Mild Concussion Doesn’t Stop Mitchell

In the first few minutes after Freddie Mitchell took the hard hit, he couldn’t remember all the plays. He didn’t want to leave the game so, after quarterback Cory Paus called each play, he asked receiver Brian Poli-Dixon where he was supposed to go.

“He was a little spacey at first,” Poli-Dixon said. “I kept on telling him, one more series and I’m going to tell the trainers. He woke up a little bit.”

Mitchell, the Bruins’ All-American candidate at wide receiver, played through what was diagnosed as a mild concussion in last Saturday’s 35-28 loss at Washington. UCLA Coach Bob Toledo said medical personnel never asked him to remove Mitchell from the game, and Mitchell said he never thought about asking out.

“It’s the threat of me being on the field,” Mitchell said. “If I’m not on the field, the other team would think ‘game over’ and think all they would have to do is double [cover] Poli-Dixon and stop [tailback] DeShaun Foster.”

Mitchell said he had a headache Sunday but felt fine Monday. Doctors examined him Sunday and will check him again before clearing him to return to practice, but he is expected to play against USC on Saturday.

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After Paus had identified himself, loudly and repeatedly, as the sole cause of the loss to Washington, Toledo talked with his quarterback and reminded him that no individual wins or loses a game. Paus is often quick, perhaps too quick, to blame himself whenever the Bruins lose.

Toledo said he admired Paus’ willingness to shoulder the blame and said those quarterbacks without confidence in their own abilities are the ones that blame others.

“I don’t disagree with anything I said, but you don’t really want to say that too much,” Paus said. “A little touch of that would have been enough.”

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Toledo said defensive end Kenyon Coleman, a preseason All-American candidate, would redshirt and repeat his senior season. Coleman is still rehabilitating after knee surgery eight weeks ago. . . . Toledo dismissed any concern about overworking Foster, who has 82 carries over the last three games. “He’s not in a union. The ball is not heavy,” Toledo said. “I try to get the ball to the people that can make plays.” . . . The Bruins say they’re not spending time trying to figure out the multitude of scenarios that will determine whether they play in the Aloha or Oahu bowls in Hawaii, or the Sun Bowl in El Paso. “We know we’re going to a bowl game,” Toledo said. “We’re just not sure if we’re wearing sombreros or leis.”