Steady Rise Replaces Up-and-Down Ride : UCLA: After alternating victories and losses produced a 5-6 season, the Bruins are 5-2 and appear bowl bound.

A year ago, UCLA was in a rut, losing and winning football games on alternate weekends.

After seven games, the Bruins’ prospects for a bowl game were bleak. They had lost to California, 38-31, and had a 3-4 record.

That trend continued the rest of the season and UCLA finished 5-6.

Now, with four games remaining, the Bruins have a 5-2 record, 3-1 in the Pacific 10 Conference and are tied for second place with California.

“We’re a fumble away from being in the top 10,” Coach Terry Donahue said, referring to a fumble against Cal Oct. 5 that enabled the Bears to beat the Bruins, 27-24.

This week, UCLA has a modest ranking, No. 23, in the Associated Press poll.

And there is a different mood in Westwood, replacing the anxiety that came with the losing of the last two seasons.

“We now have a better opportunity for a bowl game, a higher ranking and it helps our football tradition,” Donahue said. “Our team is improving and, with four games left, we can beat any team--and they can beat us.”

Even so, UCLA will probably be favored in its remaining games, beginning with Washington State Saturday at the Rose Bowl.

After that, the Bruins will play Stanford, Oregon and USC.

UCLA has improved in almost every area but notably on defense and in developing a better balance of running and passing.

Even though UCLA’s most productive tailbacks, Shawn Wills and Kevin Williams, were held out of last Saturday’s game against Arizona State because of injuries, the Bruins rushed for 204 yards, with Ricky Davis, a third-string tailback, accounting for 124 yards in a 21-16 victory.

Last year, UCLA averaged only 142.4 yards rushing, compared to 217.6 now.

Much of the credit goes to the offensive line, which opened sizeable holes for the running backs against Arizona State.

“Our offensive line is improving every week,” Donahue said. “It’s getting better fundamentally, and it hasn’t reached its potential.”

Donahue isn’t sure whether Wills or Williams will be able to play against Washington State. Their status will be determined by the end of the week.

Davis has a hamstring injury, but expects to be able to play.

“Ricky Davis built for himself a place in UCLA football history,” Donahue said.

Donahue compared Davis to Norman Dow, a reserve quarterback who replaced injured Gary Beban against USC in 1966 and led the Bruins to a 14-7 upset.

UCLA quarterback Tommy Maddox had three passes intercepted against Arizona State, the last one with the Bruins protecting a five-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Donahue said it was ironic that no one asked him after the game whether he regretted calling for a pass play.

The Sun Devils soon fumbled to the Bruins, who were able to run out the clock.

When UCLA lost to Cal earlier in the season, Donahue was criticized for being too conservative, using running plays to protect a 24-14 lead with 8 1/2 minutes left.

“Part of the punishment of losing is total inspection of the plays that are called,” Donahue said.

“We dominated the Arizona State game for three quarters (UCLA led, 21-3) and, when it began to slip away in the fourth quarter, it really slipped.”

But the ending was altogether different.

“One week we went one way (running against Cal late in the game), and we got our feet put into a vise for it, and in another week against Arizona State we went another way (passing),” Donahue said.

No foot vise for Donahue this time. Winning seems to discourage embarrassing questions.