UCLA Bruins 4-5 Overall (1-5 Conference)

This Week’s Score: UCLA 24 – Washington 23

Next Week’s Opponent: @Washington State

UCLA will NOT go winless in the conference!

That wasn’t too big of a concern with Washington State coming up this week, but it is still good to get the win out of the way.

For most of the season, UCLA’s offense hasn’t given the defense and the team a chance to win, and the Bruins have stock-piled the in-conference losses because of it. This Saturday, the offense seemed to be TRYING to give the game away, but the defense wouldn’t allow it in hanging on for the win.

FIVE turnovers? UCLA simply couldn’t hang on to the ball on Saturday with Terrence Austin, Richard Brehaut, and Jonathan Franklin all losing the ball on fumbles. The Bruins fumbled three other times in the game as well, but recovered those. Kevin Prince and Kevin Craft each threw an interception to add to the turnover woes.

Craft took over for Prince after Prince left the game with an injury late in the first half on a helmet-to-helmet hit. Both quarterbacks had good days, with Prince going 13/17 for 212 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT and Craft going 10/14 for 159 yards with a TD and an INT as well.

The Bruins defense didn’t have much of an answer for Chris Polk or Jermaine Kearse, but they played the bend-don’t-break to perfection, forcing Washington to settle for four FG tries, including one miss in the fourth quarter that ended up deciding the game.

How incredible is Rahim Moore? With Jake Locker marching the Huskies into Bruins territory with time winding down, Moore saved the game with an interception; the Bruins’ only forced turnover of the game. 2nd and 3 on the UCLA 46 with all three time outs, Washington was looking primed to steal this one late. Moore’s interception brought his season tally to eight, tied with Clemson’s DeAndre McDaniel for tops in the country.

It was ugly – very ugly – but a win is a win, and the Bruins were in dire need of one. They should get another this week against Washington State, and then they come home for a key game against Arizona State for bowl eligibility.

Keep in mind that bowl eligibility doesn’t guarantee a bowl; the conference already has six bowl-eligible teams. That said, a six win season and three wins in conference after an 0-5 start would certainly be nothing to sneeze at.

UCLA Bruins 3-1 Overall (0-1 Conference)

This Week’s Score: Stanford 24 – UCLA 16

Next Week’s Opponent: Oregon

After a humbling loss in Stanford, UCLA will return to the Rose Bowl and try and regroup against an Oregon team that has been red-hot of late, but is also decimated with injuries.

While the loss to Stanford does tell us that UCLA isn’t quite there yet in terms of being a major contender in the conference, it doesn’t really tell us how far away they are. Stanford is clearly playing at a high level right now on both sides of the ball, so there is no shame in losing to a team like this on the road.

That said, it did open up some new questions on defense. Andrew Luck and Toby Gerhart both had outstanding days, and while that has a lot to do with their talent level and the way they’ve been playing lately, it just didn’t look like the shutdown UCLA defense that we are used to seeing. The Bruins will have to be better defensively if they are going to stand any chance in conference play this year.

On the offensive side of the ball, hats off to Kevin Craft. He clearly doesn’t have the skill set that Kevin Prince does, but he did a good job managing the game Saturday, completing 64.7% of his passes with no interceptions while spreading the ball around to nine different receivers. Prince will take back over this week, and should follow Craft’s example and get as many players on offense involved as possible  to keep Oregon guessing.

Jonathan Franklin didn’t look bad in racking up 58 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries, but down 14-3 early in the second quarter, the offense had to start throwing the ball.

The Oregon Ducks come into town ripe to be upset. Their two top cornerbacks are injured, QB Jeremiah Masoli is doubtful, and they haven’t played on the road in over a month. If the defense steps up and Kevin Prince hasn’t missed a step, a Bruins victory isn’t out of the question.

The Tennessee upset was a very nice win for the program, but this one would be even bigger if they could pull it off.

