Dec. 27
Emerald Bowl
Florida State 44 ... UCLA 27
Florida State broke open a close game with 21 second half
points with a 30-yard jump ball to Greg Carr for a touchdown, a three-yard
Lorenzo Booker dash, and closed out with an 86-yard interception return for a
score from Tony Carter. UCLA cranked out 434 yards of total offense while
seemingly having control of the game with a 78-yard touchdown catch from Brandon
Breazell on a perfect strike from Patrick Cowan, and a seven-yard scoring pass
to Junior Taylor while Florida State could only manage field goals for a long
stretch with Gary Cismesia connecting from 39, 21 and 36. Down 20-16 midway
through the third quarter, FSU's Lawrence Timmons took a blocked punt 25 yards
for a touchdown after UCLA got flagged for a penalty following a successful
fourth and short conversion. The Bruins responded with a quick drive capped off
by an eight-yard Chane Moline touchdown run, but they couldn't score over the
last twenty minutes.
Player of the game ...
Florida State RB
Lorenzo Booker ran 22 times for 91 yards and two touchdowns and caught five
passes for 117 yards
Stat Leaders: UCLA - Passing: Patrick Cowan, 15-36, 240 yds,
2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 19-144 Receiving: Andrew Baumgartner,
2-49
Florida State - Passing: Drew Weatherford, 21-43, 325 yds,
1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Lorenzo Booker, 22-91, 2 TD Receiving: DeCody Fagg,
6-68
Thoughts and Notes ...
Well hello Lorenzo Booker. It seems like it's taken
four years for the coaching staff to discover the future first day NFL pick, but
he finally broke out in his final game looking great when he got in space on the
outside. He's a do-it-all weapon who should've gotten the ball in his hands 25
times a game. ... UCLA's vaunted pass rush only generated one sack on 43 Drew
Weatherford pass attempts. ... In a losing cause, UCLA's offensive interior
dominated. Guards Shannon Tevaga and Chris Joseph and center Robert Chai shoved
around the FSU tackles all night long. ... Weatherford's final yardage total
(325) doesn't show what a lousy night he was having until late. He's still too
erratic and he still stares at his receiver for what seems like ten minutes
before firing. ... Reports of Florida State's demise have been greatly
exaggerated. This game proves Bobby Bowden and his staff can still get the team
up for games.
|
2006
Schedule
CFN
Prediction:
5-7
2006 Record:
7-6
Preview
2006 predicted wins |
| 9/2 |
Utah
W 31-10 |
| 9/9 |
Rice
W 26-16 |
| 9/23 |
at Washington L 29-19 |
|
9/30 |
Stanford
W 31-0 |
| 10/7 |
Arizona
W 27-7 |
| 10/14 |
at Oregon L 30-20 |
| 10/21 |
at Notre Dame L 20-17 |
| 10/28 |
Washington St
L 37-15 |
| 11/4 |
at California L 38-24 |
| 11/11 |
Oregon State W 25-7 |
| 11/18 |
at Arizona St W 24-12 |
| 12/2 |
USC W 13-9 |
| 12/27 |
Emerald Bowl
Florida State L 44-27 |
|
|
2005
Schedule
CFN
Prediction: 6-5
2005 Record: 10-2
Preview
2005 predicted wins |
| 9/3 |
at San Diego St
W 44-21 |
| 9/10 |
Rice
W 63-21 |
| 9/17 |
Oklahoma W 41-24 |
| 10/1 |
Washington W
21-17 |
| 10/8 |
California W 47-41 |
| 10/15 |
at Wash St
W 44-41 OT |
| 10/22 |
Oregon State W
51-28 |
| 10/29 |
at Stanford W 30-27 OT |
| 11/5 |
at Arizona
L 52-14 |
| 11/12 |
Arizona State W 45-35 |
| 12/3 |
at USC L 66-19 |
| 12/30 |
Sun Bowl
Northwestern W 50-38 |
|
Dec. 2
UCLA 13 ... USC 9
UCLA ruined USC's national title hopes when Eric McNeal
snuffed out a final USC drive deep in Bruin territory tipping the ball in the
air before making the interception. The Bruin offense only managed 235 yards of
total offense, but cranked out a 91-yard drive in the first quarter culminating
in a one-yard Pat Cowan touchdown run and got two Justin Medlock field goals in
the second half. The UCLA defense held USC scoreless after one-yard C.J. Gable
run in the final minute of the first half. A holding call in the end zone gave
USC a safety on the way to a 9-7 halftime lead.
