SB Nation - UCLA Bruins

Wednesday Buff Bites - UCLA Tells Scott "No Thanks", O-Line Only Takes Accountability for 19.5 Out of 36 Sacks

irish1611 — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:30:04 -0000

Stan Hasiak leaves Bruins for indefinite amount of time -- latimes.com

UCLA officials have told running back Darrell Scott, who is leaving Colorado, that they were not interested in having him play for the Bruins

No quick fix for Buffs' sack woes - Boulder Daily Camera

Only 19½ of the Buffs` 36 sacks allowed this season have been allowed by offensive linemen, according to the latest offensive line grades released Tuesday. Offensive line coach Denver Johnson is not happy with any sacks, but he is also careful not to beat up his guys for mistakes they didn`t make.

ISU Football: Cyclones look to plug gaps in their rush defense | desmoinesregister.com | The Des Moines Register

The Cyclones have surrendered 69 points, yielded 974 yards and watched opponents convert 16-of-25 third downs in beatdowns by Texas A&M and Oklahoma State. Especially troubling has been an ineffectiveness against the run, with the Aggies piling up 267 rushing yards in a 35-10 win and the Cowboys following with 331 in Saturday's 34-8 victory.

The Longmont Times-Call

Iowa State (5-5, 2-4) has scored only 27 points in its past three games after opening its Big 12 schedule with 23 in a one-point loss to Kansas State and 36 in a five-point loss to Kansas. Over their past 13 quarters, the Cyclones have three touchdowns. Iowa State entered last weekend’s game against Oklahoma State leading the league in rushing but finished with only 54 yards against the Cowboys. Oklahoma State had been allowing 200.3 per game.

ISU needs help in all areas | GazetteOnline.com

ISU (5-5, 2-4 Big 12) struggled to move the ball against Oklahoma State. Tailback Alexander Robinson, the conference’s leading rusher coming in, finished with 51 yards on 16 carries. Quarterback Austen Arnaud, who had missed the previous two games because of a bruised right hand, was 14 of 27 passing for 188 yards and three interceptions.

CU Buffs' offense finally showing some good signs - The Denver Post
Offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau talks about the offensive performance last week. Still the major issue on that side of the ball is the offensive line.

Now the Buffs hope their offense has turned a corner. Their 166 yards rushing against the Aggies were a season high. And wide receiver Markques Simas' 135 yards in receptions were a single-game high for a CU player this season. "We really just have to keep on getting better," Kiesau said. "Offensively we were doing OK, and we had a good game, but we can't start jumping off to Dal Ward and saying we're one of the top offenses in the country. We've got to continue to work on our run game and counter that with our pass game and just continue to get better. Because yes, (Saturday) was a very good game, and I'm fired up for our offense to do well, but we have to consistently do that every week. We can't just be a one-hit wonder."

Bzdelik holding out for junior college players - Boulder Daily Camera

The future of Colorado men`s basketball is already on campus. Jeff Bzdelik does not plan to sign any recruits today -- the first day members of the class of 2010-11 can fax in letters of intent -- and said his coaching staff will focus on filling the two scholarships it has to give during the spring signing period. "We`re looking more towards junior college kind of players who have some maturity behind them," Bzdelik said after Tuesday`s practice. "We`ve got enough youth. Historically, those kind of players sign late."

Cyclones just a win shy of bowl eligibility

Truthfully, most of Iowa State's pressure comes from within at the moment. The Cyclones (5-5) are desperate to end a bowl drought that dates back to 2005, but have little margin for error. With two regular-season games remaining, Iowa State may need to win out to assure itself a postseason appearance. According to NCAA statistics, there are currently 48 bowl-eligible teams nationally. Twenty-two more teams, including Iowa State, have five wins and several more have four with no fewer than two regular-season games remaining. There are 34 bowl games this season, meaning only 68 FBS teams will get to experience the postseason. Iowa State, a largely inexperienced program, could sorely use the roughly 15 additional practices a bowl game allows for.

Coach Hawkins Press Luncheon Quotes - CUBuffs.com—Official Athletics Web site of the University of Colorado
Coach Hawkins talks about the typical "combination of things" in regards to not being able to protect the quarterback:

On Protecting the Quarterback "We just have to keep emphasizing and keep working on it and again part of that is physical, part of it is mental, part of it is communication, it is something we are well aware of and also getting Tyler tied into that as well and getting all those guys on the same page. "It's a problem when you give up as many sacks as we have in the past two weeks, that's a problem. But it can be a combination of many things, it can be a vision thing, a communication thing, a physical thing, it can be a combination of all those things so we just have to continue to work on all of that and clean it up."

Buffs can't stand repeat of '07 finish vs. Iowa State - The Denver Post

Sophomore Jason Espinoza will be back to work this week at wide receiver and punt returner, Hawkins said.

Halftime: Are college football's high-paid staffs really worth it? - Game on - USATODAY.com

Ringo: Leadership can help teams win on road - Boulder Daily Camera

Speaking of winning on the road. The Buffs haven`t done so in more than two years now and are not-so-proud owners of the longest road-losing streak in the Big 12. It`s a streak that began in Ames and has spanned nine games now (10 if you count a 2008 neutral site game at Florida State).It`s a problem with which Iowa State is familiar. The Cyclones won on the road for the first time in four seasons earlier this season at Kent State and then won again at Nebraska for the first time since the late 1970s.

The Longmont Times-Call - CU’s O-line taken aback by numerous sacks

"When it’s a run or pass, it takes 11," Johnson said. "But whenever there is a sack, it falls back on to the offensive line, and oftentimes, that’s where it belongs. But certainly not every time.

CU Buffs' coach Dan Hawkins: 'You just have to bring more to the table' - Boulder Daily Camera

"You just have to bring more to the table," Hawkins said of what his team has learned from its previous four road trips this season. "You just have to have more concentration, more intensity, more enthusiasm, more focus. When you go on the road, there is just too many things distracting you, and you can't get caught up in the travel and all the other stuff. There has to be a heightened sense of focus and energy."

Colorado eyeing ... The Cyclones - The Denver Post

Key stat: ISU has allowed nine sacks this season — tied with Air Force for 10th in the nation — for just 47 yards lost.

Basketball Season Tip Off Highlights This Week At CU - CUBuffs.com
The Colorado men's and women's baskeball teams open their 2009-10 schedules, highlighting a busy home weekend for the Buffaloes.

Spaulding Roundup: Prince Update, Curing Fumbilitis & Staying In Offensive Rhythm

Nestor — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:53:14 -0000

More photos » by Wily Low - AP

Got to hold on to the football.

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Bruins continue to prepare for Washington State with an eye on the health of Kevin Prince. The LAT reported Prince looked "sharp" in his return to practice yesterday while the OC Register described him as "alert." Prince still has to go through a "series of tests" this week before the UCLA medical staff clears him for Saturday's game in Pullman. Al Balderas has more on various tests Prince has to pass before taking a snap against Washington State:

Prince said he felt good after Tuesday's practice but understood the protocol that he's required to go through when coming off such an injury.

"I can tell them all I want that I feel normal but they won't believe me," Prince said of the medical staff. "I've got to prove it."

The tests are fairly simple and seem to be more time consuming than anything. A lot of them are geared toward testing Prince's memory skills.

"I'm sure she'll do the same stuff like make me count backward by sevens from 100 and stuff like that," Prince said.

"There is little crazy stuff like that. She'll tell you five words and you have to tell them back to her five minutes later.

"They take good care of us."

We expect nothing less. Prince's OL will also be looking to take good care of him (or Craft) on Saturday. Those guys have been a clear marker of improvement for our offense this season in the form of providing better protection for our quarterbacks. That was evident against the Huskies last weekend when our OL made both Prince and Craft comfortable as both of them were finding time to look for their second and third options. From the Daily News:

"We're all on the same level now," freshman left tackle Xavier Su'a-Filo said. "Communication is excellent, right where it's supposed to be. We did notice on film that there were some broken plays and we still made them. As long as we keep doing our jobs, that can happen, even if the route isn't there."

Both Prince and Craft made plays outside the pocket after the Huskies' coverage broke down, and both quarterbacks were able to bide extra time to let plays develop.

The offensive line allowed two sacks, but one came under intense pressure, while the other was considered a coverage sack.

"When everyone talks about protection, they always just think it's with the offensive line," offensive line coach Bob Palcic said. "It's the receivers running the right routes at the right depth, it's the quarterback reading the right coverage and knowing where to go with the ball, and it's the offensive line holding up and preventing penetration."

"It's a three-pronged attack that has to work together."

Bruins will count on the OL to help stay in the rhythm they got in during the fourth quarter against Oregon State and continued through the Washington game. However, they will need to really cut down on their fumble issues.More on that issue and other notes after the jump.

