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6
UCLA
Last year the Bruins blew it early—and they
haven't forgotten. This time out, with a quarterback
of renown, they vow to come up
roses
| |
Farmer, who hones his talents on the volleyball court at
Pauley Pavilion, will be McNown's top
target.
(Jed Jacobsohn/Allsport)
| The mood
of a football program is often found on the backs of
T-shirts. This off-season in Westwood, T's boasting of the
Bruins' Cotton Bowl victory last New Year's Day were
scarce, as were any that touted their
10-game winning streak to end the season. No, the most popular
shirt among Bruins players this summer carried a simple
message: UNFINISHED
BUSINESS.
In the 1997 opener against Washington State, UCLA was
stopped just short of the goal line with less than three
minutes to play and lost 37-34. (When the Bruins wound up
tying the Cougars for the
Pac-10 championship, that failure was the tiebreaker that kept
UCLA from the
Rose Bowl and any shot at the national title.) A week later
UCLA came up short again, losing 30-24 to Peyton Manning and
Tennessee despite a furious second-half
rally.
"Not a day goes by where I don't think about
Washington State and Tennessee," says Brendon
Ayanbadejo, a senior linebacker. When asked about those two
games, senior guard Andy
Meyers twists his face into a scowl and says caustically,
"They were a fluke and a travesty, in that order, and
we're still
bitter."
The Bruins will need such motivation as they try to
replicate the success of 1997—which ended in a No. 5
final ranking, the school's highest since '82—because
questions lurk on both sides of the
ball.
The potent offense that was third in the
nation in scoring has lost 35 touchdowns from last year in
tailback Skip Hicks and deep receiver Jim McElroy.
Quarterback and Heisman hopeful Cade McNown, whose mastery
of the West Coast offense helped him lead the
country in passing efficiency, returns for his
senior year, but the rest of the attack is
in
the hands of largely unproven
skill-position players. Among the deep receivers,
6' 4", 210-pound junior Danny Farmer—who when not
spiking the football after touchdowns is spiking
volleyballs as a key player on UCLA's perennial national
powerhouse—is the go-to guy by default. At
6' 5" and 205 pounds, sophomore Brian Poli-Dixon has the
size of former Bruins All-America J.J. Stokes and has shown
flashes of Stokes's game-breaking ability. Reliable tight
end Mike Grieb will also get more
looks.
During spring practice the most pitched battle was at
tailback, where shifty sophomore Jermaine (Squat Diesel)
Lewis, at
5' 7", 177 pounds, had the edge on bigger (6-foot, 214)
but slower Keith Brown. If much-hyped incoming freshman
DeShaun Foster has the goods, the Bruins could go with a
tailback by
committee.
"I don't know if we're going to be capable of blowing
teams away like we did last year, but with Cade in charge
of the offense, I'm not so worried about scoring
points," says Bob Toledo, who in his two seasons as
head coach (he was UCLA's offensive
coordinator for two years before moving up to the top job) has
earned the nicknames Tricky and Gadget because of his love
for crafty schoolyard plays. "What I'm worried about
is the
defense."
UCLA lost seven starters from the attacking, opportunistic
defense that helped the Bruins to a plus-1.82 turnover
margin, second best in the nation. Defensive
coordinator Rocky Long also left, to become head coach at New
Mexico. His replacement is Nick
Aliotti, who worked as a defensive assistant with the St.
Louis Rams for three years and before that was architect of
the D for Oregon's '94 Rose Bowl team. Aliotti has dropped
the 3-3-5
formation in favor of a 3-4-4 in hopes of becoming stronger
against the run while creating more opportunities to
blitz.
In Ayanbadejo and senior strong safety Larry Atkins,
Aliotti has a couple of budding stars to build around. The
6' 2",
234-pound Ayanbadejo is a sideline-to-sideline terror who
should thrive with the increased freedom he gets in the new
defense; the ball-hawking Atkins
(6' 4", 228) snared five interceptions, recovered three
fumbles and had four sacks last year and is a candidate for
the Jim Thorpe Award. With the infusion of one of the
country's best recruiting classes, UCLA has fresh talent at
every defensive position.
How quickly the key players adapt to larger roles in a new
system may determine this team's fate, because the Bruins
will be tested early. Their first game is against Texas,
which has been stewing for nearly a year about last
season's 66-3 annihilation
in Austin. As far back as the spring the Bruins coaches were
studying game tapes of North Carolina and LSU, where much
of the Longhorns' new coaching staff came from. There is
also a game at Miami in the third week. Still, it's
doubtful that the early
season will be as trying as last year's. That UCLA didn't
crack after its horrible start is testament to the
preternaturally upbeat Toledo. "For too long the
expectations in this program have not been high
enough," he says. "It's time we raised them. No
one around here should be afraid of talking about national
championships."
