SAN BERNARDINO — It was a matchup that had the entire UCLA football team watching.
Coach Jim Mora called for it. He wanted his most highly touted freshman wide receiver – Theo Howard – to face off against the team’s most experienced cornerback, redshirt senior Fabian Moreau.
“I thought that would be a good matchup for Theo and for Fabian,” Mora said. “We just want competition.”
Mora gave Howard two chances to score a touchdown on Moreau. The ball was placed on the five-yard line, meaning Howard had to shake Moreau right away to create space for a touchdown.
“It was good. I didn’t really expect that. I don’t usually go against Fabian in one-on-ones,” Howard said. “So it was good competition.”
The matchup appeared to favor Moreau, who has a 20-pound weight advantage on Howard. However, Howard has shown some of the best route-running skills of any UCLA receiver since he enrolled in the spring. Even though he’s just a freshman, his veteran teammate, redshirt senior Kenny Walker, boldly declared that Howard could be the top receiver on the team this year.
“He’s so smart and so studious in terms of knowing what he’s supposed to do,” Mora said. “He had spring practice, so he’s right on it.”
On the first play against Moreau, Howard showed why he’s garnered such praise. He darted inside, as if to run a slant route, then stopped his body and turned on a dime toward the sideline. Moreau struggled to keep up, sliding across the turf.
After he had turned Moreau around, Howard gave the slightest of pushes to gain further separation.
“You could say both of us had a little tussle,” Howard said with a laugh.
As Howard went to the sideline, sophomore quarterback Josh Rosen delivered the pass. It was a little bit high, forcing Howard to leap and extend his arms in the air. Ultimately, the ball grazed off of Howard’s fingertips – incomplete.
What happens when UCLA’s most highly touted WR prospect goes 1-on-1 vs. UCLA’s top CB? This: pic.twitter.com/l0JyBJgsmw
— Matt Joye (@mattjoye) August 18, 2016
The second rep between Howard and Moreau came a few seconds later. This play went in Moreau’s favor, as the strong and wily veteran halted the lighter Howard in press coverage. Howard tried his best to recover at the last second, leaping up and over Moreau. However, the pass tipped off of Howard’s outstretched hands, and once again fell incomplete.
After the play, Moreau went over to Howard and gave him a pat on the back, paying his respects to the young and promising receiver.
“I’m definitely not where I want to be, but I’m trying to work on getting there,” Howard said. “It’s a process.”
Howard’s matchup with Moreau was not the only intriguing duel in the drill. Redshirt seniors Ishmael Adams and Randall Goforth were also matched up against one another. Those two used to be together as starters in the UCLA secondary. Now, Adams is a wide receiver while Goforth remains as a starting safety.
The first rep was won by Adams, who darted to the corner and caught the pass over Goforth’s head. On the second one, Adams tried to shake Goforth off the line of scrimmage, but Goforth stayed stride-for-stride with the speedy Adams, forcing the incompletion.
“These guys are working their tails off, and having a lot of fun doing it,” Mora said. “Very competitive, very cooperative. So I’m just very pleased with where we are right now.”
Injury report
UCLA’s injury report Thursday looks a lot different than the one from Monday. Four new players have hit the injury list – senior defensive end Takkarist McKinley, junior defensive lineman Jacob Tuioti-Mariner, redshirt junior guard Kenny Lacy and freshman linebacker Breland Brandt. Junior wide receiver Alex Van Dyke also sat out parts of Thursday’s practice with a groin injury.
The good news for UCLA is that per Mora, all of the players only have minor injuries, save for Tuioti-Mariner. The junior defensive end felt a pain in his side while stretching at the end of practice, and it turns out he has appendicitis.
“We’ll decide within the next few minutes whether he’s going to have surgery today and get it out, or put him on antibiotics and see if they can get it to go away,” Mora said Thursday afternoon.
Mora also gave an update on senior defensive end Deon Hollins and redshirt sophomore fullback Cameron Griffin, who both suffered concussions last week in practice.
“Deon Hollins is creeping his way back towards practicing, as well as Cam Griffin,” Mora said. “They’re both in meetings now.”