Offense coughed up the ball 10 times in its last two games (recovering 7 of those fumbles). In Corvallis some of those fumbles stunted promising offensive drives while last weekend two of them led to Washington touch downs. So coaches are giving extra emphasis on ball security during practices this week:

"We definitely need to institute ball security back in practice," Coach Rick Neuheisel said. "Compared to what took place a year ago, the turnover rate has been good for us. But it has reared its ugly head and we have to go back to making it a huge point of emphasis."

The biggest culprits are the team’s leading passer and leading rusher. Quarterback Kevin Prince has nine fumbles, losing four. Tailback Johnathan Franklin has five, losing two. The two are also responsible for 10 of the Bruins' 14 offensive touchdowns.

Still, Franklin, who has been nursing a sore ankle, did not return to the game after fumbling at the start of the third quarter against Washington. He has been the most consistent running back this season, with 510 yards rushing and five touchdowns

That leads Neuheisel, when asked if there will be changes in personnel, to say, "I’m not sure we're ready to make that decision."

"Most of [Franklin’s] fumbles have been when he was close to the ground," Neuheisel said. "But the last one against Washington, he got the ball yanked out of his hands. We have to make sure he treats that thing like it’s sacred."

The answer this week will be more drills. Neuheisel said he had eliminated the ball-handling drills earlier in an effort to shorten practice, but he will re-introduce them this week.

"We’ll have guys run the gauntlet machine and other drills," Neuheisel said. "We’ll also make sure the scout team is involved. They have to try to get the ball out. There will be great concentration on this during the week. We can’t lose the ball. It’s too important."

Well it will be interesting to see how Prince, JetSki and rest of their team-mates hang on to the ball on Saturday. One of the reasons I thought we struggled holding on to the ball in Oregon State was because the conditions might have been a little slick (I thought it had rained in Corvallis earlier in the day, but I could be wrong on that count). The fumbles last week were inexcusable though. JetSki (he is not the only RB who has had fumble issues this year either) has to focus and concentrate with the rock. Hopefully the extra drills during practices will get the guys more game ready for Saturday.

Going back to the offensive line the LAT reports of a little shuffle due to an ankle sprain by Ryan Taylor:

Guard Ryan Taylor is not expected to play this week after suffering what Neuheisel called a sprained right foot against Washington.

Taylor, who was wearing a walking boot while watching practice, said that X-rays showed no broken bones but that "two of the bones by my toe have separated a little."

Darius Savage and Jake Dean will compete for the starting guard spot and both may play against Washington State on Saturday.

Savage started seven games at left guard last season. He has spent most of this season on the field-goal and kickoff-return units.

"I was a little rusty today because I have been playing tackle the last two or three weeks," Savage said. "I have to get my steps more compact and playing inside is more physical, which I prefer."

Offensive line coach Bob Palcic said, "I had Darius and Jake alternating with the first team, giving them equal time. I need to make sure they understand the proper techniques and assignments."

I thought Taylor did a great job last two weeks stepping in for injured Eddie Williams. Ekbatani really struggled when he was asked to step in during the Arizona game. When Ryan took over the spot he seemed to stablize it. Hopefully Savage or Dean make most of this opportunity.And, no I am not going to offer any commentary on Stan Hasiak (who is back in LA) except to wish him luck and root for him to get it together in a tough freshman season (away from parents and family in Hawaii).

On other injury news it sounds like Jerzy Siewierski suited up and went through half of practice yesterday. He might be ready to contribute on Saturday. If that's the case it's great news for our D. We can definitely use his motor in front-7. Although, I am sure if he gets in on Saturday, it will be for limited amount of time. Also, the coaches are slowly working Aaron Hester back into practice:

Redshirt freshman cornerback Aaron Hester was back at practice Tuesday after missing much of last week with discomfort following his return from a broken tibia. His status for the week is still undetermined after he worked mostly with the scout team in practice.

"Hester was back working today, getting acclimated with the scout team," UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel said. "We're seeing if he can gain confidence. It's really a confidence issue with him."

Again I don't think there is any need to rush him back. It looks like Sheldon Price is slowly developing confidence at the corner spot. This weekend presents another huge opportunity for the freshman CB to take another step. My preference at this point is to let Price keep gaining his confidence and take as much time as possible so that Hester gets completely healthy. Also, note I though Ty Abbott did a pretty good job from the nickle spot last weekend against the Husky offense.

To wrap this up I think the key for the entire team will be to zero in on execution on Saturday. I think the game is going to present a huge opportunity for the entire team to show what kind of composure it can exhibit as an obvious favorite. While Washington State no doubt will have some intangibles on its side as it will try to take advantage of its best opportunity to pick up a conference victory, our guys should be able to come in and take control of this game from the outset if it wants to keep charging towards a possible post season. If our gus on offense can eliminate the fumbling mistakes, continue to protect our QBs, and stay on a rhythm it found itself in back in Corvallis, we will have a great shot to keep the MO on our side during our flight back from Pullman.

GO BRUINS.

Spaulding Roundup: In A Washington State Of Mind

Nestor — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:49:43 -0000

More photos » by Dean Hare - AP

Remember what he did to Dewayne Walker's defense in 2007?

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Not sure how I can follow up the excitement around Mr. Smith's decision to come to Howlandwood this morning. I will give it a try. The timing of his announcement was a perfect convergence during the game week sandwiched between two Washington schools. Not only are we feeling good about what transpired last weekend at the Rose Bowl, now all on a sudden we have additional adrenaline shot (even though this wasn't a total surprise) heading into the second exhibition Ben Ball game tonight (and oh BTW Concordia apparently beat UCI last night in their second exhibition game). Let's hope we can keep the good vibes going around BN thanks to the state of Washington all the way into next weekend.

Washington State's football team are hurting again this season. They are streaking in the wrong direction. Here is the "inside slant" from Sportsline.com which accounts what transpired for the Cougars in their last game at Arizona, which somewhat encapsulated their season to date:

Washington State won the toss but decided to defer its decision, and the Wildcats returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, beginning an onslaught that saw Arizona take a 21-0 lead less than eight minutes into the game.

From there, it was the same old story, which has become exceedingly redundant for Washington State fans, as the Cougars never got back in the game. Their lone score came midway through the fourth quarter after Arizona led 48-0 and had emptied its bench.

Washington State is now 1-8 overall, 0-6 in Pac-10 play, and has lost every conference game by at least 13 points, and all but one by at least 21.

"They opened with that kickoff, and it's hard to open the game when you are down seven," linebacker Andy Mattingly told The Spokesman-Review.

Not that it likely would have mattered much in the long run, as the Cougars were again completely dominated despite Arizona going conservative pretty early on.

Arizona outgained Washington State 471-185, including a 294-59 edge in rushing.

Cougars are also banged up. They lost their starting QB Jeff Tuel (who is a freshman BTW) in their last game and his status is up in air during this game week. Here was the update from the Spokeman-Review yesterday:

"He’s sore today, but (there was) very little swelling, which is a real positive," coach Paul Wulff said Sunday. "He had to get an MRI today to see if there was anything going on more than they anticipated."

Tuel, who is still on crutches, was injured in the second quarter of the Cougars’ 48-7 loss to Arizona on Saturday, a defeat that dropped WSU’s record to 1-8, 0-6 in the Pac-10.

The freshman was trying to scramble when linebacker Xavier Kelley caught him from behind. As Tuel went down, he slightly dislocated his kneecap, suffering what is known as a subluxation, in which the kneecap is pulled laterally from its usual path.

"It’s just wait and see," said Wulff, who expects to know the MRI exam results today. "We’ll see what happens tomorrow and on Tuesday."

Tuel has done ok since he took over at the QB spot this season, completing 71 of 121 passes (58.7 percent completion rate), 6 TDs and 5 ints. If he cant go this weekend, sophomore Marshall Lobbestale will take his spot who has completed 56 of his 116 attempts, throwing for 3 TDs and 5 picks.

Tuel is not the only injury concern for the Cougars:

[Q]uarterback isn’t the only area of injury concern for Wulff this week. The Cougars lost two safeties Saturday and played the second half with Myron Beck, who has played mostly linebacker this season, filling in deep.

Wulff is hoping usual starting strong safety Chima Nwachukwu will be able to return from his sprained ankle.[...]

Kicker Nico Grasu (quadriceps pull) and left tackle Tyson Pencer (ankle sprain) will probably miss this week, replaced by Kevin Rooney and Steven Ayers, respectively.

So they are not in great shape. However, I wouldn't get overly confident if I were UCLA. As mentioned yesterday they are going to look at this game as their last chance of getting a victory at home. That place has been the venue of one Bruin nightmare after another in recent years (except for the miracle in 2005). Bruins have injury issues of their own and concerns around their defensive unit which will require total focus and concentration of the entire team heading into Saturday.