Oregon Ducks (4-1) vs. UCLA Bruins (3-1)
Saturday, October 10, 12:30 PM PST
Las Vegas Favorite: Oregon -3.5
*AllPac10 Game of the Week*

Sam’s Take (25 – 12):

Oregon has been firing on all cylinders for the last two weeks, but this Saturday’s game is not taking place in the friendly confines of Autzen Stadium. Remember the last time Oregon played a road game?

The Ducks may have to overcome more than just a rowdy Rose Bowl crowd, as it remains to be seen if QB Jeremiah Masoli can play Saturday. Nate Costa certainly has the tools to be successful, but can he lead the Ducks to a meaningful win in his first career start (especially on the road)? The Ducks will also be without CB Willie Glasper, who was supposed to fill the void left by Walter Thurmond III. Now the Ducks are without their two best corners for the rest of the season, and Norm Chow will likely test the secondary early in the game.

Chow may have the services of starting QB Kevin Prince (broken jaw), who has recently resumed practicing with the first team offense. Prince can make all of the deep throws that Kevin Craft can’t, which means there should be plenty of opportunities for the Bruin receivers against the inexperienced Oregon corners.

I believe there are many reasons to pick the upset here, but something tells me Oregon will find a way. Costa understands Chip Kelly’s system well, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see him flourish (just as LaMichael James has been great at RB in place of Blount). The UCLA run defense is good, but Stanford proved that it is not impenetrable. I also love the way Oregon’s defensive front seven is playing, so Prince (or Craft) may be in for a very long day if the pass rush looks like it has over the past couple of weeks.

I see the resilient Ducks pulling this one out in Pasadena.

Prediction: Oregon 30 – UCLA 24

Oregon Player to Keep an Eye On: TE Ed Dickson – Whether Costa or Masoli plays Saturday; #83 should be a feature part of the passing game.

UCLA Player to Keep an Eye On: DE Korey Bosworth - Bosworth will be a key to disrupting the timing of Oregon’s misdirection spread attack.

Dave’s Take (29 – 8):

For the Halloween matchup between the USC Trojans and the Oregon Ducks to be the Pac-10 Game of the Year that it is currently looking like it might be, both teams are going to have to actually get there without anymore missteps; and the first challenge for the Ducks comes this Saturday in UCLA.

UCLA’s generally stout defense was exposed last Saturday, especially on the ground; playing against Toby Gerhart can do that to defenses. While there isn’t a whole lot of doubt that the Bruins defense is strong, Luck and Gerhart’s big days are definitely cause for concern; how will the D hold up against stronger offenses? San Diego State, Kansas State, and even Tennessee (with Crompton at the helm) didn’t really give us a good indication.

Oregon’s offense has found its groove, but now Jeremiah Masoli’s status is in question, and a defense like UCLA’s on the road isn’t the first start I want to see Nate Costa get as a Ducks fan. Heading back on the road for the first time in over a month is hard enough; doing so completely demolished by injuries (Glasper, Thurmond III) is even worse.

With the return of Kevin Prince and home field advantage, the Bruins will be extremely focused and geared up for the upset. Beating Oregon would help them avoid falling to 0-2 in the conference and would also establish their presence in the conference.

Even with the injuries, I think Oregon has what it takes to win this game. What it really comes down to is mental toughness, something the Ducks didn’t show a whole lot of the last time they headed out on the road. I’m going to trust them to get the job done this time around; but it’ll come down to the wire.

Prediction: Oregon 27 – UCLA 23

UCLA Bruins (3-0) vs. Stanford Cardinal (3-1)
Saturday, October 3, 12:30 PM PST
Las Vegas Favorite: Stanford -5.5

Sam’s Take (22 – 10):

While the USC-CAL game will get all the publicity, a second game in the Bay Area may be just as important in the Pac-10 race. Saturday’s match up in Palo Alto will feature the conference’s current first place team (Stanford, 3-1, 2-0) and the league’s only undefeated team (UCLA, 3-0, 0-0).

