Olson is ready, willing and waiting

After returning to practice last week, quarterback Ben Olson said he expects to be ready to play at Arizona State on Saturday.

“I’ll probably be full-go on Tuesday,” said Olson, who has not played since he tore a knee ligament Oct. 7 against Arizona.

Although Olson, 23, was in uniform for the Bruins’ 25-7 victory over Oregon State on Saturday, he did not play. But Olson said he could have if needed.

“I would have had to warm up a little bit, but I could have got it going,” Olson said. “I wouldn’t have been 100%, but I could have played.”

Sophomore Patrick Cowan, who picked up his first victory as a starter since he replaced Olson, probably will begin the practice week as the No. 1 quarterback, but Coach Karl Dorrell said last week that he’d like to get Olson “back into the fold.”

Whether that means Olson will return as the starter or just work with the first-team offense in practice, Dorrell hasn’t said. But Olson -- who waited five years before getting a starting job in college -- does not want to wait.

Olson said he does not believe a starter should lose a position because he was injured. “But my opinion or philosophy doesn’t matter,” he said. “It’s not my call.”

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Over the last month, Christian Taylor has rarely been able to practice because of an ankle injury. But that has not stopped him from playing in games.

“He’s been hurt the last several weeks and he hasn’t been practicing much during the week,” defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker said. “But he’s a student of the game and he’s able to prepare for the game mentally. Not too many guys can do that. We really appreciate him for giving us what he got.”

Despite his injury, Taylor was a force against the Beavers, making five solo tackles, including two for loss.

He was at his best during an Oregon State drive late in the third quarter.

With UCLA ahead, 13-7, the Beavers had second down and five at the Bruins 13 when Taylor made consecutive stops to force an Oregon State field-goal attempt, which was missed from 30 yards by Alexis Serna.

“We talked all week about getting our swagger back,” Taylor said. “I feel like we had our swagger [Saturday]. “I told the guys to talk trash all game. Don’t stop. We got some personal fouls called against us, but that’s on me. That’s my fault. I wanted everyone to talk trash.”

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UCLA was penalized 13 times for 155 yards against Oregon State, which upset Dorrell.

“That’s not our style,” the coach said. “That’s never been our style.”

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The Pacific 10 Conference could have eight teams finish with enough victories to qualify for a bowl game this season, but the league has ties to only six. That means UCLA (5-5 overall and 3-4 in the Pac-10) might need to sweep its final two games at Arizona State and against USC at the Rose Bowl on Dec. 2 in order to secure a bowl invitation.

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Senior wide receiver Junior Taylor caught his 100th career pass against Oregon State and is tied with JoJo Townsell for 15th on the Bruins’ all-time receptions list.

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lonnie.white@latimes.com