UCLA No. 1? That has the makings of a decent
T-shirt. —Alan
Shipnuck
Fast Facts
1997 record: 10-2 (7-1, tied for 1st in Pac-10)
Final ranking: No. 5 AP, No. 5 coaches' poll
| 1997 Averages | Offense | Defense |
| Scoring | 40.7 | 20.4 |
| Rushing Yards | 166.7 | 108.3 |
| Passing Yards | 266.3 | 253.0 |
| Total Yards | 433.0 | 361.3 |
|
Lineup
Coach: Bob Toledo
Third year at UCLA (15-8); career Division I-A record: 29-38
| OFFENSE |
| WR | Danny Farmer | Jr. | Top returning receiver (37 rec.) |
| LT | Kris Farris | Jr. | Huge (6' 9") and dominating |
| LG | Oscar Cabrera | So. | One of line's five 300-pounders |
| C | Shawn Stuart | Sr. | Academic All-America |
| RG | Andy Meyers | Sr. | His third year as a starter |
| RT | Brian Polak | So. | Freshman or juco could unseat |
| TE | Mike Grieb | Sr. | 37 rec., 6 TDs in last 2 years |
| WR | Brian Poli-Dixon | So. | 8 rec. for 118 yds. and 2 TDs |
| QB | Cade McNown | Sr. | School's alltime leading passer |
| RB | Jermaine Lewis | So. | Top returning rusher (276 yds.) |
| FB | Craig Walendy | Sr. | Big-time blocker had 8 rec. |
| K | Chris Sailer | Sr. | Converted 19 of 24 FG att. |
| DEFENSE |
| LE | Kenyon Coleman | So. | Strength, size and speed |
| NT | Micah Webb | So. | 2 of 3 tackles were for losses |
| RE | Pete Holland | Jr. | Plays end and NT |
| OLB | Michael Wiley | Jr. | Scored on int. vs. Houston |
| ILB | Tony White | So. | Nephew of NBA's Mel Daniels |
| ILB | Ramogi Huma | Jr. | Made 14 tackles and 1 int. |
| OLB | Brendon Ayanbadejo | Sr. | 3 sacks, 36 tackles |
| CB | Marques Anderson | So. | Moves from RCB to LCB |
| SS | Larry Atkins | Sr. | D's '97 MVP had 5 int. |
| FS | Eric Whitfield | Jr. | 30 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 int. |
| CB | Jason Bell | Jr. | Tall for a corner (6'1") |
| P | Chris Sailer | Sr. | 43.7-yd. avg. |
|
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics are from 1997 season.
Pivotal Players
Fourth-year starter
Cade
McNown already holds most of UCLA's alltime passing records. He
needs eight touchdown passes to break Tom Ramsey's mark of
50.... L.A. is not a place that celebrates the blue-collar work
ethic, but senior
fullback
Craig Walendy, a
6' 1", 229-pound wrecking ball, may change that. His lead
blocking will be crucial to the development of UCLA's
inexperienced
tailbacks.... Last season
Chris Sailer, a double All-America at punter and placekicker, made six
of nine field goals from beyond 40 and set the school mark
with a 56-yarder. He hit the weights this summer and is
boasting of even more
range....
Sophomore
Kenyon Coleman should be a force at defensive end. Teammate
Brendon Ayanbadejo calls the
6' 5",
275-pound Coleman's athleticism
"frightening."... The vaunted incoming class includes four
Parade All-Americas: defensive back
Lovell Houston, defensive lineman
Sean
Phillips, offensive lineman
Mike Saffer
and linebacker
Robert
Thomas.
Key Games
Schedule strength: 7th of
112
Sept. 12 vs.
Texas
This early game could give either the Bruins' McNown or
Longhorns tailback Ricky Williams the jump on the Heisman
race.
Nov. 14 at Washington
With Arizona State absent from UCLA's schedule, this trip
to Seattle could be the Bruins' toughest test, as the
Huskies look to avenge last year's 52-28
drubbing.
Nov. 21 vs. USC
After seven straight wins over the Trojans, including a
31-24 nail-biter on USC's home turf in '97, the Bruins must
hope the law of averages doesn't catch up with
them.
X Factor
The Bruins have had a 1,000-yard rusher for four straight
years. With untested receivers and with defenses keying on
McNown, they'll need a fifth—but is there a horse
among the unproven
tailbacks?
Bottom Line
Inexperience at so many key positions is the primary
concern, but if UCLA can summon as much heart and emotion
as it did last year, a Rose Bowl trip—or
better—should be the
result.
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