The Bruins of UCLA come into Saturday’s game against 10th-ranked Notre Dame bruised by a series of injuries and battered, most recently, by a slew of speedy Ducks.
They will not, however, be bearing the onerous weight of outsized expectations. In southern California, those are reserved for Southern California.
Never mind the fact UCLA reached double digits in victories last year with 10; the Trojans won a cool dozen and fell just short of claiming a third straight national title. Never mind that UCLA’s tailback, the 5-foot-8-inch Maurice Drew, electrified fans with his strength and shiftiness; the Trojans had Reggie Bush, a tailback who was strong, shifty and the Heisman Trophy winner.
Coach Karl Dorrell couldn’t even enjoy the Pacific-10 Conference Coach of the Year award he earned last year without turning an eye toward Troy–he shared the honor with USC’s Pete Carroll.
In a town without an NFL team, where college football is followed with the intensity that fans in most major markets reserve for the pros, the blue-and-gold clad Bruins remain the red-headed stepchildren to the Trojans.
The amiable Dorrell has done an admirable job of lifting UCLA back to respectability since taking over for Bob Toledo following the 2002 season.
After a 6-7 season in 2003, the Bruins went 6-6 in 2004 before finishing 10-2 last year.
All of that, though, hasn’t been good enough to make UCLA (4-2) even the second-best team in the Pac-10.
Oregon, which beat UCLA 30-20 a week ago, has been nipping at the Trojans’ heels for most of the current millennium. And California, guided by former Oregon offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford, may be good enough to take over the top spot from USC this season.
The Bruins? Not yet part of that conversation.
“We haven’t really been on all cylinders in any game yet,” Dorrell said this week. “The best opportunity to do it is now, against Notre Dame. They’ve got a good team. We’re going to have a great game.”
Despite an early meltdown against Oregon last week, the Bruins have improved on defense under new coordinator DeWayne Walker. They’re allowing fewer than 168 passing yards per game, including four contests in the pass-happy Pac-10, They’re even better against the run, limiting opponents to 84 yards per game and 2.8 yards per carry.
Highly-touted quarterback Ben Olson was lost to a knee injury two weeks ago, but Dorrell believes Patrick Cowan is a capable replacement.
“Whatever game plan you throw at him, he’s able to digest it,” Dorrell said.
Cowan lost his voice when he was hit in the throat at Oregon. On doctor’s orders, Cowan will have to guide his team Saturday without using his voice.
And if he manages to lead the Bruins to victory, he will merely be doing what USC has done for four years straight.
At Notre Dame’s pep rally Friday night, defensive tackle Trevor Laws gave a stirring speech about being ready for Saturday’s game. He referred to Notre Dame’s opponent as “USC.”
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apatel@tribune.com