While there is a lot to like about both the Bruins and Cardinal, I see a discrepancy at the quarterback position. Stanford QB Andrew Luck is not being asked to do much because of RB Toby Gerhart’s phenomenal production, but the redshirt freshman has been very impressive nonetheless. Luck has delivered the ball on time and accurately so far in ’09, and his athleticism makes him a threat to run at any time. UCLA’s outstanding defense will be his stiffest test of the season, but I believe Luck’s poise will continue to shine in this game.

UCLA will counter with experienced (and much maligned) QB Kevin Craft. Many were hoping to see a battle of highly regarded freshmen QBs this Saturday (Kevin Prince vs. Andrew Luck), but instead the Bruins will rely on last year’s starter once again. Craft played a solid game against K-State and he actually played one of his better games from ’08 against the Cardinal. Now, he will have to prove that he can win a big game on the road.

I expect both defense to play well, but I think Stanford will generate a few turnovers and then turn towards Gerhart and Luck to do the rest.

Prediction: Stanford 28 – UCLA 23

UCLA Player to Keep an Eye On: LB Reggie Carter - Carter will be the key to stopping Gerhart, and this has the potential to be the most exciting one-on-one match up in the conference this season.

Stanford Player to Keep an Eye On: WR Chris Owusu - What more needs to be said about this guy? Kick to him at your own risk Rick Neuheisel, because he already has 3 TD returns, and his electric speed can change the course of a game.

Dave’s Take (25 – 7):

With a win this week, Stanford can keep their sole possession of first place in the Pac-10; a win for UCLA would keep their undefeated streak alive.

The Bruins defense is extremely tough, and will keep them in just about every game they play. That said, they haven’t faced an offense as good as Stanford’s yet; even Tennessee’s offense leaves plenty to be desired with Jonathan Crompton at the helm. Toby Gerhart is an outstanding back, Andrew Luck is a great game manager that can beat you with his arms and legs, and Ryan Whalen and Chris Owusu are both extremely dangerous on the outside.

With Kevin Craft under center, I just don’t trust UCLA to be mistake free and versatile on offense. Stanford’s defense is pretty strong, as made clear last week in shutting down the powerful Jake Locker/Chris Polk tandem. Perhaps I’m too hard on the guy, but I can’t be the only one; are UCLA fans really excited about Kevin Craft on the road?

I just think this is a bad matchup for UCLA. They’ve got a great defense, but Stanford isn’t really the type of team that shoots themselves in the foot on offense; they run the ball well and Andrew Luck has proven to be very smart with the football. Even if the defense has a nice day, I still think UCLA will have to make plays through the air without turning the ball over in order to win; something I don’t think Kevin Craft will be able to do.

Prediction: Stanford 24 – UCLA 13

UCLA Bruins 3-0 Overall (0-0 Conference)

This Week’s Score: UCLA 23 – Kansas State 9

Next Week’s Opponent: BYE

I know I keep playing this game, but think back to before the season started. Suppose I told you that heading into week four, two teams in the Pac-10 were going to be 3-0, and both were in California.

I would have been telling you the truth. But who’d have penciled in UCLA to be the undefeated team in Southern California?

UCLA heads into their bye week a perfect 3-0, highlighted of course by their upset win in Tennessee. With Kevin Prince sidelined with a broken jaw, UCLA ran a nice safe offense against Kansas State and let their defense do the work. The Bruins have had at least two interceptions in all three of their contests this season, kept alive last Saturday by Alterraun Verner’s two picks.

While I again don’t claim to know what is best for the team over Rick Neuheisel (who clearly does), I was personally not thrilled at all to see Kevin Craft under center for the Bruins Saturday. He didn’t do much to prove me wrong either; his 13/24, 186 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT day wasn’t all that bad, but against Kansas State, it didn’t do anything to lead me to believe he’s ready to successfully hold the fort down until Prince gets back.

Jonathan Franklin built on his impressive effort against Tennessee, this time rushing for 119 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. He and Derrick Coleman (who also had a nice day with 46 yards on eight carries) will be leaned on heavily for the rest of the season, but even more so in Prince’s absence.

