UCLA game was a trip down memory lane for Norm Dow

Norm Dow had an inkling about the topic before he came to the telephone.

“I knew someone would be calling me,” he said.

Dow came to mind after Jerry Neuheisel replaced an injured Brett Hundley at quarterback and led UCLA to victory over Texas on Saturday.

Dow performed similarly in 1966, when he was sent out against USC in place of Gary Beban, who had a broken ankle. Dow engineered a 14-7 UCLA victory.

Watching Neuheisel on Saturday gave Dow, 69, a trip down memory lane.

“Oh yeah, it did bring things to mind,” he said. “Mine was a little different circumstances. I had a whole week to prepare. Of course, I had a whole week to be more nervous too. He was rushed right in.”

Dow was impressed, and having won three Central Coast Section titles in 18 seasons as coach at Morgan Hill Live Oak High, his opinion carries weight.

“They brought him along real slowly in the game and eventually gave him a little more,” Dow said. “The kid did fine. He really rose to the occasion.”

As did Dow, who vividly remembers the wild week that ended with him running for one UCLA touchdown and setting up the game-winner with a 26-yard scramble.

“I went to class the Monday before the game and the professor said, ‘Is there a Norm Dow here? This gentleman would like to see you,’ ” Dow said. “It was a reporter. Coach [Tommy] Prothro had been trying to keep reporters away from me. This guy found me. I didn’t have to go to classes anymore the rest of the week.”

As for the game, Dow said, “Coach Prothro said all week, ‘If Norm Dow plays the way he has practiced all these years, we’ll win the game.’ That was very, very humbling.”

The Bruins felt that the USC victory would put them in the Rose Bowl, since both teams had one conference loss. However, athletic directors voted to send the Trojans, fearing that without Beban, UCLA could not win the game.

UCLA students took to the streets to protest, shutting down the northbound lanes of the 405 Freeway.

“It’s a good thing that turned out to be the last game,” Dow joked, “or people might have found out that I wasn’t as good as they thought.”

Got your back

UCLA’s running game will remain a three-man rotation, though Coach Jim Mora has been impressed with the play of Paul Perkins through three games.

“His vision has really improved,” Mora said. “You watch him and think he’s setting things up much cleaner than he has in the past. That’s helping his blockers. That’s great to see.”

Mora said UCLA would continue to rotate Perkins, Jordon James and Nate Starks. There will be occasional cameos by linebacker Myles Jack, and even defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes.

Perkins has been the most productive of the backs. He has 304 yards rushing, and is averaging 4.8 yards per carry. He had a career-high 126 yards against Texas, the first 100-yard game of his college career.

“He’s running hard and he’s falling forward,” Mora said. “There are not many times where he gets pushed back.”

UCLA may need a little more from its backs. Hundley’s status remains uncertain after he injured his elbow against Texas.

Hundley stayed for UCLA’s entire two-hour workout, though he wore a soft brace on his left arm and did little more than watch.

Randall Goforth, who is out with a separated shoulder, was also at practice but left early to receive treatment.

Chris.foster@latimes.com

Twitter: @cfosterlatimes