Help Is on the Way for Toledo

Bob Toledo doesn’t threaten his players. And he rarely gives ultimatums.

So it’s not surprising that the plan devised by the UCLA coach to avoid a repeat of off-the-field problems that torpedoed the Bruins last season involves communication and trust.

And it requires the players to be accountable for one another.

Toledo has appointed a nine-player advisory council charged with keeping tabs on teammates and ensuring that no one, for example, takes possession of a car that doesn’t belong to him (as tailback DeShaun Foster did a year ago) or fails to inform coaches about an arrest (as quarterback Cory Paus did).

“The players sometimes know what their teammates are doing more than the coaches do,” Toledo said.

“I told them, ‘If something is going on and it’s wrong, get it stopped.’ ”

The council, which will meet once a week, consists of one player from each position group and will take the place of traditional captains. Toledo will appoint game captains weekly.

“Ultimately, I am the one who is responsible,” he said. “But players will listen to one another.”

Council members are all juniors and seniors, although Toledo plans to add a freshman in coming weeks.

“We aren’t informants who are going to run to the coaches,” said Ryan Smith, a junior receiver on the council. “[Toledo] is putting it on us to police the team. There is only so much you can do, but when a teammate calls you out about something, you are apt to listen.”

Interestingly, Toledo appointed Paus to the council. The senior quarterback served several days in jail and performed 100 hours of community service during the off-season because of two driving-under-the-influence convictions, but he said this was not a case of the fox guarding the henhouse.

“I wanted to be on [the council] and I was appreciative and grateful that I was included,” Paus said. “I am the leader of the offense and it will be a good thing for me and the team.”

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Quarterbacks Matt Moore of Hart High in Newhall and Drew Olson of Piedmont impressed coaches during three days of freshmen-only practices this week, but it is too early to tell whether either could contribute this season.

“They have caught on very fast,” Toledo said. “They are both going to be very good football players. I know they have physical skills.”

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Freshman defensive lineman C.J. Niusulu has a court date Aug. 27 to face felony assault charges stemming from a fight at a drive-in theater in his hometown of Barstow.

Toledo said that the defensive lineman would be dismissed from the team if convicted of a felony and would be suspended for at least one game if convicted of a misdemeanor.