Looking though Washington's stats for this season it instantly becomes clear the kind of struggle they have experienced the entire season. However, there is something we all have to be mindful as UCLA fans. Our run defense right now is atrocious. It's embarrassing really. UCLA's rushing "defense" is crrently ranked 78th in the nation and 8th in the conference. We are giving up almost 157 yards on the ground per game and have gotten gashed repeatedly in recent weeks (still cannot figure out why Sark didn't stick with the ground attack against UCLA).

Our LBs are struggling. Reggie Carter is playing hurt and hasn't been the same. Akeem Ayers is still having problem with overpursuit. Bosworth is playing his heart out but he can only do so much. So I can see a scenario in which WSU will attempt to turn this into a ball control game with RB Dwight Tardy. Does any one remeber what Dwight Tardy did to UCLA last time we went up to Pullman? Here is a reminder:

Cougar running game huge in UCLA win (via KXLY)

Yeah, he tore up that legendary Dewayne Walker defense for 214 yards on 37 carries. It was ugly and pathetic. Tardy is having a so so season this year gaining 321 yards in 69 carries. Those are still respectable numbers as he is averaging more than 4 yards per carry. To put it in perspective. Tardy while gaining 214 yards against Walker's defense in 2007, had about 462 yards in his previous 7 games (poor kid suffered an ACL injury in 51 yard TD run in the final mintue of our game).

Given our history in Pullman our defense better be ready for Tardy an co. Tardy has been coming on somewhat strong (at least per game stats). He rushed for 45 yards in 4 carries against Arizona, which followed a 73 yard rushing effort (in 8 carries) against the Irish. I know what you are thinking. It's the Irish. However, we don't have standing to make fun of the Irish defense, given how ours have performed in recent weeks.

So are going to need our guys to come out and get in rhythm offensively to take control of this game. The reports from Spauling are encouraging re. Prince:

Prince, who suffered a concussion against Washington, went through an exertion test Monday morning and then was cleared by a team doctor to lift weights and practice. Barring a setback, he will start Saturday against Washington State.

"I rode the bike for 30 minutes and did some up-downs," Prince said. "The training staff asked how I was feeling and I said I felt normal. There will be various tests through Thursday."

If Prince is 100 percent and ready to go on Saturday, having him in there will hopefully allow our offense to stay in its rhythm:

"Offensively, we did a lot of good things, especially in the throwing game," Neuheisel said."We're kind of finding some rhythm. The receivers played a pretty darn good game. Kids are starting to come of age, and that's huge. If you look at the first two series of the game, almost everyone got to touch the ball. We're starting to spread it around."

Hopefully Prince is ready to go. It was a lot of run to see spray the ball around all over the field on Saturday. He was simply on fire and it certainly appeared that Chow had taken the leash off our offense. I hope if Prince is healthy Chow comes out with an aggressive game plan for an all out attack on Saturday. If the Bruins can take control of the game early on and maintain an aggressive posture for the entire game, it will do wonders for their confidence not just for the entire season but for the future of this program.

GO BRUINS.

BN Pac-10 Power Poll: Week 10

Ryan Rosenblatt — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:00:38 -0000

Well, if we weren't already sure of it, now we know. In the Pac-10, nothing in guaranteed and on any day, anything can happen. A week after Oregon looked unbeatable, they were beaten and not just on the scoreboard. Toby Gerhart and Stanford pounded the Ducks physically and took down the team atop the Pac-10. Elsewhere, USC looked less than impressive in beating Arizona St., UCLA picked up their first Pac-10 win, Oregon St. beat Cal in Berkeley and Arizona cruised past Wazzu to move just a half game behind Oregon in the conference. The unpredictability of the conference and depth from top to bottom that makes winning out so difficult has once again cost the conference a chance at a National Title Game representative as the teams are now squarely focused on a Rose Bowl berth.

Player of the Week: Toby Gerhart, Stanford- The best player in the conference's biggest game. Gerhart ran by Oregon defender and more often, through them as he racked up 223 yards and three touchdowns while carrying the ball 38 times. That is the definition of carrying the load. Now second nationally in yards per game with 16 touchdowns, he has to be a Heisman candidate, right?

Stat of the Week: 2001- The last time Stanford was bowl eligible was in 2001. In just his third season, Jim Harbaugh has the Cardinal bowl eligible at 6-3 and they trail Oregon for the conference lead by just a half game.

Game of the Week: Stanford at USC, 12:30 pm PST, FSN- It's a Stanford heavy "of the Week" list, but the Cardinal have the conference's best player and find themselves squarely in the conference title race as the head to the Coliseum for a match-up with USC. The last time the Cardinal went on the road to play USC, they came away with a monumental upset. This upset wouldn't be nearly as big, but a win may mean more to the program.

Pac-10 Power Poll

1) Oregon Ducks, 7-2 (2 first place votes)- Sure, they looked bad in their loss to Stanford, but over the course of the conference season, no team has been as good. Their dominating win over USC wasn't that long ago, although seeing their once dominating defense get torn apart must be a concern. The offense was still moving the ball against Stanford so not everything went bad. Returning home to play an Arizona St. team that has a poor offense on a good day will help. Last Week: 1

2) Arizona Wildcats, 6-2 (1 first place vote)- Yeah, they're pretty darn good. Ever since Nick Foles took over as QB, they're averaging 38 points per game and are 4-1. Thanks to their win over Washington St. on Saturday, they're only a half game behind Oregon and are in the thick of the conference race. With Cal, USC, Oregon and rivals Arizona St. left of the schedule, only one of which is at home, things will get far tougher now and their road to a Pac-10 title is the toughest among contenders. Last Week: 3

3) USC Trojans, 7-2 (1 first place vote)- It's been a while since the Trojans have put together back to back games as unimpressive as the past two. After being rolled over by Oregon, USC looked very poor in beating a bad Arizona St. team. Matt Barkley completed only seven of his 22 passes and the Trojans had only four first half first downs. At least the defense looked better and with a surging Stanford team on tap this week, both the offense and defense will have to be on their games. Last Week: 2

4) Stanford Cardinal, 6-3- Being the first Pac-10 team to top Oregon is a major accomplishment, but it was the manner in which they did it that impressed most. Not only did Gerhart run for over 250, but Andrew Luck threw for over 250 as the Cardinal racked up 505 total yards and held onto the ball for nearly 38 minutes. They cannot give up another 570 yards against USC this week though if they want to win their second consecutive game at the Coliseum. Last Week: 6

5) Oregon St. Beavers, 6-3- Sean Canfield continues to impress for the Beavers, racking up another 342 yards in their win over Cal while completing 29 of his 39 pass attempts. With the Rodgers brothers bottled up for the most part, the OSU offense didn't lose a step as Joe Halahuni stepped up with 128 yards receiving. As is always the case with Mike Riley teams, they're just getting better as the year goes on. They get Washington this week in their last home game of the year. Last Week: 5

6) California Golden Bears, 6-3- You would really expect a better performance from the Bears at home. I understand how Jahvid Best's scary injury may have changed the mindset of many Cal players, but Oregon St. was in control of that game already. The Bears' defense looks more porous each week and 436 yards by the Beavers continues that trend. Their final home game of the year comes up this weekend and it will be a tough one versus Arizona. Last Week: 4

7) Arizona St. Sun Devils, 4-5- You would think that Arizona St. would have a better offense than they do with Dennis Erickson at the helm, but it has been atrocious. Freshman Brock Osweiler came in and showed that he has some good tools, but he is a long ways off. On the bright side, their defense is as good as their offense is bad. Their four wins are still over Idaho St., Louisiana-Monroe, Washington and Washington St. though, all at home. At Oregon this week will be an uphill battle. Last Week: 7

8) UCLA Bruins, 4-5- How many points could the Bruins have scored had Kevin Prince understood when it's time to slide? The redshirt freshman was rolling and leading a suddenly explosive offense. Kevin Craft did what you'd hope for from a backup and that is give the receivers chances. The offensive line is really coming on, but the defense looks to have stagnated, which isn't bad, but not great either. A win in the Palouse on Saturday puts them on the brink og a bowl bid. Last Week: 9

9) Washington Huskies, 3-6- The Huskies run at a bowl looks to have come to an end, but those hopes were always a bit far-fetched. Jake Locker wasn't bad in Saturday's loss to UCLA, but for the Huskies to win games, he needs to be phenomenal. Chris Polk had himself a big game though and had UW been able to turn just one more of those five turnovers into points, they'd have had a W. After their game at Oregon St. on Saturday, they finish out with two at home. Last Week: 8

10) Washington St. Cougars, 1-8- Penalties. Turnovers. Inability to convert on third down. Only 18:41 of possession. You're not going to win many games like that and especially not on the road, where the Cougars were trounced by Arizona. The game started with Wazzu letting the opening kick off get run back for a TD and that was as close as it got. They still can't decide on a quarterback as they welcome UCLA to the Palouse on Saturday. Last Week: 10

Race to Pasadena: Who's Winning the Pac-10?

