COLLEGE FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : UCLA : First-Rate Secondaries

Washington’s secondary has been called the best in college football, but Joel Buchsbaum of Pro Football Weekly says that UCLA’s is better.

“I think they’re more athletic, they’ve got more speed, and I really like the free safety, Othello Henderson,” Buchsbaum said. “Henderson, to me, is somewhere between (former UCLA safety) Eric Turner and (former USC safety) Mark Carrier.”

The Bruins have scored on 10 of 11 possessions inside the 20-yard line, making seven touchdowns and three field goals. UCLA’s opponents have scored on only two of six possessions inside the 20-yard line. . . . UCLA’s defense has been at its best in the first half, limiting its opponents to seven points. Brigham Young failed to score in the first half for the first time in its last 40 games in a 17-10 defeat by the Bruins, and UCLA shut out San Diego State in the first half of last week’s 35-7 victory at the Rose Bowl. . . . Guard James Christensen, who has been sidelined by a pinched nerve in his neck, is expected to accompany the Bruins to Arizona.