Player of the game ... UCLA LB Christian Taylor made 11
tackles, broke up two passes and made one tackle for loss
Stat Leaders: USC - Passing: John David
Booty, 23-39, 274 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: C.J. Gable, 19-52, 1 TD. Receiving:
Fred Davis, 6-68
UCLA - Passing: Pat Cowan, 12-21, 114 yds
Rushing: Pat Cowan, 10-55, 1 TD. Receiving:
Marcus Everett, 5-72
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
The UCLA energy level was tremendous all game long. The Bruin
defense was phenomenal in keeping the wraps on the great USC receivers, and that
came from a tremendous game from the defensive front four that got consistent
pressure on John David Booty all game long. The offense wasn't great, but
outside of the holding call for the safety, there weren't any major mistakes to
give USC any breaks. It helped to have Justin Medlock. When you have one of the
best kickers in the nation, you can afford to be a bit more conservative in
tight games.
Nov. 18
UCLA 24 ... Arizona State 12
Brandon Breazell caught a 56-yard touchdown pass to start the
scoring and put the game away with a 35-yard touchdown grab, while the UCLA
defense held Arizona State to 264 yards and no touchdowns. The Sun Devils
managed four Jesse Ainsworth field goals, but stayed alive until late holding
the Bruins to a 24-yard Justin Medlock field goal in the second half before
Breazell's second touchdown. The two teams combined to convert just seven of 30
third down chances.
Player of the game ... UCLA WR Brandon Breazell caught
two passes for 91 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Arizona State - Passing:
Rudy Carpenter, 11-30, 149 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Ryan Torian, 19-77. Receiving:
Zach Miller, 4-36
UCLA - Passing: Patrick Cowan, 14-24, 187
yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Chris Markey, 18-49. Receiving:
Chris Markey, 4-14
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Just when it
seems like UCLA is on the verge of seeing its season go into the tank, it comes
up with a nice two game winning streak against Oregon State and Arizona State
with two weeks off before going into the USC showdown. The defense is playing
well enough, thanks mostly to a fantastic pass rush, to give the Trojans a ball
game, but to come out with the upset, the offense needs more consistent balance.
The big plays from Brandon Breazell saved the day with 91 of the team’s 274
yards coming on two catches.
Nov. 11
UCLA 25 ... Oregon State 7
UCLA's defense recovered four Oregon
State fumbles while the offense generated four Justin Medlock field
goals and got two Patrick Cowan to Marcus Everett touchdown passes. The
Beavers took a second quarter lead with a five-yard Yvenson Bernard
touchdown run, but turnovers and the inability to keep Matt Moore
upright led to failed drive after failed drive as the Bruins scored 22
unanswered points.
Player of the game ... UCLA WR Marcus Everett caught
three passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Oregon State - Passing:
Matt Moore, 17-29, 175 yds
Rushing: Yvenson Bernard, 16-54, 1 TD Receiving:
Yvenson Bernard, 5-41
UCLA - Passing: Pat Cowan, 12-23, 126 yds,
2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 23-84 Receiving:
Marcus Everett, 3-64, 2 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all
mean Basil? ... While the offense is still settling for
way too many field goals, the defense picked a perfect time to come up
with one of its best games of the year getting consistent pressure on
Oregon State's Matt Moore and making big play after big play. Now the
offense has to find some more pop to have any shot of staying with a
suddenly hot Arizona State attack or with USC, and the penalties have to
stop after committing 13 for 155 yards. The boost might come once Ben
Olson is finally ready; Pat Cowan has been too inconsistent. The Bruins
need one more win to become bowl eligible.
Nov. 4
California 38 ... UCLA 24
Cal got outgained 516 yards to 433
and controlled the ball for long stretches, but the Bears hit the home runs
early with Nate Longshore throwing three touchdown passes, including two to
Robert Jordan, while Marshawn Lynch scored on 24-yard pass and a four-yard run.
DeSean Jackson put the game out of reach on a 72-yard punt return for a
touchdown. UCLA got short touchdown runs from Pat Cowan and Chane Moline with
the big play coming in the fourth on a 70-yard Chris Markey touchdown run. The
Bruins ended up netting -7.5 yards per punt.
