It Makes a Good Story

The story was couched in disclaimers, but the headline in the Arizona Daily Wildcat wasn’t: “McNown Says Another 66-3 Win Could Come This Weekend.”

Arizona students saw it. Wildcat coaches have been feeding it to players. It’s on bulletin boards in Tucson.

But UCLA quarterback Cade McNown didn’t say it, and he and Coach Bob Toledo are upset about the whole thing.

“It’s totally inaccurate,” Toledo said Thursday of the headline and some of the implications of the Associated Press story that appeared in the Arizona school paper Tuesday.

The question of McNown on Monday was that, because UCLA had shown it could beat Texas, 66-3, in Austin in its last game, could the Bruins duplicate the feat on another opponent?

“Don’t count on it not happening again,” McNown said, if all of the factors that happened at Texas returned to the fore.

Pushed, McNown was asked by another reporter: “If a headline says, ‘McNown Says “UCLA Will Beat Arizona by 63 points,” ’ then that’s not completely inaccurate?”

McNown’s reply: “It would be totally inaccurate because I didn’t say that. I said if the defense does what they did against Texas, take the ball away eight times, and if we don’t turn the ball over and if we get the ball in the end zone, that’s what happens, you put up a lot of points. All I’m saying is it happened once, it could happen again but I’m not saying it could happen against Arizona.

“You said sometime this year, and I just said it could happen sometime this year but not against Arizona.”

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With defensive end Pete Holland probably out because of a separated left shoulder, Jeff Ruckman will return to the starting lineup for Saturday’s game against Arizona. . . . Cornerback Javelin Guidry, who is dealing with a knee injury, is expected to start Saturday, but his playing time will probably be limited. . . . Shaun Williams is expected to start at free safety after sitting out two games because of a knee injury.

NEXT FOR UCLA

Who: Arizona

Where: Rose Bowl

When: Saturday, 12:30 p.m.

TV: Fox Sports West

Radio: AM 1150