I hate to be so hard on Kevin Craft, but I watched enough UCLA games last year to have the image of him throwing a horrible interception and being scolded by Neuheisal for it permanently burned into my skull. When UCLA heads into Stanford to start conference play a week from Saturday, can you really trust him to make plays when the offense needs it, and more importantly to NOT TURN THE BALL OVER?

We don’t know much about Richard Brehaut, but we know plenty about Kevin Craft. I’d love to see Brehaut get a look over the next week and a half, but Saturday’s game told us which direction Neuheisel is leaning. He undoubtedly knows better than I do; but if Craft starts that game and implodes, it’ll be hard not to say I told you so.

But for now, no need to stress about that; enjoy your week off Bruin fans, and congrats on the excellent start.

Kansas State (1-1) vs. UCLA Bruins (2-0)
Saturday, September 19, 7:15 PM PST
Las Vegas Favorite: UCLA -12.5

Sam’s Take (14 – 4):

The UCLA Bruins took a big step with the win in Knoxville last Saturday, but now they must find a way to carry the momentum for the next few weeks without starting QB Kevin Prince. The likely replacement for Prince will be true freshman Richard Brehaut, but Kevin Craft has also practiced with the first team this week.

While Brehaut certainly has talent, the Bruins will probably not ask him to do much. This team can win with defense, special teams, and a solid running game, and I expect that to be the recipe for victory this week against Kansas State.

Coach Rick Neuheisel has suspended four players for the K-State game, including starting cornerback Courtney Viney. Still, even with all of the injuries and distractions I foresee a relatively comfortable win for the Bruins.

Bill Snyder will get his Wildcats back to national prominence (when he fielded teams with superstars like Ell Roberson and Darren Sproles in the early part of the decade), but they are not even close right now. Snyder’s decision to return to Manhattan this season excited KSU fans, but with a bad performance against Massachusetts and an inexplicable loss to UL Lafayette, the honeymoon period seems to be over.

I look for the Bruins D to be utterly dominant, while tailbacks Jonathan Franklin and Derrick Coleman should carry the offense.

Prediction: UCLA 28 – Kansas State 13

Kansas State Player to Keep an Eye On: QB Carson Coffman – Coffman has been shaky so far, and was benched briefly in the first half of the loss to UL Lafayette. Nonetheless, he will remain the K-State quarterback and must be MUCH better against the Bruins than what he has shown through two games.

UCLA Player to Keep an Eye On: CB Sheldon Price - Price is a true freshman filling in for the suspended Viney (who was filling in for the injured Hester). His play will be interesting to watch, as it will give us some indication of how deep the Bruins are at corner.

Dave’s Take (14 – 4):

To carry the momentum of the Tennessee win back home and turn it into a three game winning streak, UCLA will need to avoid the slow start that they had against the Aztecs in their season opener.

With Kevin Prince out for 3-4 weeks with a broken jaw, it will be up to either Richard Brehaut or Kevin Craft (or perhaps a bit of both) to keep things afloat. Personally, I think playing Craft would be a mistake; so many good things have happened here in 2009 that sending Craft back out there would just bring back all of the visions of 2008’s struggles. But maybe I’m just being dramatic, and I’m sure Rick Neuheisel has a much better idea of what’s best for the team than I do.

If they can avoid the slow start they had against San Diego State, it shouldn’t matter who’s at quarterback; they should be able to win this game on running the football, defense, and special teams. Kansas State will have a lot of trouble finding the endzone on offense. Defensively they do have some good athletes, and if Kevin Craft is in there and makes the same bad decisions he did last year, it could spell trouble.

In the end, I don’t expect the Bruins to ask their quarterback to do too much; just hand off the ball and ultra-safe passes, and let the defense and special teams do the rest. UCLA should come out on top here, but if they suffer from a letdown and fall behind early, this one could be dangerous.