Player of the game ... California QB Nate Longshore
completed 20 of 24 passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns and ran twice for
17 yards
Stat Leaders: California - Passing: Nate
Longshore, 20-24, 266 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Marshawn Lynch, 20-81, 1 TD Receiving:
Robert Jordan, 5-6, 2 TD
UCLA - Passing: Pat Cowan, 22-40, 329 yds,
2 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 20-136, 1 TD Receiving:
Chris Markey, 6-63
Whoopty doo. What does it all
mean Basil? ... UCLA has to do a better job of
converting drives into points and it has to stop giving the big play. Cal was
able to strike quickly taking the fight out of the Bruins, while Pat Cowan,
Chris Markey and the UCLA offense cranked out yards with little result. The team
can't close. It couldn't stop Notre Dame in the end, couldn't get going in the
second half against Washington State, and couldn't put points on the board
against Cal. A red-hot Oregon State team isn't going to be any easier next week,
but it's a must-win to keep bowl hopes alive.
Oct. 28
Washington State 37 ... UCLA 15
UCLA's offense was shut down in the second half as Washington
State overcame a 15-14 halftime deficit to score 23 unanswered points with two DeMaundray Woolridge
touchdown runs and a 17-yard Alex Brink touchdown pass to Brandon Gibson. Brink
threw three touchdown passes with two to Gibson and one to Jason Hill, but it
was the defense that stole the show keeping the Bruins without a first down in
the third quarter and holding them to three Justin Medlock field goals in the
first half along with a 36-yard Junior Taylor touchdown catch.
Player of the game ... Washington State QB Alex Brink
completed 28 of 38 passes for 405 yards and three touchdown and two
interceptions
Stat Leaders: UCLA - Passing: Patrick
Cowan, 17-37, 252 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Chane Moline, 6-32. Receiving:
Chris Markey, 4-64
Washington State - Passing: Alex Brink,
28-38, 405 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Dwight Tardy, 16-67. Receiving: Brandon
Gibson, 8-92, 2 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... You can't
blame the Notre Dame loss on this week's performance against Washington State;
the Bruins came out of the locker room playing well. However, the offense
couldn't get going in the second half with Patrick Cowan struggling to get the
chains moving and come up with any sort of big play to change the momentum. With
little running game to count on, and mistakes all over the place with three
turnovers and three close calls on fumbles, Cowan had to be sharp, and wasn't.
Wazzu held on to the ball for over 22 minutes in the second half. UCLA has to
have that kind of ball control to hang with Cal next week.
Oct. 21
Notre Dame 20 ... UCLA 17
Jeff Samardzija took a pass 45 yards for a touchdown with :35
to play to complete an improbable three-play, 80-yard drive to get the win. UCLA
used a stifling pass rush, with five sacks of Brady Quinn, and two second
quarter touchdown passes to seemingly have the game in hand, but the offense
couldn't run out the clock and couldn't get any pressure on Quinn in the final
Irish drive. The Bruins scored twice in the second quarter on a 54-yard Marcus
Everett touchdown grab and a tackle-breaking 36-yard score from William Snead.
Notre Dame scored first on a two-yard scoring catch from Samardzija.
Player of the game ... Notre Dame WR Jeff Samardzija
caught eight passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: UCLA - Passing: Patrick
Cowan, 16-32, 217 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 19-32. Receiving:
Marcus Everett, 6-102, 1 TD
Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 27-45,
304 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Darius Walker, 21-53. Receiving:
Jeff Samardzija, 8-118, 2 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
UCLA and head coach Karl Dorrell will be Monday
morning quarterbacked to death after the soul-crushing loss to Notre Dame. It
should've worked out. The running game force the Irish to burn its timeouts, a
big punt put it on the 20 with less than a minute to play, and the defense was
set up to avoid the big play. Unfortunately, the pass rush that had been there
all day long evaporated on the final drive, and the secondary couldn't make any
plays or tackles. Now, Dorrell's job is to not let Notre Dame beat his team
twice. The D showed it could play with anyone, and now it needs to come out and
play well against Washington State to get back into the bowl hunt.
Oct. 14
Oregon 30 ... UCLA 20
Oregon outgained UCLA 404 yards to 216 getting up early with
two Dennis Dixon touchdown passes and a seven-yard Jeremiah Johnson touchdown
run for a 20-3 first quarter lead. The Ducks got a four-yard pass from Brady
Leaf to James Finley in the third quarter for a 27-6 lead. UCLA made the score
look better than the final score would indicate with two Kahlil Bell running for
two one-yard scores with the final one coming in the final two minutes.
