarter, Craft led the Bruins on a three-play, 39-yard touchdown drive to pull within two.
Then in the fourth quarter, Craft led the Bruins on an eight play, 55-yard drive resulting in the game-winning 27-yard field goal by Kai Forbath.
Following the game, Craft said that due to his experiences while at San Diego State, Mount San Antonio College and last season with the Bruins, he felt he could play, despite seeing limited time in practice.
“I think quarterbacks everywhere should know that they should be ready,” Craft said.