Avinash — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:30:25 -0000

Pacific-10 Conference Standings

(updated 11.8.2009 at 1:43 AM PST)

	Conf		Overall
	W	L	W	L
Oregon Ducks	5	1	7	2
Arizona Wildcats	4	1	6	2
Stanford Cardinal	5	2	6	3
USC Trojans	4	2	7	2
Oregon St. Beavers	4	2	6	3
California Golden Bears	3	3	6	3
Arizona St. Sun Devils	2	4	4	5
Washington Huskies	2	4	3	6
UCLA Bruins	1	5	4	5
Washington St. Cougars	0	6	1	8

Teams that control their own destiny: Oregon, Arizona

Teams that are still contending: USC, Furd, Oregon State

Teams on the respirator in the Pac-10 race: Cal (The most plausible scenario where the Bears go to Pasadena is if we win out, giving us the head-to-head over Arizona and Furd, Arizona and ASU beat Oregon, Furd and Arizona beat USC, ASU beats Arizona, and Oregon and UW beat Oregon State. That's the MOST PLAUSIBLE scenario.).

Teams eliminated from the Pac-10 race: Wazzu, UCLA, UW, ASU

Teams that will be eliminated from a bowl with one more loss: UW.

Teams eliminated from bowl contention: Wazzu.

Probably the question Cal fans are asking right now: Is there a way the Bears get eliminated from bowl contention?

Well, the Bears would almost certainly have to drop their final three (if they win one of their final three, they'll at least finish the season 7-5, just about guaranteeing a bowl bid), which would drop them to at best 6th in the Pac-10. Considering the way we've played against better teams, this isn't the craziest scenario.

Then, either ASU, UW or UCLA would have to win out.

Arizona State's final three games: at Oregon, at UCLA, Arizona
UCLA's final three games: at Wazzu, ASU, at USC
UW's final three games: at OSU, Wazzu, Cal

Now if two of these teams can run the table, that would drop Cal to 8th, and in no man's land since there are only six official tie-ins (with the possibility for another one if two teams get to the BCS). Cal at 7th still gives us a chance, but we'd need Oregon/Arizona and USC to win out to have a good shot at that. So that's the doomsday scenario.

Of course, it bears mentioning that bowls are not obligated to respect the results of head-to-head matchups when choosing from among tied teams. If, say, Cal and UCLA were to end up tied for 6th at 6-6, 3-6 in the conference, the choice would be up to the Poinsettia Bowl to pick either the Bears or the Bruins. You might see the San Diego bowl favor the team from Southern California, however, so it's best not to leave these things to chance.

It also bears mentioning that, should the Bears go 1-2 down the stretch while UCLA wins out and Stanfurd wins at least one more game, more than 6 Pac-10 teams could end up with a winning record. If the Poinsettia then takes a 7-5 UCLA team over a 7-5 Cal team, the Bears would at least be in pretty good shape for getting an at-large bid from some other bowl, for there is an NCAA rule that says that every 7-5 team must be taken before a 6-6 team can be given an at-large bid to a bowl.

Alright, onto what most Pac-10 fans care about. Who's going to the Rose Bowl? Plus, a guest appearance by the eminent ragnarok!

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Despite the defensive collapse at the Farm, Oregon is still very much in control of their destiny. Win out and they'll be the first Pac-10 team not named USC to be playing on New Year's Day since 2003. Lose one though, and the door opens.

The first candidate? Arizona. Arizona still has just one conference loss, and if they win out, they'll have beaten both Oregon and USC to get there, leaving them in sole possession of first place. Of course, a loss to either of these teams puts their hopes in serious, if not terminal jeopardy.

Dark horses

Lingering, as always, is USC. The Trojans winning out will probably guarantee them a BCS at-large bid, and would give them the tiebreaker over the Furd and Arizona. However, to win the Pac-10 championship, the Rose Bowl, and doom us all again, all that has to happen is for Arizona and Oregon State to beat Oregon, and for USC to run the table, finishing up by beating Arizona. That'd give USC the tiebreaker over the Furd, OSU and Arizona in the conference, and they wouldn't have to worry about Oregon. You're starting to get that awful feeling, aren't you?

After that, it gets messy. The Cardinal are in it, but they need plenty of help. Even if the Furd were to win out, they need Arizona to drop two games (likely Oregon and USC), Oregon State and Oregon to drop one more (although one of those losses will be resolved by the Civil War. So, Stanford fans, whereever you are, start rooting like mad for the Sun Devils to knock off Oregon or Arizona. Cal fans, root for ASU to get crushed by 50 in every one of their remaining games.

Oregon State has its own dark horse aspirations after coming up short a year ago, and like anyone else in the conference it requires tons of help. Unfortunately, it requires the USC to lose one of its final three at home. USC and Arizona have already beaten them, although they have the edge over the Furd, and if they beat Oregon in the Civil War would own the tiebreaker over them. So they need Arizona to drop two (most likely to USC and Oregon), and then require USC to lose one of its final three.

A loss by any of these three teams will eliminate them from any realistic Pac-10 title scenarios.

There are plenty of other scenarios out there...but they're too numerous to count. As November gets shorter I'll probably be able to calculate what happens to a better degree.

Here to take you the rest of the way is ragnarok!

Ragnarok: Where is Cal in all this? Well, assuming Cal receives a bowl bid, where might the Bears be heading? The Pac-10 has six bowl tie-ins, who get to pick in this order (in 2009, at least): Rose, Holiday, Sun, Emerald, Las Vegas, Poinsettia.

At this point, I can't see the Bears finishing any higher than in a tie for third. Head-to-head matchups don't matter in terms of bowl selections (at least beyond the Rose Bowl), so if the Bears can win out to finish 6-3, I could definitely see the Sun Bowl grabbing them (the Bears are the only Pac-10 team never to appear in the Sun Bowl).

The Emerald Bowl would certainly like to welcome the Bears back, though if Stanford is available, I think they might grab them instead. The Furd may not have many fans, but there aren't that many seats at AT&T Park, and the novelty of a bowl game might get a few of them to walk down from their downtown offices. Either way, such a choice would certainly be a dream scenario for the Emerald Bowl.

Las Vegas picks next, and if the Bears are still available, they might be forced to pick Cal. Remember, every 7-5 team must be taken before any 6-6 team can be taken, and so if either Stanford or UCLA finishes 6-6, the Bears must be selected before them. Arizona won there last year, with UCLA losing the year before, so Cal might have an advantage over either of those teams if the bowl got a choice about things.

Hopefully, the Bears won't fall to the Poinsettia, and hopefully the Poinsettia doesn't have a choice about who to take. I'd have to think they'd be interested in UCLA should the Bruins get to six wins.

Every week that goes by makes the bowl picture a little clearer, however. we'll know more next week.

Bonus question. Suppose three teams tie with each other such that head-to-head everyone is 1-1 against each other (think Texas-Texas Tech-Oklahoma last season). There is no Pac-10 tiebreaker, but there is a Rose Bowl tiebreaker. It says the following:

b. Multiple-Team Ties.
(1) When three or more teams are tied in Conference play, if one has defeated all others, it shall be the Rose Bowl representative. If that is not the case, a comparison of the tied teams' records against the other tied teams shall be made and the team having the best record against the other tied teams shall be the Rose Bowl representative. If two or more teams are still tied after this comparison, the appropriate two-team or multiple-team tie-breaking procedures shall be repeated among those teams still under consideration.

(2) If more than two teams are still tied after the process above is completed, each remaining tied team's record against the team occupying the highest position in the final regular season standings shall be compared, with the procedure continuing down through the standings until one team gains an advantage.

When arriving at another group of tied teams while comparing records, each team's collective record against the tied teams as a group shall be used.

If at any point in the process the multiple-team tie is reduced to two teams, the two-team tie-breaking procedure shall be applied.

If more than two teams are still tied after comparing their records all the way through the Conference standings, the team among the tied teams with the highest ranking in the final BCS standings shall be the Rose Bowl representative.
If a tie remains, the teams most recently earning Rose Bowl or Bowl Championship Series automatic selection shall be eliminated.