Player of the game ... Oregon QB Dennis Dixon completed ten of
17 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns and ran 11 times for 69 yards
Stat Leaders: Oregon - Passing: Dennis
Dixon, 10-17, 144 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Jonathan Stewart, 20-121, Receiving:
Brian Paysinger, 4-105, 1 TD
UCLA - Passing: Patrick Cowan, 16-31, 112
yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 17-97 Receiving:
Junior Taylor, 4-38
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
UCLA got tagged by an Oregon team fired up after the
loss to Cal, but to get through the second half of the season, the offense has
to be more efficient under Pat Cowan. Oregon dared Cowan to win the game, and he
couldn't come through with an uneven performance. The defense got rumbled over
by Jonathan Stewart and the Duck running game, but the bigger problem will be
with the passing game next week at Notre Dame. There were way too many problems
with the Oregon pass game when the Ducks needed a key play.
Oct. 7
UCLA 27 ... Arizona 7
Both teams lost their starting quarterbacks with UCLA's Ben
Olson suffering a knee injury and Arizona's Willie Tuitama getting hit with a
concussion. Pat Cowan stepped in for the Bruins and threw a 15-yard touchdown
pass to Matt Willis and a seven-yard strike to Marcus Everett. Justin Medlock
connected on two field goals, and Al Verner returned an interception 89 yards
for a touchdown. Arizona got a ten-yard touchdown catch from Mike Thomas, but
only netted -14 yards rushing.
Player of the game ... UCLA QB Patrick Cowan completed 20 of 29
passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 16 yards.
Stat Leaders: Arizona - Passing: Adam
Austin, 15-30, 192 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Jennings, 10-13, Receiving:
Syndric Steptoe, 8-70
UCLA - Passing: Patrick Cowan, 20-29, 201
yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Chris Markey, 14-40 Receiving:
Brandon Breazell, 5-57
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Pat Cowan
is a talented quarterback who can fill in for Ben Olson and do just fine, but
the attack needs Olson to be explosive. An MRI was scheduled to be taken on
Olson's knee on Monday, but it's not expected to be a torn ACL. If he's out for
any significant length of time, that will put even more pressure on the Chris
Markey and the running game, which had problems against Arizona. The defense
played its second straight fantastic game stuffing the Wildcat running game
cold. The game at Oregon next week will be a shootout, so Cowan has to do
whatever he can to be efficient, not make mistakes, and still take shots down
the field. However, if the D and running game aren't working well, forget about
coming out of Autzen with a win.
Sept. 30
UCLA 31 ... Stanford 0
UCLA's offense wasn't sharp, but the defense held Stanford to
166 yards and forced five turnovers. The Bruin special teams drew the first
blood with Eric McNeal returning a blocked punt for a touchdown. Chane Moline
ran for two short scores and Kenneth Lombard returned a fumble for a five yard
touchdown in a 17-point fourth quarter to put the game away. Stanford
quarterbacks were sacked seven times.
Player of the game ... UCLA DE Bruce Davis made 5.5 tackles, 2.5
sacks, three tackles for loss, and forced one fumble.
Stat Leaders: Stanford - Passing: Trent
Edwards, 12-23, 117 yds, 3 INT
Rushing: Toby Gerhart, 12-32,. Receiving:
Richard Sherman, 4-50
UCLA - Passing: Ben Olson, 20-37, 219 yds,
2 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 18-88 Receiving: Ryan
Moya, 4-64
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... UCLA had
better get its offense going next week against Arizona or there's a ceiling on
how high the team can go. Stanford's offense isn't doing anything, so there's no
reason to get too excited about a dominant performance from the defense even
with seven sacks and a brilliant day from the secondary. Ben Olson just barely
missed on some of his passes; watch for the air attack to get sharper over the
next few weeks as he gets more and more in tune with his receivers. With road
games at Oregon, Notre Dame and California over the next five weeks, the Arizona
game is vital.
Sept. 23
Washington 29 ... UCLA 19
UW's Dan Howell picked off a Ben Olson pass and took it 33
yards for a touchdown with six minutes to play to put away a tight game. The
Huskies got a great game out of Isaiah Stanback with two touchdown passes to
Sonny Shackelford and a four-yard scoring pass to Johnie Kirton as part of a
29-3 run after UCLA got out of the gate with the first 16 points of the game.
