Any football fan can tell you that the game is won at the line
of scrimmage.
The recent dominance of USC probably had less to do with its
Heisman candidates at the skill positions and more to do with an
offensive line that kept its quarterback and running backs from
getting crushed, and a defensive line that consistently decimated
its opposition.
All truly great teams are built on the broad shoulders of their
linemen. In recent years, UCLA has been unable to get that kind of
stellar line play on the defensive side. Last year, three of the
four regular starters (defensive end Nikola Dragovic and defensive
tackles Kevin Brown and Brigham Harwell) spent time injured, with
Brown missing the entire season. Chase Moline, who was initially
expected to redshirt, was thrust into a starting defensive tackle
position. The consistently overmatched defensive line gave up huge
chunks of yards on the ground, rarely providing much more than a
speed bump before the opposing running back was into the
secondary.
What a difference a year makes. Combine the return of Brown,
Dragovic and Harwell to full health with the experience gained by
those thrust into line play last year, add in a dose of fresh
talent in the form of guys such as Darius Savage and Jerzy
Siewierski, and one begins to surmise that opposing running backs
are not going to have the quick eight-yard jaunts up the middle
that were so typical of UCLA’s games last year.
“We’re older, much wiser, and a lot stronger,”
Dragovic said. “We are the backbone of the defense, I think.
… Games are won in the trenches.”
The changes began in the offseason. After a season in which
countless linemen went down with various injuries that kept them
from playing, conditioning became a priority. Workouts became a
must. And shirking became nonexistent.
“We conditioned all offseason,” Dragovic said.
“Winter, spring, four times a week at six o’clock in
the morning. In the summer, we had 100% turnout at every
(voluntary) workout. 99.9% of schools do not have that. … When
coach Dorrell came in (before the 2003 season), he was handing out
sweatshirts to the guys who showed up to the workouts. Now
he’s handing out an ass-kicking to the guys who don’t
show up.”
Despite not yet having played a game, the results of the
Bruins’ offseason training can already be seen. In last
Saturday’s annual fall scrimmage, the defensive line was
dominant, either stuffing running backs and getting penetration
into the backfield themselves, or occupying offensive linemen long
enough for linebackers to do the same.
How much of that was the skill of the defensive line and how
much of it was the youth of the offensive line remains to be seen,
but one thing is certain: There is a new attitude among the bigs of
the defense.
“We’re playing more as a group,” Harwell said.
“We’re playing for each other. We’re doing
everything together. I feel a little something different from last
year. … I have faith.”
A big part of that faith might be due to the return of junior
Kevin Brown, who established himself as a rising star after his
sophomore season, then went down with a high ankle sprain last year
that left him out for the entire season. His return, combined with
the return of Dragovic, gives the Bruins an almost entirely
replenished defensive line.
“Right now, (we do seem rejuvenated),” Dragovic
said. “But that’s as long as we stay healthy. Defensive
linemen are going to get their share of bumps and bruises. If one
of us goes down, our backups are just as important. We’ve got
to have guys who can come in and be just as good, if not
better.”
This recruiting season, Dorrell made a point of collecting as
many talented linemen on both sides of the ball as he could. Of the
22 scholarships Dorrell handed out last year, 14 went to linemen,
eight of them defensive. It is safe to say that if one of the
starters in the defensive front goes down, there will not be a lack
of talent to back him up.
“I think it’s the most line recruits we’ve had
at one time,” Brown said. “We’ve got a lot of new
talent. It’s a great group. We’ve had time to be
together. It’s going to be good chemistry this
year.”
At the line positions, chemistry is paramount. Unlike at the
skill positions, where talent and athleticism can often overcome a
lack of technique, defensive linemen must be technically perfect,
and able to instantly read and recognize offensive sets. More than
any other position, linemen must be truly experienced to be
successful.
“This year, I can go into a game and know exactly
what’s going on at all times,” Dragovic said.
“There’re only a few things that can happen up front,
but you need to know those few things perfectly. Now we’re in
a position where we don’t need to even see what’s
happening; we just know.”