These tiebreaker scenarios are indeed complicated, and I'd imagine more than a few of you are a little confused. Now, I'm sure some of you are worried about a repeat of what happened in the Big XII South last year, where three teams all beat each other, leaving the BCS selection to the mercy of the BCS standings. This is unlikely to happen in the Pac-10 this year; last year Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma all lost only to each other, and further tiebreakers proved unhelpful. Since enough teams have lost that a 3-way tie would necessarily involve 7-2 teams, there should be a way to break a 3-way tie without resorting to BCS standings. A couple of examples should shed some light on this:

Let's say these are the final standings (USC and OSU win out, Oregon defeats Arizona):

Oregon   7-2
Oregon State   7-2
USC   7-2
Arizona   6-3
California   5-4
Stanford   5-4
UCLA   3-6
Washington   3-6
Arizona State   2-7
Washington State   0-9

In this scenario, Oregon, OSU, and USC are all tied. We then compare their record vs. Arizona, since UA finished 4th. This eliminates OSU, who already lost to the Wildcats, and since Oregon has the head-to-head win vs. USC, the Ducks go to the Rose Bowl.

Now, same scenario, except Cal beats Arizona next weekend.

Oregon   7-2
Oregon State   7-2
USC   7-2
California   6-3
Arizona   5-4
Stanford   5-4
UCLA   3-6
Washington   3-6
Arizona State   2-7
Washington State   0-9

First, Oregon, OSU and USC are compared to Cal. Since the Bears lost to all three of these teams, nothing is resolved. Then, those three teams are compared to both Arizona and Stanford at the same time. Oregon and Oregon State both went 1-1 vs. these teams, while USC beat both Arizona and Stanford, sending the Trojans to the Rose Bowl.

Now, here's a crazy scenario. USC wins out, Oregon loses to Arizona but beats Oregon State, Cal beats Stanford AND Washington wins out.

Arizona   7-2
Oregon   7-2
USC   7-2
Oregon State   6-3
California   5-4
Stanford   5-4
Washington   5-4
UCLA   3-6
Arizona State   2-7
Washington State   0-9

Now, comparisons to Oregon State do nothing, since the Beavers lost to the Ducks, Wildcats and Trojans. Comparing those three to Cal, Stanford and Washington doesn't help either, since Arizona and USC lost to UW, while Oregon lost to Stanford. All three then beat UCLA, ASU and WSU, thus throwing the Rose Bowl bid to the mercy of BCS standings. I haven't contemplated EVERY scenario yet, but this is the only one I've come up with where the BCS standings come into play.

This week's matchups. Finally, let's see what's coming up this weekend; perhaps a few more results will help us sort through the chaos.

Critical Game this week:

Washington @ Oregon State. The Huskies are on the brink, and even a stunning upset over USC will be just part of another losing season if UW can't beat Oregon State on the road this week. Meanwhile, Oregon's loss at Stanford means the Beavers have a shot at winning the conference, with a potential Rose Bowl coming down to complex tiebreakers. Slipping up vs. the Huskies would end that dream.

Other matchups:

Arizona @ Cal. While Cal tries to bounce back from an uninspired loss to Oregon State and a horrific-looking injury to their star, Jahvid Best, Arizona tries hard not to look ahead to hosting Oregon the following week. The Wildcats, with just a single conference loss, could be looking ahead to a potential conference championship game vs. Oregon, but not if they can't beat Cal on the road. The Wildcats may be sitting pretty at 6-2, but they're also mostly untested, having faced neither Oregon nor USC so far this year.

Stanford @ USC. Believe it or not, even Stanford still has a chance to win the Pac-10, should things break right. However, they'll need to win at USC to even have a shot at it, and while the Cardinal performed that miracle two years ago, I'm not sure it's likely to happen again. The loser is all but mathematically eliminated from the conference race, whereas the winner still needs plenty of help.

UCLA @ Washington State. Maybe the Cougar's best shot at a Pac-10 win this season, it would come at the expense of UCLA's bowl hopes. Can the Bruins settle on a quarterback and reach six wins? If they can't even win in Pullman, Neuheisel's coaching seat may begin growing rather warm.

Arizona State @ Oregon. The Sun Devils face long odds to reach a bowl game, and while this game would help their cause immensely, I think it would be unlikely for Oregon to be upset two weeks in a row, especially as they return to Autzen for this matchup. The Ducks, meanwhile, remain in control of their Rose Bowl destiny, but their margin for error has mostly disappeared. Are we to see a repeat of 2007?

Poll

Your 2009 Pac-10 champions will be...

The Monday Morning Wash

John Berkowitz — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:38:30 -0000

It wasn't a pretty game and Husky fans weren't very happy that the team went down to another loss in a game they could have won 24-23. The result brought up the usual questions about the coaching staff which have been reverberating ever since the Notre Dame loss. The major one is perhaps Steve Sarkisian should stick to managing the overall team and the game rather than having the extra burden of calling plays and running the offense next season.

The point has some validity because the head coach has a lot on his plate on game day and only so much time to get everything done. One of the things that didn't get done Saturday was a review of a questionable UCLA TD. First of all the Pac 10 officials should have automatically reviewed the play. Since they did not Washington should have called time out and requested the review. UCLA hurried to the line and kicked the PAT rendering any review moot.

Another point that has a lot of validity is this team even though it is 3-6 is much better than last years squad. We all complain that they should be 6-3 but in reality it is this coaching staff that has helped put the team in the position to be close enough in those games to come away with the win.

The 2009 squad is made up of the pretty much the same players that went 0-12 last season and were in the position to win at the end of only the BYU and WSU games in 2008. The 2009 edition is killing us because they have had a chance to win in the fourth quarter against every team but Oregon this season. That is progress and the only way things are going to turn those close losses into wins is having better talent and experience on the field.

A disturbing trend that I have picked up on inthe second half of the season has been a serious lack of depth and a lack of gas in the second half of games. This team is tired in the third quarter. an example of that was blowing a 9 point lead to UCLA in the second half. We can all the blame the coaches but a big part of the quotient is that this team is wearing down in the last quarter of the season.

I think the future of Husky football is bright and is in good hands. This is a major rebuilding project and the only thing that turns it around once and for all is a big influx of fresh talent. Sark intends to bring in a class of around thirty next season which would replace one third of the current roster. That is the type of class you can anchor your program with in coming seasons.

If you are a Husky fan that wait is excruciating. We all hoped that at the very least this team would become bowl eligible this season. With three games left that goal is still on the table but improbable because up next is the Oregon State Beavers on the road. Lose the next one and the team is just playing for respectability against WSU and California.

My advice is to not get too down on this team and its coaching staff. The wins are going to come and this staff is going to turn it around. Rebuilding a football program isn't an overnight process. Being competitive in almost every game is a huge step in that direction. None of us should be into moral victories and honestly this team should be 6-3 right now. The players, coaches, and fans know that. Lets see what happens over the next three weeks. There is lots of football still to be played.

Around the Pac Ten

Arizona 47 Washington State 7

The victory, combined with Oregon's loss at Stanford, moves the Wildcats (6-2, 4-1 Pac-10) within a half-game of the first-place Ducks. Arizona and Oregon are the only teams in the conference with just one loss.

Oregon State 31 California 14

Sean Canfield threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score Saturday night in Oregon State's 31-14 victory over California.

USC 14 Arizona State 9

Will Harris returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown -- one of four turnovers forced by the Trojans -- and No. 12 USC held on for a shaky 14-9 victory over Arizona State.

Stanford 51 Oregon 42

Gerhart ran for a school-record 223 yards and three scores, Andrew Luck threw for two touchdowns and Stanford held on to beat Oregon (No. 8 BCS, No. 7 AP) 51-42 Saturday to become bowl eligible for the first time in eight years. The loss drops Oregon into a tie for first place with Arizona in the Pac 10.

Pac Ten Power Ratings

1. Arizona...Mike Stoops has the Wildcats in a position to contend for the Rose Bowl. Up next is Cal on the road.

2. Oregon...The Ducks face ASU at home this coming weekend. The ASU defense will challenge the Duck offense.

3. Southern Cal...The Trojans are struggling on offense and next week they get a Stanford team at home that is very capable of beating them.

4. Oregon State...Riley teams get better as the season goes on. This team is no exception. Up next is Washington at home.

5. Stanford...The Cards are bowl eligible! Up next is a tough game with USC.

6. California...This is a hurting football team that hasn't performed that well. Up next is Arizona at home.

7. Arizona State...The defense is intimidating but the offense is very challenged. ASU might now win another game this season but they are going to make them all close and interesting.

8. UCLA...The Bruins break a five game losing streak and this week extend to 2-0 on the road at WSU.

9. Washington...Missed opportunities are killing this team. Up next is Oregon State and they look pretty scary.

10. Washington State...Coug's can't wait till the Apple Cup.

Pac 10 Offensive Player of the Week

Stanford's Toby Gerhart who led the Cardinal in an upset against Oregon.

Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Week

UCLA's Rahim Moore intercepts Jake Locker in the final minutes of the game to seal a victory against the Huskies.

UW Offensive Player of the Week

Chris Polk rushed for a career high 134 yards against UCLA.

UW Defensive Player of the Week

Donald Butler knocked UCLA QB Kevin Prince out of the game with a jarring hit in the first half and played tough all day.

Quote of the Week

"There are three games right there that could go either way that really kind of makes your season, and we just didn't get those games," Holt said. "And here we are 3-6 and battling for the last three games of the year to have a good season. So I think we are still learning. There's a lot of transition still."

To the Tennessee Volunteers, Ole Miss is UCLA Redux

Hooper — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:00:32 -0000

by Wade Payne - AP

(AP Photo/Wade Payne)

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Emotions around Rocky Top are burning brightly after the Tennessee Volunteers drilled the Memphis Tigers 56-28 in Neyland Stadium (in a game that was nowhere near as close as the score would indicate). After rolling up a 49-7 lead with 12 minutes left in the third quarter, the Vols began pulling starters for injury insurance and for backup experience, giving Memphis nearly a full half of 'garbage time' scores. (And were it not for a pass interference call on what was otherwise a failed 3rd down attempt by Memphis in the first half, that score could very well have been 49-0.)

Over the last few weeks, we've seen the Vols put together a string of very nice games, starting in the fourth quarter against the Auburn Tigers when Jonathan Crompton and the wide receivers finally got on the same page. Since that point, the passing game has been very effective, and even put the Vols in position to try to beat the Alabama Crimson Tide on their own turf. Against the Georgia Bulldogs, Crompton earned the national player of the week award in a game that may ultimately prove to be the final nail in Willie Martinez's Athenian coffin. Against both the South Carolina Gamecocks and Memphis Tigers, Crompton threw zero interceptions and a flurry of early touchdown strikes to put the game out of reach.

But despite all the (very valid) reasons for exuberance on The Hill, Tennessee would be very wise to learn a lesson from the beginning of the season - that maintaining improvement is as difficult as gaining improvement.

In week one of the 2009 season, the big question surrounding the Vols was whether the offense would be competent. After the Emo-riffically bitter memories of the 2008 season, fans (and, most likely, teammates) were not certain that the players on offense would be able to meet their recruiting expectations and reliably move the ball down the field. Lane Kiffin was also seen as a new variable - with little head coaching experience under his belt (and none of it at the college level), there was always the risk that he was in over his head.

And then came the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:

FULL SCREEN VERSION

So yeah, even though Western Kentucky was the newest member of 1-A football and had 57 team members who were true freshmen, redshirt freshmen, or sophomores, we were just a little bit giddy about this whole 'scoring points' thing. Sure, we recognized the qualifiers involved, but feeling good is a powerful drug. It was enough to have the fans perhaps a little too confident going into the UCLA Bruins game in week 2.

The problem was that we couldn't know how bad Western Kentucky really was. How bad are they this year? Well, so far, they're undefeated. In Rocky Top Talk's computer ranking methodology, they're the worst team in the NCAA by a hideously long margin, scoring a -195.3 after 10 weeks of action. (For reference, Florida leads with a +148.9 and the highest numbers seen by our computers are in the +150s. The second worst team is Eastern Michigan at -160.7.) Western Kentucky's best metric is currently their total offense, which is still a full standard deviation below the NCAA average.

And that's exactly where Western Kentucky can teach us a lesson today.

In the Western Kentucky game, the Volunteers pulled out to a 35-0 lead in the third quarter before beginning to pull out the defensive starters. Very shortly after that, Western Kentucky put together their first and only scoring drive of the game. Incidentally, this was the same trend exhibited in the Memphis game - once starters began resting, the defense began giving up ground and points. Likewise on the offense, as starters came off the field, efficiency dipped. (It was somewhat hard to see in the Western Kentucky game because their defense was so bad and so tired, that they were no longer able to contain basic clock-killing off-tackle runs.)

And the gains game in the same manner: plays designed to get the ball around the edge of the offensive line. Western Kentucky achieved this through option plays on the left end of the offensive line; Memphis achieved it through wide receiver screens and cutback runs. In both cases, the defensive edges ceded ground with the backups in place.

And looking forward, the Mississipipi Rebels present a similar challenge to the Vols that UCLA did - a team with some particular talent on the defensive line and an ability to create turnovers. But offensively, the Rebels have one thing the Bruins didn't - an offensive threat on the edge in the form of Dexter McCluster.

Here is where we have to remember that Memphis is not as good of a team as we'd like to hope they were. In our computers, they rank #111 out of 120 1-A teams - in the same company as Florida Atlantic and North Texas. The qualifier is very valid here. Additionally, Ole Miss is a team with more potential than they have shown on the season, with some very good talent in the right places that just hasn't come together as it should. And where UCLA ranks #45 in our computers, Ole Miss is #31 - just three spots behind the Volunteers themselves.

Yes, Ole Miss is a team that Tennessee should beat, all things going towards expectations. But this is a road game against a team that still needs another win for bowl eligibility (only one win against 1-AA competition can count toward the 6 wins mandatory for bowl appearances) and still hopes to salvage what has been a very disappointing season, based on the media's reflexively unrealistic expectations. With a win against Tennessee, Ole Miss still has a shot at #2 in the West, which can be the difference between the Liberty Bowl and the Cotton Bowl.

We took UCLA for granted early in the season; we should not do the same with Ole Miss. And even if the fans do (as we are prone to doing), the team better not.

Spaulding Roundup: Cleared Up QB Picture, Wildcat Excitement & Early Thoughts On WSU Game

Nestor — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:46:32 -0000

More photos » by Francis Specker - AP

Prince waiting for the word from the training staff to get clearance for Saturday

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Let's start this week by checking in with our starter: Kevin Prince. Per the report in LAT today CRN said that Prince "was cleared pretty quickly" by the "training staff report." Prince will go through some "exertion test" tomorrow and per CRN's words the training staff thinks "he will be ready." Prince looked all right when he was walking around the sidelines after half time on Saturday. He didn't sound too worried about his status for next week after the game. From the Press Enterprise:

Prince was kept on the sideline with what he called a minor concussion.

"I was dizzy, drowsy, kind of a little sensitive to light and stuff," said Prince, who was wearing a mouth guard.

Remember, Prince's jaw was fractured when he was sacked late in a victory over Tennessee in the second game of the season. That kept him out for a couple weeks and seemed to hinder his progress.

He sounded as assured as he could that he'd be ready to play at Washington State next Saturday.

"Absolutely," Prince said when asked about that game. "I'll be fine."

In his limited time, he passed for 212 yards and a touchdown and connected on 13 of his 17 attempts.

I think UCLA staff should make sure they exercise as much caution as possible with Prince. He has taken some vicious hits this year. I want him to see out there on Saturday but I will totally understand if our training staff and coaches decide to keep him out for one week. Meanwhile, from now till the end of the season perhaps Kevin should be putting in some extra time in practice working on his slide. Running head first for extra couple of yards was not a smart move on his part, particularly now that he is emerging as the clear starter of this football team.

Even if Prince cannot go after Saturday's performance, UCLA coaches should feel pretty confident about going with Kevin Prince. Chris Foster from the LA Time reports how the senior quarterback is having a memorable season in Westwood and might stay plugged in with Chow's offense even after his graduation:

Craft's hand prints -- and hand signals -- are all over the Bruins' season. He has been a mentor to Prince and Brehaut, with the idea of remaining as a graduate assistant being discussed.

Craft is also responsible for the way the Bruins signal plays onto the field, something he and Prince were asked to develop after the San Diego State game.

"The terminology we were using was so long that the receivers were having trouble remembering it," offensive coordinator Norm Chow said. "I sent Kevin and Kevin home that Sunday to come up with a system to signal in the formations."

The two did, with Craft taking the lead. He had studied sign language as his foreign language in high school, and continued to take courses in it at San Diego State. He mixed elements of that with signals that almost mimicked the formation.

"We went through every single formation that Monday night," Craft said. "I would say, 'What about this?' and Kevin would make suggestions."

Soon after, the Bruins had a system. Whether his code could be cracked by opponents doesn't matter, Craft said: "We run 10 plays out of each formation, so it wouldn't help." The receivers still run the plays in from the sideline.

"We use a little bit of the sign language, along with some hand signals that make things easy to remember," Craft said. "It's just easier to do it this way. A lot times when they sent in receivers with the call, things got jumbled."

