Bruins Still Searching for Answers : UCLA: Team must regroup and defeat the improved Washington Huskies in order to keep alive its hopes of extending bowl winning streak to eight games.

Linebacker Marvcus Patton struggled for the words to describe what’s gone wrong with UCLA’s football team this season.

“We never really expected to be 3-4,” he said. “It’s like it’s unbelievable. It’s like we really don’t know where we’re at.”

Mike Farr has an idea.

“We’ve hit rock bottom,” the senior flanker said.

So they hope, anyway.

It’s possible that the Bruins, off to their worst start since they were 3-5 in 1979 and on their way to a 5-6 finish, could sink even lower today, when they play Washington at the Rose Bowl.

A loss to the Huskies, who are 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the Pacific 10 Conference, would all but drop UCLA out of the bowl picture.

A win, however, would move the Bruins back to .500 and keep alive their hopes of advancing to postseason play and extending their bowl winning streak to eight games.

UCLA hasn’t missed a bowl date since 1980, when it was banned from postseason play by the Pac-10 for academic transgressions.

Beating the Huskies, though, probably won’t be easy.

Washington, which was 6-5 last season and didn’t play in a bowl game for the first time since 1978, has won its last two games after losing three in a row to teams ranked in the top 20--unbeaten Colorado and the Pac-10’s top two teams, USC and Arizona.

The reason for the turnaround is no secret to Coach Don James.

“We’ve played different teams,” James said. “We lost three in a row to some pretty good teams. You know what Arizona looks like (after beating UCLA, 42-7). Colorado’s the best team we’ve played. And, of course, USC.

“Cal and Oregon (29-16 and 20-14 losers to Washington the last two weeks) are good teams, but they’re not as good as those three. It’s hard to determine if we’ve gotten any better.”

UCLA Coach Terry Donahue believes that the Huskies have improved and has a high regard for the way they have been able to resurrect their season.

“They’ve got momentum generated and got themselves off the floor and back into the fight for a bowl game,” he said. “It’s hard to do that and I admire the fact they’ve been able to do that.

“Washington is a very good team. They just had bad luck in scheduling and played the two best teams in the conference right off the bat, got beat and got knocked out of the (Rose Bowl) race. But they’ve gotten off the deck.”

Donahue’s hope is that the Bruins can do the same.

Losers the last two weeks to Arizona and Oregon State--their first loss to the Beavers in 11 years--the Bruins face the prospect of losing three consecutive games for the first time since 1979.

And UCLA hasn’t lost three consecutive conference games in one season since 1971.

The Bruins’ starting quarterback, Bret Johnson, hasn’t led a touchdown drive in 2 1/2 games, has completed only 15 of his last 37 passes and was pulled at halftime last week in favor of Jim Bonds.

Their defense ranks last in the conference against the run, was battered for 480 yards rushing by Arizona two weeks ago and last week crumbled in the end, allowing Oregon State to drive 67 yards to the touchdown and two-point conversion that gave the Beavers an 18-17 victory.

Their previously reliable kicker, Alfredo Velasco, missed a 36-yard field goal attempt against Arizona--his first miss in 31 attempts inside 40 yards--and last week missed a 40-yard first-quarter attempt that might have provided the game-winning points.

But is UCLA really that bad?

The Bruins were overpowered by Tennessee and Arizona, but a holding penalty on their last possession took them out of field goal range last week and a perfectly executed onside kick by Michigan led to an improbable 24-23 loss to the Wolverines, who have lost only to top-ranked Notre Dame.

“Winning those two one-point games would have made a great deal of difference to that team,” James said. “They’d be 5-2. They still have great athletes.”

Have the Pac-10’s second-division teams caught up to UCLA?

“There’s more parity in the conference, but I don’t know if that has anything to do with our particular situation,” Donahue said. “I doubt seriously whether it does.”

Whatever it is that ails the Bruins, it will become more acute if they lose again today.

Rock bottom, as they knew it this week, will seem like a step up.

Bruin Notes

Freshman Kevin Williams, who ran for a season-high 80 yards in 24 carries last week and has led UCLA in rushing three of the last four weeks, will make his first start at tailback. . . . Washington is 0-2 against UCLA at the Rose Bowl and has not beaten the Bruins in Los Angeles since 1979. . . . UCLA is listed as a 1 1/2-point favorite.

A crowd of 55,000 is expected. Despite the Bruins’ problems, attendance is up from two years ago, when UCLA was 10-2 and drew an average of 55,689 to six games at the Rose Bowl. In four home games this season, UCLA has drawn an average of 57,371. . . . Although they rank last in the Pac-10 in rushing defense, the Bruins rank fourth in total defense.

Washington tailback Greg Lewis averages 97.9 yards a game on the ground and ranks third in the Pac-10 in rushing. . . . UCLA has had its problems running the ball, but the Bruins keep trying. Only Arizona and USC, among Pac-10 teams, have averaged more yards a game on the ground than UCLA’s 139.3, but six Pac-10 teams have averaged as many or more yards per carry than the Bruins’ 3.3.

More evidence than this just might not be UCLA’s year: Tight end Randy Austin is doubtful for today’s game after straining his back Monday night while bending over in the shower to reach for a bar of soap. . . . Linebacker Craig Davis is doubtful because of a strained tendon in his foot, suffered in last week’s game, and linebacker Meech Shaw will miss a third consecutive game because of a pinched nerve in his neck. . . . Tight end Rick Daly is out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a herniated disk.