Justin Medlock connected on field goal tries from 28, 23, 51, 23 and 22 yards
out for the Bruins. The only touchdown came on a one-yard Chris Markey run in
the first quarter.
Player of the game ... Washington QB Isaiah Stanback completed
18 of 29 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns with an interception and ran
13 times for 48 yards
Stat Leaders: Washington - Passing:
Isaiah Stanback, 18-29, 200 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Isaiah Stanback, 13-48,. Receiving:
Sonny Shackelford, 9-120, 2 TD
UCLA - Passing: Ben Olson, 18-31, 135 yds,
2 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 19-124, 1 TD Receiving:
Matt Willis, 4-30
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
Was the team simply rusty after the two week layoff?
After the mediocre performance against Rice and the tough loss at Washington,
now there's a question about how effective the offense is. Fortunately, home
games against Stanford and Arizona are coming up before Oregon and Notre Dame,
so there's time to start turning field goal drives into touchdowns. Ben Olson
showed his inexperience for the first time; he's not going to have too many bad
games like the one against Washington if Chris Markey and the running game keep
producing.
Sept. 9
UCLA 26 ... Rice 16
Chris Markey ran for 208 yards and Justin Medlock kicked four
field goals for a tougher-than-expected win. Medlock connected from 32, 37, 51
and 34 to help the Bruins get out to a 26-10 lead late into the fourth quarter,
but Rice wouldn't give up as Quinton Smith tore off a 48-yard touchdown run with
5:38 to play. UCLA was able to use the running game to close things out. Ben
Olson threw two touchdown passes hitting Junior Taylor for a nine-yard score and
Brandon Breazell for an 18-yard touchdown.
Player of the game ... UCLA RB Chris Markey ran 23
times for 208 yards
Stat Leaders: Rice - Passing: John
Shepherd, 6-10, 66 yds
Rushing: Quinton Smith, 14-76, 1 TD. Receiving:
Jarrett Dillard, 7-102, 1 TD
UCLA - Passing: Ben Olson, 13-19, 124 yds,
2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Markey, 23-208 Receiving:
Michael Pitre, 4-43
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ...
UCLA beat Utah with the pass, and then beat Rice
with the run. It was way too close because the long drives kept resulting in
field goals rather than touchdowns, but the ground game showed that the offense
doesn't all have to be Ben Olson. In only his second game, Olson was efficient,
but he didn't do much field stretching. With Pac 10 play starting next week at
Washington, the offense has to remain balanced, and then the touchdowns will
come.
Sept. 2
UCLA 31 ... Utah 10
Al Verner returned an interception 34 yards for a score and
Ben Olson threw three touchdown passes as UCLA came up with a surprisingly easy
win. Olson starting off with a 16-yard strike to Ryan Moya and finishing with a
nine-yard toss to Marcus Everett Utah's offense had a decent first half as
Brent Casteel caught a 26-yard touchdown pass and Louie Sakoda kicked a 44-yard
field goal, but everything ground to a halt in the second half as UCLA's defense
made several key plays. The Utes went 0-for-11 on third down conversions.
Player of the game ... UCLA QB Ben Olson completed 25
of 33 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: Utah - Passing: Brett
Ratliff, 13-31, 162 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Mike Liti, 8-57. Receiving:
Brian Hernandez, 4-31
UCLA - Passing: Ben Olson, 25-33, 318 yds,
3 TD
Rushing: Kahlil Bell, 14-34 Receiving: Logan
Paulsen, 5-90
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... It's only
one game, but Ben Olson looks like the absolute real deal. He played with poise,
confidence, and skill with a tremendous performance against Utah that was sharp
enough to think UCLA might just be a real player in the Pac 10 race. He was that
good. Almost more importantly, the porous defense of last year was a rock
preventing the Utes from converting any third down chances and playing way too
fast for the spread attack. This was a nearly perfect first game going into the
easy part of the schedule. 5-0 is a must before the trip to Oregon.
2006 UCLA Preview
UCLA Preview |
Offense |
Defense |
Depth Chart |
Further Analysis
Going 10-2
would be reason to do cartwheels at most schools, but it feels a
little empty at UCLA only because of what's going on in another part
of town.
By almost any measure, UCLA had a fabulous year full of
thrilling comebacks, a win over Oklahoma, and a Sun Bowl victory
over Northwestern, but yet another march to the BCS by USC and a
humiliating 66-14 loss to the hated Trojans put a sour note on last
year. The biggest problem now isn't trying to keep up with the
Joneses, or, the Carrolls, it's trying to be as good as last year.