Prediction: UCLA 20 – Kansas State 10

UCLA Bruins 2-0 Overall (0-0 Conference)

This Week’s Score: UCLA 19 – Tennessee 15

Next Week’s Opponent: Kansas State

This was an outstanding win for UCLA and the Pac-10 conference. The Bruins played in one of the most hostile environments in all of college football and beat a team that was looking for revenge and oozing with confidence. Rick Neuheisel’s infectious personality is starting to manifest itself within this UCLA football team.

The win was especially impressive when you consider all of the young, inexperienced players that Neuheisel used in Knoxville. There will be doubters who believe that UT QB Jonathan Crompton had as much to do with the Bruins success as anything else (he threw 3 INTs), but Chuck Bullough’s D was tremendous at all three levels.

The D-line penetrated Tennessee’s massive offensive line all day, and not just Brian Price. The play of other d-lineman like Bosworth, Holmes, and Jones made life miserable for the Vols. When running gaps did open, Reggie Carter and the linebackers quickly closed them. As good as the front seven was, the secondary was lights out. Rahim Moore is playing at a super-human level (5 INTs in two games, two against Tenn) and teams shouldn’t even bother looking Alterraun Verner’s way. I mentioned Courtney Viney as the player to keep an eye on for UCLA, and he stepped up huge at the other CB spot.

For those people who labeled the Bruins as a soft team, this game should help to erase that sentiment.

Unfortunately, the Bruins big win came with some bad news. QB Kevin Prince is expected to miss 3-4 weeks after suffering a fractured jaw on a third down play in the endzone at the end of the game.

It’s a shame that Prince will miss time considering his performance Saturday. What can I say about the Bruins freshman QB? Prince showed heart, resiliency, and guts while making very few errors (11/23 101 yds 1 TD, 0 INTS). Did he look like a freshman at times? Absolutely. Was he perfect? Not even close. But make no mistake about it; Prince is a budding star who grew up a lot in Knoxville, and hopefully he makes it back soon.

Now, it is very important that the Bruins don’t lose momentum with Richard Brehaut or Kevin Craft in the game. This team can win with defense, special teams, and a solid run game, but the QBs must limit mistakes.

My only warning for UCLA: Remember BYU. One week after beating the Vols last year, disaster struck in the form of a 59-0 beat down at the hands of the Cougars. Neuheisel must make sure to have his young team ready for a hungry Kansas State squad.

UCLA Bruins 1-0 Overall (0-0 Conference)

This Week’s Score: UCLA 33 – San Diego State 14

Next Week’s Opponent: @Tennessee

Sam’s Take:

UCLA started the 2009 season in terrible fashion (down 14-3 to start), but responded well while getting contributions from a variety of exciting new players.

QB Kevin Prince looked like a freshman making his first start, finishing 18-29 for 176 yards passing with one touchdown and two interceptions. SDSU DC Rocky Long threw a lot of looks at Prince, and I was impressed with how he handled himself for the most part. I loved the power running of Derrick Coleman as well as the speed of Jonathan Franklin, and the compact style of Milton Knox should provide a different dimension for the run game in ’09.

On defense, Rahim Moore was tremendous for the entire game and picked off three Ryan Lindley passes. Obviously the defense did not start well out of the gate, but once they settled down it became clear that this unit has the potential to be special in 2009. Price, Carter, and Verner looked good as usual, but the injury to Hester is an absolute depth killer at corner.

With a solid win to begin the year, UCLA will now make the trip to Neyland Stadium to take on Lane Kiffin’s upstart Vols. Tennessee looked good this weekend, so a win in a hostile SEC stadium would be huge for the Bruins.

Dave’s Take:

Defense, defense, defense. After getting caught flat footed on the first two drives of the game (including inexplicably allowing WR Vincent Brown to get behind everyone on the second drive leading to a 78-yard touchdown pass), the Bruins settled down and completely shut down the Aztecs for the rest of the game.

Rahim Moore’s three interceptions led the way on defense, and Alterraun Verner capped off a nice day with a field goal block return for a touchdown. The defense was every bit as good as advertised save the first two drives of the game.

