Bruins Know About Willard All Too Well

For three years, Jerrott Willard had tormented UCLA, so why should Saturday have been any different?

It wasn’t.

Time and time again, the inside linebacker was involved in stifling the Bruin offense, helping Cal to a 26-7 Pacific 10 Conference victory.

It was the Bears’ fifth consecutive victory over the Bruins, their longest winning streak in the 61-year series. The last time Cal won four consecutive games against UCLA was from 1947-50.

“I think it is a testimony to the guys who have been here five years,” Cal Coach Keith Gilbertson said.

That group does not include Gilbertson, who took over from Bruce Snyder before the 1992 season.

But it does include Willard.

And Willard, a 6-foot-2, 230-pounder, knows the sweat and pain that has gone into bringing Cal out of the conference cellar.

The Bears finished last in the Pac-10 in 1988. They were last again in 1989, the year Willard made a school-record 134 tackles and was selected the CIF Division VI player of the year as a senior at Corona del Mar High.

Willard suffered a personal tragedy in high school when his mother, Carleen, died during surgery at age 45. Willard has since dedicated his football success to her memory.

And while he has achieved success--he is a strong candidate for All-American honors this season--the road has not been easy.

“It was a program on the rise and I wanted to be a part of . . . turning something around,” Willard said of his decision to attend Cal.

Willard was expected to play as a freshman in 1990 but suffered a knee injury and redshirted the season.

He returned with a vengeance, leading the Pac-10 in tackles in 1992 and 1993. He was a first-team all-conference selection last season. Willard needs 86 more tackles this season to become one of three players in school history to have 500 tackles in a career.

“Jerrott is a very fine player,” UCLA Coach Terry Donahue said. “He is one of the best linebackers in the conference. He’s very competitive. He’s the heart and soul of the team. You need a player like that to pull your team together. He’s a hell of a player.”

But Willard had struggled earlier this season. A knee injury kept him on the sideline during a 21-7 loss at Hawaii on Sept. 17, and he played despite suffering from flu in a 55-0 victory over San Jose State last week.

The local media criticized Willard’s play against San Jose, but he left no doubt in anyone’s mind about his ability with his 14 tackles and two sacks for losses totaling 15 yards Saturday against the Bruins.

Willard quickly squelched UCLA hopes when the Bruins came out of the locker room, trailing 19-7, to start the second half. The Bruins were on their 42-yard line in their first drive of the half when Willard stopped Sharmon Shah on a run for no gain. On the next play, Willard sacked quarterback Wayne Cook for a loss of nine yards, forcing UCLA to punt.

Willard struck again with 4:33 remaining in the third quarter, getting the ball loose from Cook, who scrambled to recover for a loss of six yards, forcing UCLA to punt from its 27-yard line.

“(Willard) is a great player,” Gilbertson said after the game.

The coach then moved closer to the bright lights of the television cameras, adding very slowly, “Let me say this, He is playing great football. I don’t want to hear one more time what’s wrong with Willard. Nothing’s wrong with Willard.”

Cook, no doubt, would vouch for that.