Bruins Not Excited Over the News

The first Bowl Championship Series rankings were released Monday. Someone wake the Bruins.

“What’s the BCS?” quarterback Cade McNown asked, apparently seriously.

It’s the organization and rating system that will determine their future and for now has them No. 1 and on a path to the Fiesta Bowl’s national championship game. That part about the otherwise complicated formula isn’t tough to figure out.

“I thought maybe it was [No.] 2,” Coach Bob Toledo said when asked if he expected to open at the top of the ratings that will be updated each week. “But nothing surprises me anymore. I’m just glad it’s not 3 or 4.”

That news came two days after UCLA had received a boost from Miami, which upset West Virginia. That was important because strength of schedule is one of the factors in the BCS system and the Bruins will play Miami at the Orange Bowl on Dec. 5.

“I think those things help, as long as you go down and beat Miami,” Toledo said. “The teams we play against, I’d hope they would win all their games, except when they play us.”

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Keith Brown was struggling to understand his demotion to second-string tailback in favor of Jermaine Lewis after one bad game. He lost four yards in five carries at California only a week after he had gained 101 against Oregon.

“I feel like [the coaches] should have maybe more confidence in me,” he said. “I just have to prove them wrong. Prove them right actually, because they know I’m a good player.”