Timing Is Good for Fullback Stanley

Matt Stanley has generated some of the good news in the opening days of practice, and some of the best timing.

In strides he started to show during spring workouts, the sophomore walk-on has emerged as the answer to one of the worries of the fall. After playing all of three downs last season, at the end of a blowout against Washington State, he is on pace to become the temporary starter at fullback, a position depleted because of injury and the two-game suspension of Durell Price.

The dream gets even better. The second game is at Ohio State, not only the marquee nonconference contest for UCLA, but one that will be played only a few miles from where Stanley lived while attending junior high and high school.

“Nothing against Durell Price, but this is an opportunity for me to take advantage of,” said Stanley, who had one carry for 29 yards as a freshman. “There’s not a lot of guys who get this kind of opportunity, especially a walk-on.

“I’ve always had confidence in my ability and known I could play with these guys. I never questioned that. Last year, I thought I did well with the little chance I got. I knew I just had to keep playing well. Now, I get this big chance.”

To start.

To start at Ohio Stadium.

“That’s what I think about every day,” he said. “When I’m tired and aching and running around out here, that’s what I think about. I think about running out into the horseshoe in front of my family.”

The opportunity to gain such a role of prominence arose when Price was suspended for his role in the handicapped-parking scheme, though Price has not yet entered a plea, and because Mark Verti underwent a neck operation that ended his career. That left only two non-scholarship players to fill the void, Stanley and Adam Geitner.

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Santi Hall, an academic casualty during spring practice, is back with the team. He is being moved from outside linebacker to defensive end as part of the switch from the 3-4 to the 4-3. . . . Paul Nelson, who arrived last season as a receiver, has been working out with the secondary. It’s probably a permanent move. . . . The Bruins, who have been practicing in shorts and shoulder pads, will begin full-contact drills Wednesday.