Kevin Prince was far from perfect in his debut, but regardless of the final line, he was a noticeable upgrade over Kevin Craft. He’ll have to be better next week for UCLA to have a shot at beating Tennessee, but either way it will be a great experience for him to get a hostile road environment under his belt before Pac-10 play begins.

Derrick Coleman’s big day set the tone for a nice day on the ground for UCLA, racking up 69 yards and a touchdown on only four carries. All things considered, it was a nice opener for UCLA, and the final score wasn’t really indicative of how much the Bruins controlled this game from the second quarter on.

Head coach Rick Neuheisel and offensive coordinator Norm Chow have made it quite clear so far that the latter is a better option. Prince ended spring practice atop the depth chart. Clearly, incumbency has not helped the senior starter from last season. In fact, Craft may not even win the backup role.

In April, Richard Brehaut, a 6-2 205 pound true freshman outperformed Craft decisively. Neuheisel recruited both Prince and Brehaut for Norm Chow’s system. It is becoming evident that Neuheisel and Chow were embarrassed by last year’s anemic offense and are ready to start a new era at quarterback for the Bruins.

Kevin Prince aims to fire

Kevin Prince spent most of 2008 with the practice squad, but he also dressed for every game including all five road trips. This gave him a front row seat to watch one of the worst offenses in college football last year. As Kevin Craft struggled on the field, Kevin Prince meticulously studied Norm Chow’s pro-style offense and impressed the coaching staff in the process.

His redshirt year in 2008 allows him four full years of eligibility and he will have a chance to go the distance as a starter if he continues to play as well as he did during the spring. At 6-2 225 pounds, Prince is solidly built for a freshman and he might need all of that bulk since the offensive line did not help Craft stay on his feet for most of last season.

Prince showed great maturity taking snaps with the first team offense, and more importantly, he is a tireless worker. The word out of Westwood is that Prince stays after practice routinely in order to throw, pick Chow’s brain with questions, and then throw some more. Prince also has a very live arm, probably the best of all the Bruin quarterbacks; combine all of these factors and it’s pretty clear to see why he was named the starter in April.

Prince’s biggest obstacle will be overcoming his inexperience. He played his high school ball at Crespi in Encino, CA where the offense was predominantly shotgun-based. While he has progressed wonderfully under center since joining the Bruins, playing against his first few Pac-10 defenses will be a test. The learning curve will be steep, but the strong-armed Prince appears game.

As for the backups, Richard Brehaut is the highest rated quarterback out of high school that the Bruins have had on the roster in a while. He fielded offers from numerous high-profile programs around the country but opted to try and help return the Neuheisel-led Bruins back to national prominence.

Brehaut is a former Elite 11 high school quarterback, and was California’s second highest rated QB in the class of 2009 behind only USC’s Matt Barkley. The 6-2 205 pound product out of Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga, CA possesses a quick release and has nice zip on his throws. He has already demonstrated great leadership and competitiveness since arriving on campus at UCLA.

Kevin Craft is of course the other option at QB for the Bruins. His statistics from last season cannot be described as anything other than poor. He threw for 2,341 yards with seven TDs and a school-record 20 INTs. He was sacked 32 times as well.

It wasn’t all Craft’s fault, but his inability to improve throughout the season makes it difficult to believe that he can become an efficient starter in the Pac-10. He may be the primary backup to start the season because of his experience, but Brehaut will push him throughout 2009 and could eventually supplant him as the No.2.

My Take:

The amount of skill-position talent that Rick Neuheisel has already brought to UCLA is going to pay off for these QB’s in the future; I just don’t think the future is now. Everything I have heard about Prince is positive and his demeanor makes me think he won’t freak out if things go south out of the gate for UCLA.

The most important thing to watch this year for the QB’s in Westwood is how they finish. As long as Prince ends the year well, that will be the best thing any Bruin fan could ask for. I personally think Brehaut is the future. He is a legitimate pro-style prospect that Norm Chow could really mold into a star. Neuheisel may redshirt him, but I don’t think he trusts Craft enough as the only backup.