Kansas State will open the 2010 football season on national television this Saturday at home. Their opponent will be the UCLA Bruins, who are coming off a 7-6 campaign in 2009 and a win in the EagleBank Bowl. Last season the Wildcats travelled to Pasadena, CA where they fell to the Bruins by a score of 23-9.
Ryan Rosenblatt of BruinsNation.com agreed to answer a few questions and provide some insight from the UCLA side heading into Saturday’s game.
Wildcat Victory: There is a lot of uncertainty at the QB position because of expected starter Kevin Prince’s back injury. What is the latest on whether or not Prince will be able to play against Kansas State?
Ryan Rosenblatt: The latest is that Prince will have to practice by Wednesday if he’s going to play on Saturday, but whether or not he gets onto the practice field on Wednesday and then pulls a helmet on Saturday is still very much in question. Prince has made strides in recent days to get back out there, but he still has more work to do. The impression we’ve been getting is that it’s 50/50, but I would guess that he doesn’t play in Manhattan.
WV: If Prince is not able to play, sophomore Richard Brehaut will likely be leading the UCLA offense. How did the UCLA offense look last year in Brehaut’s limited action, and how big of an impact will Brehaut playing in place of Prince have on the Bruins’ offensive productivity — especially on the road and on national television?
RR: Being on the road and on national television will be the least of Brehaut’s concerns on Saturday if he sees the field. Last season, Brehaut struggled with picking up the offense and really struggled to read defenses. That was Brehaut’s issue when he got to camp in the preseason and carried on when he got into games, but it’s to be expected from a true freshman that was surrounded by more inexperience. We heard more about Brehaut struggling to understand the offense and make the correct reads this offseason, but in the last week or two, he’s really started to step things up. Brehaut played very well in the fall game and has reportedly looked good in practice so there’s reason to believe that there shouldn’t be a huge drop off from Prince, but there’s a big difference between practice and games so if Brehaut is the guy on Saturday, I would expect the Bruins to go conservative to protect him.
WV: UCLA as a team has had a number of injuries beyond just the QB position. Have the injuries held the team back and how much will it effect the way UCLA prepares for the K-State game?
RR: I don’t think the injuries have hurt the Bruins too much, except up front. There is a lot of talent on the roster, even if some of it is inexperienced and while that inexperience would give the Bruins some issues in a game, I think it’s pushed them in practice and allowed them to prepare well. When it comes to game time, UCLA shouldn’t feel the effects of injuries too much, unless Prince can’t play. The only area where the injuries can be seen this weekend is on the offensive line. Primed for a major step forward this season, the Bruins will be without three projected starters on Saturday, either due to injury or suspension. That’s where UCLA is really going to feel the effects of missing players and it could ruin the improvement in the run game that the offense had been looking for.
WV: Aside from the QB position, how is the UCLA offense expected to perform heading into the K-State game and throughout the 2010 season? Who are the playmakers UCLA will look to, and breakdown the Bruins’ passing and running attacks.
RR: How the UCLA offense performs is very much tied to the play at QB so whether or not it’s Prince or Brehaut is under the center. If Prince were healthy and ready to go, the relatively high expectations for the UCLA offense would be intact. The Bruins’ offensive line is missing some players too, making this more of a question mark and the offense tough to predict. Until we see how Prince is and the offensive line gets themselves together, it’s tough to make predictions, but the Bruins do have talent at the skill positions.
In the backfield, UCLA has Jonathan Franklin, a sophomore who ran the ball very well as a freshman, picking up 4.5 yards per carry behind a sub-par offensive line. His issue was holding on to the football, but if he can do that, he’s a back who can run between the tackles and break away in the open field. Behind him, UCLA has Derrick Coleman, a tough runner who can power his way to solid gains, and Malcolm Jones, a freshman who won Gatorade National Player of the Year last year and is a phenomenal athlete. Between those three, the Bruins have more than enough talent in the backfield.
