Bruins Turn It Around

Say hello to the blue-collar Bruins, a UCLA team built around veteran linemen, no-name ballcarriers and a senior quarterback with the life experiences of a longshoreman.

And if the opener against No. 19 Colorado State on Saturday night is an indication, UCLA gets the job done until the whistle blows.

The Bruins scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns in the span of 64 seconds, then thwarted a two-point conversion that could have tied the score in the last two minutes to win, 30-19, before 58,078 at the Rose Bowl.

Colorado State quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt was smothered on an option run, fumbled and Bruin safety Ben Emanuel scooped up the ball and ran 89 yards for two points. UCLA scored again with a minute to go, with Manuel White Jr. bulling 16 yards for a touchdown.

There was a lot of credit to go around, but begin with crediting UCLA Coach Bob Toledo with guts. He promised freshman Drew Olson and delivered.

Oh, so did Olson.

The freshman quarterback from Piedmont entered in the third quarter with UCLA trailing, 13-7, and had some dicey moments--nearly throwing an interception on one play and getting flustered and calling timeout before another.

But on his second series, this one early in the fourth quarter, Olson directed a 52-yard scoring drive capped by a one-yard run by Akil Harris that put UCLA ahead, 14-13.

Ram running back Cecil Sapp fumbled moments later after a vicious hit by cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. and defensive end Rusty Williams recovered. Senior Cory Paus, who had played credibly until Olson’s appearance, returned at quarterback and handed the ball to White, who raced 21 yards for a touchdown and 21-13 lead with 8:48 to play.

Paus was 12 of 23 for 142 yards. Olson was two of three for 24.

“Cory did an excellent job and Drew played with an air of confidence,” Toledo said.

But ultimately, it wasn’t about whether Paus or Olson was at quarterback.

UCLA (1-0), a team involved in an alarming string of off-the-field brawls in the last two years, showed it saved plenty of fight for the game, holding Colorado State (2-1) to 179 yards rushing and 98 yards passing.

Yet the Rams appeared poised to deliver the knockout blow late in the third quarter, driving with a 13-7 lead. But Williams pressured Van Pelt into throwing a wobbly pass that was intercepted by linebacker Brandon Chillar at the UCLA seven-yard line.

The Bruins came in knowing they had to belt Van Pelt and rap Sapp. And neither one did much damage until the last Ram drive, an 80-yard scoring march capped by Van Pelt’s seven-yard keeper with 1:32 to play.

“Our defensive line dominated,” Manning said. “That was the story of the game.”

Thirteen freshmen and redshirt freshmen made their debuts, and they improved as the game wore on. In addition to Olson, safety Jarrad Page, center Mike McCloskey and running backs Tyler Ebell, Wendell Mathis and J.D. Groves played well.

“I thought after the first half, a young team would crack, but we didn’t,” Toledo said.

So consider UCLA a work in progress. The Bruins will go back to practice Monday, with the understanding that better performances will be necessary in Pacific 10 Conference games.

But for starters, this one felt good.

UCLA had the longest off-season in the nation, nine months to the day between games. And early on, playing well was as difficult as childbirth.

Harris fumbled the opening kickoff, then after UCLA recovered and had to punt three plays later, Harris forgot he was on the punt team and nearly cost the Bruins a delay-of-game penalty.

Minutes later, after a field goal gave Colorado State a 3-0 lead, Harris was replaced by Manning on the kick return. And Ebell got the next carry at tailback, squirting two yards for UCLA’s initial first down.

But Toledo didn’t hold out Harris for long. The junior had 94 yards in 13 carries. White added 52 yards in 11 carries and the Bruins rushed for 215 yards.

UCLA punted on its three first-quarter possessions and a 55-yard return by Dexter Wynn set up a seven-yard touchdown pass from Sapp to tight end Joel Dreessen on the first play of the second quarter for a 10-0 advantage.

It was the first career pass by Sapp, a senior, and it came while wearing borrowed shoulder pads. He left his set in his locker at Fort Collins, not noticing until he reached the Rose Bowl.

The trick play was the wakeup call UCLA needed. The Bruins answered in four plays, including a catch by White for eight yards, a 23-yard grab by tight end Mike Seidman and a reverse by receiver Junior Taylor, who scampered 49 yards for a touchdown.

It was the first time Taylor, a freshman who sat out last season because he was academically ineligible, touched the ball. Paus made the key block, tying up safety David Vickers long enough for Taylor to squeeze into the secondary and score the first offensive touchdown by a UCLA true freshman since DeShaun Foster scored four against USC in 1998.

A Ram field goal after Wynn intercepted a pass at the Bruin 33 that Paus threw from the end zone made the score 13-7. UCLA went on its most sustained march of the half, going 59 yards in 13 plays, but Chris Griffith missed badly on a 41-yard field goal.

Paus came out firing in the second half, completing his first five passes during a 79-yard drive. But a third-down toss was broken up by Steve Tufte and Griffith missed another field goal, this one from 32 yards.

All was forgiven after the late rally, which gave UCLA its fifth consecutive victory in an opener, its fourth against a Top 25 opponent.

“By looking at the scene here, you’d think we’d won the Super Bowl,” said tackle Mike Saffer, surveying the jubilant locker room. “It’s just nice to get everything off our shoulders.”

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KEYS TO THE GAME

Steve Henson’s keys to the game and how the Bruins matched up:

1. Recognizing and picking up Colorado State blitzes: UCLA quarterback Cory Paus did an excellent job of calling audibles and was rarely pressured. Tight end Mike Seidman was forced to block rather than run routes much of the game but had a 23-yard reception in the second quarter.

2. Containing scrambling Ram quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt: The Bruins smothered him in the first half as he rushed for four yards in seven carries. In the third quarter Van Pelt successfully ran several options but still couldn’t break free when scrambling.

3. Avoiding typical first-game mistakes against an opponent that had played two games: The Bruins fumbled two kickoffs and a snap in the first half, but recovered them all. A roughing-the-kicker penalty extended a Colorado State drive with two minutes left in the half. In the second half it was difficult to tell which team was playing in its opener.