Ryan described the scene immediately after the game ended showing how tight the quarterbacks are with each other at UCLA:

As soon as Craft took the final knee, Prince and Crissman took off in a dead sprint for him, with Brehaut not far behind once he got all his cords off of him. They had a huge group hug out there on the field, celebrating the win. It was great to see.

It's another scene that should make you LOL next time you read some local reporter try to weave the storyline of Neuheisel losing control of this program. I don't think it's a coincidence that these guys despite what they have been through are so resilient and close together as a unit. No doubt in my mind they are taking their cues from the leader of their program.

Prince (before he went out) and Craft were not the only players having fun on offense on Saturday. Milton Knox's performance from the Wildcat formation has lot of people buzzing:

"It's fun to do that, to come out and make big plays," Knox said. "It wasn't that hard for me to adjust to it. Naturally I'm a running back, but I played a little backup quarterback in high school. When (offensive coordinator Norm Chow) asked me if I could run it, I said sure.

"It helps this team put a little swagger into the offense."

Now comes the hard part, besides the name: figuring out how to introduce the passing element into the complex offense, which was popularized in the NFL by Miami Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown, who threw a 1-yard touchdown pass out of the wildcat on Sunday in the Dolphins' 27-17 loss to New England.

"The wildcat is in vogue right now because it evens the number out," Neuheisel said. "But you have to be versatile in it to last a long time. We'll see if now we can muster up some throwing game out of it."

I think sooner or later though Milton will have to throw it. That's the only way the coaches will be able to ensure that formation keeps producing results. It was awesome to see Milton get loose though. Hopefully it will give him more confidence when lining up in regular formation. However, we'd definitely would love to see some more of it next weekend and perhaps Knox will get a chance to throw out of it.

It was definitely an interesting feeling on Saturday. Especially early on after every offensive score I had the feeling of not being able to wait till next time our offense took the feel. I hadn't felt that sense of anticipation with our offense since the 1999 (2005 doesn't count because our offense would just lollygagg for three quarters until 2LiveDrew did their thing in the 4th).

Our offense is showing the signs of its potential of turning into a machine. Right now the biggest issues around it are stupid penalties and fumbles. Think about it. I think we have had something like 8 fumbles in our last 4 games. If we hadn't fumbled the ball 4 times in firsrt half against Oregon State, the offensive production would have been much different. Same goes with the fumbles from Saturday. We have to clean up those mistakes. If we can do that the offense look even more sharper.

The game against Washington State is not going to be easy. Those guys are going to treat the UCLA game as one of their two winnable games (Washington being the other one) of the season. So they will bring everything they have on both sides of the field. Our team will need to be locked in and treat it like an elimination game. Hopefully they can put together a clean performance both on offense and defense setting up a huge senior day at the Rose Bowl. However, before we get too ahead of ourselves (even though I understand the excitement), we need to get it done on Saturday.

GO BRUINS.

Sunday Reflections: Resilient Bruins Keep Battling Away

Nestor — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:29:43 -0000

More photos » by Francis Specker - AP

Dear Coach Neuehisel: How About Sticking With Those Home Jerseys Rest Of This Season?

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Let's hit the reset button again this am. For last few weeks we have seen the UCLA beat reporters working hard to weave the storyline about how Rick Neuheisel is losing control of the UCLA football program. We have had the LA Times making a big deal out of a frustrated true freshman's twitter post. We have had Trojan alum posing as OC Register reporter running wild with unverified face book musings of a frustrated parent's as some kind of legitmate news story. Piling on top of those nonsense Rick Neuheisel and our football program have had to deal with routine classless attacks from LAT's TJ Slimers on a weekly basis.

If the UCLA football program were truly "falling apart", it would have quit a long time ago and got blown apart in Arizona or in Oregon, and walk around like zombies at the Rose Bowl during their home coming game yesterday. Yet game after game, we see these guys battling away. While the defensive tentativeness, silly penalties often make me want to throw my remote into the TV screen, these guys keep fighting back every game. They almost pulled it out last weekend when ATV had a chance to put the Bruins ahead in a heart pumping win. They got it done yesterday when Sheldon Price, who has been deservedly criticized all season long, played a huge part in the game clinching interception. Price and Moore's efforts yesterday were the hallmark of a football team, that not only appear resilient, but united under Neuheisel's leadership in Westwood:

"It's called teamwork, man, and teamwork makes the dream work," Moore said. "That two-minute drill, we do that in practice all the time. That's the camaraderie we have with one another. I mean, Sheldon ran up to me and was like, `I love you, man. I love you, Rahim.' As a team, we've been through so much, to pull out this win is a blessing."

CRN offered up the following comment on UCLA's comeback after falling behind by a score of 14-23 without our starting QB:

"To keep coming back, to keep fighting like that, is easy to preach, it's harder to get done."

And than brings me to CRN's comments on Kevin Craft:

"He's been maligned," Coach Rick Neuheisel said of Craft in a television interview afterward, "but he keeps coming back, and that's what sports is all about."

Let's get something straight first. UCLA is now Kevin Prince's team (when he is healthy). Prince showed in the first half yesterday why Ryan and others were so hyped up about him coming into this season. Moreover, Brehaut's performance during that firs half series (more on that below) also vindicated Norm Chow and other observers who were steadfast in their conviction that Brehaut isn't ready to step up this season.

As fro Craft he had a solid day as a backup. He managed the game really well and allowed Chow to stick with his regular offense. However, at the same time there were spots when Craft showed why Prince is the starting QB for this football team. He missed an open Moya on 3rd and goal. His pass to Austin was slightly under thrown. Still it felt really good to see him get the win. Just like Sheldon Prince Kevin Craft is the picture of resiliency of this football program and proof how the players in this team have bought into CRN's leadership, despite some of nonsense the local reporters have tried to blow up out of proportion this season. More after the jump.

Going back to Brehaut it CRN is making sure the kid keeps his chin up:

"I got to hold onto the ball," said Brehaut, who also fumbled in his last play against Oregon State in the previous game. "I got to have a better thought in my mind. I have to take off running, I just can't hold onto the ball like that. Coach Neuheisel told me to keep my chin up, that he is still behind me."

Neuheisel, while not blaming Brehaut entirely, said, "Competition at this level requires a great deal of concentration and a great deal of preparation. . . . I told him I still had high hopes for him, and was still going to get him more playing time, but this is harder than he thinks it is right now in terms of preparing."

Brehaut will have his time before he is done in Westwood. I think the key for him right now is to take his cues from Craft and stay plugged in with the offense every which way he can. This means total concentration not just during practices but during every film sessions and meeting with Chow and Neuheisel when they are going over the offense.

As for other positives from yesterday let's start with the offense. Ryan laid out below how Nelson Rosario has emerged as a go to receiver in our rotation. Let's hope takes advantage of his confidence to maintain his concentration and focus. His emergence is also important for another reason. CRN can also offer him up as the clear example of what happens when a young player locks in with focus to kids such as Pressley and Carroll.

We now need a RB to step up. JetSki has fumbling issues. I wonder if some of this has to do with health. He hasn't been the same since he screwed up his ankle against Cal few weeks ago. Perhaps he is thinking too much when he is out there. He still does a solid job in terms of blitz pickup but he has to protect the ball. Obviously loved watching the Wildcat package with Milton Knox. Hopefully he gets into the mix even more in the remaining games. He looks a little unsure as a RB during regular formation but perhaps that will change if he gets more carries. Oh and welcome back Mr. Coleman.

I am not going to spend more time giving credit to the OL. They are clearly coming along and point to obvious sign of improvement from this past season. Anyone out there who wants to blather about this team not improving from last season, just has to look at our OL and the kind of time it is providing our QBs. They need to get better at run blocking but I am not too worried about it. Under Palcic's coaching it is going to happen over time.

My big complaint from the offense is unfortunately the seniors. We need Logan Paulsen to wisen up. He had a huge play yesterday but once again he committed stupid penalties that hurt the team. Seems like he has hurt the team with one dumb penalty for 3 straight weeks. It just shouldn't happen from someone who is looked up as one of the senior leaders in this team.

Moving over to the defense. While Price and Moore were the obvious stars from the defensive side, lot of issues remain. Washington's offense racked up 5.95 yards per play against Bullough's defense. While Bullough did mix in some blitzes later in the game (which yielded results) they looked throughly confused and on their heels at the outset. Chis Polk ran for 132 yards in 15 carries against our front 7 tearing them up every time he was touching the ball. Polk almost made it look too easy and I have to wonder why Sarkasian (the so called young offensive genius) didn't stick with the running game to bloody up our defense.

