Bruins Against Bruins Yields Some Positives

There was a leaping catch by Rodney Lee, who snatched a 40-yard pass from backup quarterback Steve Buck by reaching over cornerback Aaron Rocques.

There was a 50-yard hookup from quarterback Cade McNown to Jim McElroy, who beat cornerback Javelin Guidry to the ball.

There was a 40-yard run by Skip Hicks, and an 82-yard punt return by Ryan Rocques.

It was UCLA defeating UCLA in an intrasquad scrimmage Saturday at Spaulding Field in which no score was kept, but some results were available.

Coach Bob Toledo pronounced it good, if not particularly eye-opening.

“I saw some good individual things,” he said. “There were a couple of nice catches, a couple of run backs.”

And freshmen Rosco Zamano, a linebacker, and Jason Bell, a cornerback, had some success, helping the depth chart.

The defense’s hands were tied to some extent, with little blitzing because the coaching staff wanted to get an idea of what the offense could do--particularly McNown, who is working behind a new line and has spent much of the two-a-day practice sessions scrambling. He completed nine of 22 passes for 101 yards, with one interception, that on a leaping, one-handed grab by Phillip Ward.

Buck was nine of 15 for 108 yards.

And the tackling--at least while the first two units were on the field--was nonexistent.

Still, “I saw some good things,” Toledo said, “but the timing’s not there yet. Guys weren’t always there when they were supposed to be there.”

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Danny Farmer, a freshman who was put on scholarship just before two-a-days began, is playing slot receiver in a three-receiver formation, replacing Brad Melsby, who is out for the season because of knee problems. Farmer caught a short pass to start the scrimmage.

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Hicks ran five times for 45 yards, including the 40-yard touchdown. . . . Freshman back Durrell Price ran eight times for 40 yards and is competing with Rocques, a redshirt freshman, for playing time as the backup behind Hicks. Rocques ran seven times for 57 yards, including a 19-yard carry.