Receiving the ball, the Bruins have several playmakers. Nelson Rosario showed spurts of being an All-American last year and with his 6’5” frame and speed, he can dominate a game when his head is in it. Josh Smith gives the Bruins some more experience as a Colorado transfer who can blaze either after catching a pass or in the return game, where the Bruins expect a lot from him. Taylor Embree is a great route runner with good hands who is the ideal possession receiver and Randall Carroll is one of the fastest people in the state of California who can be a game breaker if he catches the ball. Toss in Ricky Marvray, a freshman who was really opened eyes this summer and you have a damn good set of receivers.
The interesting thing to keep an eye on is how the UCLA F-backs perform. A new position in the Bruins’ offense, the F-back is filled with several great athletes, led by Anthony Barr. Barr, a freshman, is 6’5” with blazing speed who can turn a game on its head. Morrell Presley is in the same boat as an athlete. Since UCLA has never used the position before, we’re not exactly sure how the players will be used except by what we’ve seen in practice, which is as a hybrid receiver, tight end who runs routes, takes reverses and screens all over the field. Joseph Fauria, a big tight end transfer from Notre Dame with soft hands gives the Bruins just one more option.
WV: The UCLA defense lost one of the best lineman in college football to the NFL in standout Brian Price, so defensively, who should K-State fans expect to make an impact on that side of the ball?
RR: Replacing a player like Brian Price is nearly impossible, but the Bruins thought they had another disruptive defensive lineman in Datone Jones. The big, fast defensive end was supposed to wreak havoc on opposing offensive lines, but he broke his foot in camp and now the Bruins don’t have a real gamebreaker up front. The guy to keep an eye on in the UCLA defense though is Rahim Moore, last year’s NCAA leader in interceptions. The safety has every tool and is very, very smart. He can easily come away with a pick or two and he usually finds the perfect time to come down with one. Also, don’t ignore Akeem Ayers, a super freak of a linebacker.
WV: What is the opinion of UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel and where he has the Bruins program going? Do fans believe he and his staff are the right fit for UCLA?
RR: There’s a lot of positivity around the UCLA program right now. Neuheisel has done a great job recruiting, bringing in very good classes in each year since taking over the program and infusing the program with much needed talent. UCLA made an improvement from year one to year two and if the Bruins didn’t have a ridiculously difficult non-conference schedule this year, they would almost certainly make another improvement in record this year. Even so, the team is coming along and improvement from year to year is a definite sign of progress, something that leads most UCLA fans to believe that we have the right coach.
WV: UCLA has been able to recruit at a high level and had what most believed to be a top 10 recruiting class for 2010. With the mess that is going on over at USC (which I imagine Bruins fans are enjoying), is there a sense among the fans that the next couple of years will be a great opportunity to take the program to the next level and start competing for championships again?
RR: I don’t think there is any doubt that fans are looking at the next few years as the perfect opportunity to hop back into the national spotlight. The great recruiting has given the program some talent and once that talent gets a bit of experience, they will be primed for a big step forward. Another good recruiting class is on the way, not just talent-wise, but also filling some holes at the right positions. Next season, UCLA fans think that the team can win eight or nine games and then go hunting for a Pac-10 title in 2012.
WV: How do you think most UCLA fans are viewing the game against K-State? Would you say the consensus is that the Bruins can come into Manhattan and take care of business?
RR: Prior to Prince’s injury and the problems that the offensive line have had with injuries and suspensions, UCLA fans saw the K-State game as a chance to go on the road and get a win. Not that we thought we’d walk in there and coast to a win, but I think most fans believed we could get a hard fought victory. Now, I think most Bruins feel as if we’re the definite underdogs, but that it will be a close game that UCLA has a chance of ending up on the right side of.
WV: Do you have a prediction for the outcome of the game?
RR: Call me an optimist, but I think the Bruins get a win in Manhattan. I think it will be a very close game and with UCLA leading 24-20 and Kansas St. driving, I say Moore gets the game-clinching interception to cap the game.
For more coverage of the K-State vs. UCLA game from the UCLA side visit BruinsNation.com.