The huge problem right now with our base 4-3 is that our front-4 is not generating much pressure on their own. Brian Price is a monster but he is not getting much help from the other three guys. So it's a matter of deciding when to bring in our LBs or SS to rattle the opposing QB. That depends on Bullough thoroughly scouting the offensive schemes and the tendencies of the opposing QBs. Once again I was surprised why we waited long to bring pressure on Locker who clearly looked uncomfortable when he got a little heat. In fact one of his "sacks" was pretty much Jim Evertesque when he went down sensing Datone Jones around him.

As for ATV he got burned couple of times yesterday. I think that has to do with his health. He has been dealing with a dislocated toe he suffered few weeks ago. While he is all right, he is clearly not 100 percent. Same goes for Reggie Carter who even though played a decent game yesterday doesn't look 100 percent either. So, I think it goes back to Chuck Bullough making sure his defense doesn't look predictable when they come out of the game.

That brings me up to the topic of James Washington, the commentator. I am kind of sick and tired of the cheap shots that I often see hurled towards James here on BN and other places. People need to cut that nonsense out. I understand that James's voice, words choice are often not perfect for TV. I think he knows that too. Well many would say that about the Big Red during his early years of broadcasting career.

I can sense in listening to James that he is making an effort to get better. If you listen to him very closely, he offers some incredibly valuable insights based on his observations from practice. Particularly he is frank and candid. Multiple times yesterday he called out Chuck Bullough for not scheming aggressively and not bringing pressure to rattle Jake Locker. That doesn't happen from vanilla, boiler plate commentators who are afraid to offer up criticisms of coaches because of fear of losing access.

Listening to him, I get to hear an impassioned Bruin who loves everything about blue and gold, and who is offering his exact words he would offer up to young defensive back in blue and gold. James is doing all right and in many ways I find him as enjoyable as listening as Petros Papadakis when commenting on Pac-10 football games. So let's cut the cheap shots out against James Washington and reserve them for morons like David Norrie who is somehow ashamed to let out his UCLA colors while offering up commentary.

Anyway, back to our game. The season is clearly alive. However, right now on BN we need to make this week all about Washington State. We can't afford to get caught up in bowl projections because all of that will be moot if we don't get it done in Palouse which has always been a brutal place for our Bruins. I hope our fanbase and our team will be locked into next weekend's game like it's an NCAA tourney game. We need it badly. We will have to wait to see the word on Kevin Prince. The word from yesterday was that he was being treated for concussion like syndrome. Prince was feeling all right and was gracious towards Donald Butler:

Prince, who sat out four weeks this season because of a fractured jaw, said, "I remember diving and then I was on the ground and not feeling too good. I'm feeling all right now. As far as I know, it was a perfectly legal hit."

Hopefully he will be ready to go at practices and pick up on the same rhythm and total command he was in of our offense. It looked like things have slowed down for him a little as he was going to his secondary receivers.

Lastly, speaking of gracious, CRN had this to say after the game:

UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel stepped to the microphone as he does after every home game, and for the first time in weeks, he was welcomed with cheers.

His voice cracked, his hair messed, Neuheisel made a plea to all those who have jumped ship as one loss became five.

"For those of you who jumped off the bandwagon, I understand," Neuheisel yelled to UCLA's embattled fans. "I'm just asking you to get back on."

I think he is being too kind. I don't really want bandwagoning losers supporting our team, especially those who are openly talking about "throwing ... away" that last regular season game. We don't need those kind of "Bruins" here on BN.

If we can get Prince to come out in the same form and take care of business, we are going to find ourselves in pretty good shape on the eve of our last home game of the season. For now though, we just need to worry about Washington State and hope the team keeps building on the resilient spirit they have shown the entire season. Meanwhile, let's enjoy the ride.

GO BRUINS.

Grading the Game

John Berkowitz — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:49:57 -0000

More photos » by Francis Specker - AP

3 days ago: Washington quarterback Jake Locker, center, is grabbed from behind by UCLA's Reggie Carter in the second half of a NCAA college football game in Pasadena, Calif. on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009. UCLA won 24-23. (AP Photo/Francis Specker)

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Quarterback

Jake had a serviceable day but to me he seemed a little off most of the game. The interception to end the game is completely on him. Jake had a few designed running plays but didn't break anything big. You could tell the leg was a little uncomfortable and he didn't have all of his speed. Even without all his speed he was the most mobie QB on the field. Jake had a couple of nice TD throws but he didn't lead his team to enough points in the red zone to win the game.

Grade C plus

Running back

Chris Polk picked up 132 yards on only 15 carries. He had 102 on 7 carries in the first half which makes you wonder why Washington didn't run the ball more. Sark seemed to get pass happy pretty early in this one which we will talk about later. Johri Fogerson saw more action than usual and had four receptions. Getting back to Polk this was a game he should have had 25 or more carries in. If the Washington staff commits to that they end up winning the game.

Grade A minus

Wide Receivers

Jermaine Kearse had the best night of his career with seven catches an two TD's. Devin Aguilar was also his steady self with six receptions. James Johnson had an early drop and wasn't much of a factor but had some nice kickoff returns. D'Andre Goodwin continues to not be factor. Kavario Middleton isn't being used in a way we would really like to see. For some reason the coaches aren't drifting him down the middle.

Grade B Minus

Offensive Line

Another serviceable game from this unit who played well enough to beat UCLA. Ossai and Kelemete did not start the game because they were late for a meeting last week. Ossai actually didn't end up playing much while Kelemete missed a series and played the rest of the way.

B minus

Defensive Line

Cameron Elisara was missed on the inside. Talia Chrichton and Andru Pulu really shouldn't be on the field. Daniel Teo Nesheim was double and triple teamed on the inside and out. Prince and Craft had all day to throw. I counted 12 seconds without pressure on one of Craft's pass plays. The Huskies did a nice job stopping the run but the sacks and pressure weren't there.

Grade F

Linebackers

Butler and Foster had good games but even though EJ Savannah has had a quiet season you do realize that it is a different unit out there when he is missing which doesn't bode well for next season with butler and EJ graduating. Butler knocked Price out of the game with a concussion late in the first half on an unintnetional helmet to helmet blow.

Grad B

Secondary

It wasn't a pretty game for these guys but when QB's are getting over six seconds the throw the ball without feeling pressure your DB's are not going to be able to make up for that. Jason Wells was a little rusty in his return but he had an interception and some thumping tackles. Trufant was picked on most of the night it seemed but he also picked up an interception. Nate Williams was silent again for the most part and i didn't remember seeing Anthony Boyles.

Grade D

Special Teams

Better return game than previous games. A lapse in kick coverage on one kickoff that jumpstarted a UCLA drive. a missed 38 yard FG that could have give Washington the win.

Grade C

Coaching

The first thing Steve Sarkisian needs to do in the off season is give control of playing calling to somebody else because he has looked terrible ever since the Notre Dame game. Clock management? He doesn't seem to have a concept of that. UW was headed for disaster in that area in the last two minutes of the game. Only a Locker interception took that off his hands.

Another big question is why didn't Washington call a timeout so the Austin TD in the third quarter could be reviewed? That was a pretty questionable reception and you have to wonder why the Pac 10 replay officials didn't do it anyway?

Why didn't Washington run the ball more? Your star running back is averaging 8.8 yards per carry and you only give him the ball 15 times? We all could see some adjustments in the second half on UCLA's part but Sark went pass happy early when he should have kept giving it to Polk. A cardinal rule in football is keep running the ball until they can figure out how to stop you. Sark ignored that rule and it was a major contributing factor to this defeat.

Why isn't Jake Locker running the ball more? He wasn't at 100% but when he does runearly it really puts pressure on the defense that opens up more stuff down field. I am a fan of the pro set offense but Sark has failed to really take advantage of what makes Jake special this season.

Play calling in the red zone as usual was questionable. Washington tried on more than one occasion to simply be cute rather than continue powering the ball up the middle which seemed to be a Bruin weakness to take advantage of. UW doesn't seem to have a clue on playing pwer football down close. Once again a potential weapon in Paul Homer is ignored.

On the defensive side of the field you have to wonder why Nick Holt refuses to load up one side of the defense and go after the QB? He did it once last night and it was one the only sack of the game. Nick looks agressive on the sidelines but his defensive play calls are pure Kent Baer. UW needs to take more chances to put an offense on their heals.

Another question is what happened to Darion Jones? Is he injured and I didn't miss it? Crichton and Pulu were seriously overmatched at the ends all night. No way these two should be regulars on the field at this point of their careers.

Youth obviously is a blessing and a problem for this team. 18 of 22 starters were underclassmen yesterday. You can honestly see that the team is making progress compared to the last two seasons but that progress should have included wins over Notre Dame, ASU, and now UCLA. Perhaps youth is a blessing and a problem with this coaching staff too. A steadier hand at the throttles and realistically this team is 6-3 rather than 3-6.

Grade D