Forgetting
how badly the Bruins were blown out by USC, at least they were in a
position to make some really big things happen. Think about where
UCLA was last year before the first Saturday in November. At 9-1
they had a chance to win a tie of the Pac 10 title, would've
gone to the BCS with a win over USC, and very possibly would've
played for the national title considering the love and respect the
Trojans were getting at the time. QB Drew Olson would've been a last-second
Heisman candidate and this would be the hot program going into
2006. Just to be in that kind of a spot shows how far the
program has come in a short time under head coach Karl Dorrell, but
expect a slip this year.
For one thing, UCLA can't afford to play with fire in every game
again. There were four fourth quarter comebacks along with a
thrilling second half comeback to beat Arizona State. There was a fantastic
year by Olson, who couldn't seem to do any wrong before the USC
game, which will have a hard time being repeated by the new Olson,
Ben. And then there was the run defense, which was the second-worst
in America and was saved only by the prolific offense.
This year's UCLA team has to replace the entire linebacking corps,
is still smallish up front for a national power program, loses top
playmakers Olson, Maurice Drew and TE Marcedes Lewis from the
offense, and lacks proven playmakers on both sides of the ball.
Factor all that into a better Pac 10 and it'll be a stunner if UCLA
can even dream about double-digit wins at some point this year.
Expect more high scoring
games and several young players to quickly grow into Pac 10 household
names, after all, this is an athletic team, but also consider this a
stepping stone season to 2007 when the team will be loaded with
experience. The Bruins just hope the road to rebuilding isn't too rocky.
The Schedule: It's
not bad as long as the Bruins can play well at home.
With the offense UCLA should have, it has a puncher's chance on the
road against Notre Dame and should be able to hold its own at
Oregon, Cal, and Arizona State. Winning two of those four would be a
huge success, but the key will be winning in Pasadena where
victories against Utah, Rice, Stanford, Arizona, Washington State
and Oregon State are a must before the season ender against USC.
Best
Offensive Player: Junior OG Shannon Tevaga. QB Ben Olson is the
key to the season, but Tevaga is a critical player on the young line
mostly due to his size. At 310 pounds, he's one of the team's
biggest lineman and he needs to not only be an anchor and a leader,
he also has to be the team's key run blocker.
Best
Defensive Player: Junior DT Kevin Brown. On a defense woefully shy
of sure-thing playmakers, the 297-pound Brown has to be the key
factor in toughening up the run defense. He missed all of last
season with an ankle problem that was missing his quickness
inside and his beef against the run. If he's fine all year he'll be
in the mix for All-Pac 10 honors.
Key
player to a successful season: Sophomore QB Ben Olson. He lost the
quarterback derby last year to Drew Olson because he had accuracy
issues, and then Drew came out and was one of the nation's most
efficient passers. Now the big BYU transfer looks ready to not only
be a leader, but a star. The offense needs a mature, steady
ringleader, and Olson should be it.
The
season will be a success if ... UCLA finishes in the top four of
the Pac 10. There are simply way, way too many question marks and
way too much youth to reasonable expect a run for the Pac 10 title.
The rest of the league is too good for the Bruins to finish second,
but a top four finish would mean the program didn't slide all that
much before what should be a big 2007.
Key
game: Oct. 14 at Oregon. If UCLA is above-average, it should at
least be 4-1 going into the nasty road trip to Eugene, and should
reasonably expect to be 5-0. A win at Oregon would do wonders for
the young team's confidence going into the Notre Dame game and
would be a must with Pac 10 games ahead against heavyweights Cal,
Arizona State and USC.
2005
Fun Stats:
- Fourth quarter scoring: UCLA 156 - Opponents 68
- First quarter scoring: Opponents 132 - UCLA 83
- Average yards per carry: Opponents 5.4 - UCLA 4.4
The Last Time UCLA…
…played in a bowl game…2005 (Sun Bowl vs. Northwestern)
…missed a bowl game…2001
…pitched a shutout…2004 (Stanford)
…was shutout…2001 (USC)
…scored 50 points…2005 (Northwestern)
…went undefeated…1954
…won a conference title…1998 (Pac-10)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…2005 (Drew Olson)
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2004 (Maurice Drew)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2003 (Craig Bragg)
…had a first-round draft choice…2002 (LB Robert Thomas)
