UCLA Will Be Meeting Another Heavyweight in Arizona State Today

UCLA becomes the last of the Pacific 10 teams to play a conference game today, and the Bruins must hope this means that something good will happen to them by the time the season ends. Will the last be first?

“We’re going to know in the next couple of weeks,” Coach Terry Donahue said.

For the past few days, the Bruins’ Mr. Worry has been floating around in his usual wondering world of woe, trying to figure out a way UCLA can win a game this morning at the Rose Bowl.

Starting today, the Bruins take on the state of Arizona. They begin with unbeaten Arizona State and then play Arizona, which is also unbeaten, next Saturday at the Rose Bowl. These games are going to be big for UCLA, about the same size as some of the Sun Devil players the Bruins will to try to run around and pass over.

Offensive tackle Jim Warne is 6 feet 7 inches, weighs 300 pounds and reportedly has his own zip code. The other tackle, Danny Villa, is 6-6 and 293. He is backed up, if that is the right phrase, by Fedel Underwood, a 299-pound freshman.

Not since the Oklahoma debacle have the Bruins seen an offensive line the size of Arizona State’s, and no one at UCLA wishes to remember what happened that time.

“They’re just as big as OU was,” said Terry Tumey, the Bruins’ 228-pound nose guard. “I don’t know why so many teams are going so big on the offensive line. It seems like everybody wants to have their own Refrigerator these days.”

The Bruins will counter with their normal defensive line--small microwave ovens and toasters. UCLA’s front three, which averages 240 pounds, will be outweighed by an average of more than 36 pounds a player by Arizona State’s line from tackle to tackle.

Where will it all end?

“Pretty soon, tailbacks are going to weigh 250 pounds,” said Frank Batchkoff, UCLA defensive tackle, who hopes not. “But it’s still the game of football. It’s all about ability, blocking and tackling, no matter what weight you’ve got on you.”

So far this season, UCLA has shown an ability to do two things well--(1) clobber teams they should clobber, such as San Diego State and Cal State Long Beach, and (2) have players injured. In the latter category, the Bruins may well lead the Pac-10.

Is Donahue worried? Naaah.

“I don’t want to think about it anymore,” he said.

At least seven important players, including the first- and second-string tailbacks and the first- and second-string fullbacks, are listed as either probable, doubtful or out of the game today.

Tailback Eric Ball is definitely out with a pulled hamstring. Gaston Green, the usual starter at tailback, is “probable” after missing last week’s game with a sore toe.

And at fullback, the Bruins are mostly empty. Starter Mel Farr is doubtful because of a sprained knee, and backup Marcus Greenwood, who has been healthy enough to play in only one game this season, is considered “probable,” even though he is recovering from sprains to both ankles.

That leaves James Primus, a part-timer, as the only completely healthy Bruin to play tailback and fullback, which he can’t do at the same time. Against Long Beach, the Bruins didn’t need much more than Primus, who rushed for 160 yards and a pair of touchdowns. But quarterback Matt Stevens came through. He was on the field when the Bruins put 34 points on the scoreboard in the first three quarters, throwing for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns.

In fact, Stevens hasn’t thrown a football to the wrong team since Oklahoma caught five of his passes in the opening game. Against Arizona State, Air Matt will be bolstered by the return of flanker Karl Dorrell, who hasn’t played since he hurt his knee against Oklahoma.

The Bruins are going against a defense that has allowed an average of only 12.7 points and 305 yards a game. In three games, the Sun Devils have yielded just two rushing touchdowns. After being tied by 16-point underdog Washington State last week, Arizona State is 2-0-1. This will be the Sun Devils’ first road game.

Besides being outweighed, the UCLA defense faces the burden of stopping tailback Darryl Harris, the top rusher in the Pac-10 with an average of 117.7 yards a game. Donahue said he isn’t at all surprised about Harris.

“Behind an offensive line that’s that big, he’s going to make some yards,” Donahue said.

Arizona State’s quarterback is Jeff Van Raaphorst, now a senior, who has had an up-and-down career. At this point, Van Raaphorst is down after having five passes intercepted against Washington State and ranking nowhere among the Pac-10’s top 10 quarterbacks in passing efficiency.

Sun Devil Coach John Cooper does not seem to be amused by Van Raaphorst’s 41.7% pass completion rate.

“If Jeff wants to throw the football, he’d better throw it a helluva lot better than he’s throwing it,” Cooper said. “He’d better start throwing it to the guy that’s open. We can’t even complete passes in practice.”

When playing UCLA, Arizona State has been one big incompletion. The Sun Devils have never won. They are 0-6-1 against the Bruins, and they came into the Rose Bowl to play UCLA last season with the No. 1 scoring defense in the nation, two consecutive shutouts and 11 straight quarters of not allowing a point. The Bruins won, 40-17.

“Tell Terry, for my wife and kids’ sake, let us win one this time,” Cooper said.

Ah, Cooper’s family. Something else for Donahue to worry about.

Bruin Notes

Kickoff today is at 11:40 a.m. to accommodate CBS. . . . Next Saturday’s game against Arizona at the Rose Bowl will also be televised by CBS and will also begin at 11:40 a.m. . . . The newest addition to the UCLA injured list is right cornerback Dennis Price, who will miss today’s game with a sprained knee. Darryl Henley will start in his place. Also out are starting left tackle Russ Warnick (sprained toe) and right cornerback Marcus Turner (sore foot). Strong safety Jeff Damron, who hurt his knee against Oklahoma, is listed as probable. Eric Rogers will replace Warnick in the starting lineup. Right guard Mark Schmidt is back again, returning from a knee problem. . . . UCLA’s Matt Stevens is the No. 8-rated passer in the Pac-10. . . . Coaches Terry Donahue and John Cooper go back a long way. When Donahue was a starting defensive tackle at UCLA in 1965-66, Cooper was the Bruins’ secondary coach. In 1967, Cooper went to Kansas to serve under Pepper Rodgers, formerly a UCLA assistant. Donahue was a first-year assistant that same season.