UCLA Takes Its Picks

No one will remember the five UCLA false starts. Not when quarterback Drew Olson’s first start had such a pleasant ending.

No one will remember Washington quarterback Cody Pickett for his 429 yards passing. Not when simply pronouncing his name will remind the Bruins that they intercepted four of his passes.

No one will remember the injury that sidelined UCLA cornerback Matt Ware. Not when defensive end Dave Ball turned up the heat and sacked Pickett three times.

And no one will remember recent Bruin red zone woes. Not when tailback Tyler Ebell made like one of the boats in adjacent Lake Washington and brought the Bruins into the safe harbor of the end zone three times.

UCLA overcame 13 penalties, another nervous freshman quarterback and a banged-up secondary to defeat Washington, 34-24, Saturday at Husky Stadium in a Pacific 10 Conference game that might have created a contender and revealed a pretender.

A year ago UCLA had an identical record, 6-3, but the feeling in Westwood was totally different.

That team had just lost three in a row with 23 seniors and its focus was irreparably fractured.

This team has won two in a row and is 4-1 on the road and 3-2 in the conference with 22 freshmen.

As for focus, it’s on next week’s game against Arizona. No talk of qualifying for a bowl game with a sixth victory. And certainly no pie-in-the-sky discussion of the possibility of winning three more and sneaking into the Rose Bowl.

“We learned that lesson last year,” cornerback Ricky Manning said. “We’re not talking about being bowl eligible.”

Manning had one of the interceptions that thwarted Washington (4-5, 1-4), which is in danger of posting a nonwinning record for the first time in 26 years. Marcus Reese, Jarrad Page and Spencer Havner had the others, and each one silenced the crowd of 72,017 that alternately thundered and grumbled.

“[Pickett] was frustrated that there were a couple things that happened during the game where he was wondering about the communication,” Washington Coach Rick Neuheisel said. “All I am trying to do is get him to relax. When he is in that kind of rhythm, he is outstanding. When things get going, as is the case with most human beings, it’s more difficult to function as effectively.”

Reese’s interception was the first sign of trouble for Pickett, and it set up a touchdown early in the second quarter that extended UCLA’s lead to 17-7. The pass was tipped by Havner and Reese returned it 29 yards to the Washington one-yard line.

The next interception was Manning’s, which ended a long Husky drive late in the second quarter that began at the UCLA two. A pass-interference call gave Washington the ball at the UCLA 26 with 13 seconds left, but Manning caught the errant pass at the goal line and the half ended with UCLA ahead, 24-14.

Page, a freshman safety who played despite a bruised shin, sore knee and sprained thumb, made his first career interception in the first minute of the third quarter. He returned it 14 yards to midfield and after Olson hit Mike Seidman for a 42-yard gain on third down, Nate Fikse kicked his second field goal to stretch the lead to 27-14.

Havner’s interception nailed the coffin. Washington trailed by only three with 1:17 to play when he speared Pickett’s pass and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown, his second score of the season.

And Ball, who has 10 sacks this season, headed a strong rush that forced Pickett to rush many of his passes.

“Everybody did a great job of making up for me being out,” said Ware, who left late in the second quarter because of a strained hamstring, an injury that is not expected to be serious.

His replacement, Joe Hunter, became the hunted much of the second half. Pickett picked on him time and again, and he held his own until Paul Arnold turned a five-yard catch into a 66-yard touchdown after juking Hunter near the sideline.

Freshman Marcus Cassel replaced Hunter for a few plays, then gave way to Keith Short, who nearly had an interception two plays before Havner made his big play.

“We started running out of players,” UCLA Coach Bob Toledo said. “Keith Short did a nice job. So did Cassel and [reserve safety] Kevin Brandt.”

The most prominent player thrust into action was Olson, who last week watched fellow freshman Matt Moore defeat Stanford in his first start.

Toledo informed Olson six hours before game time that he would make his first start. Although he was nervous early, tripping and falling while dropping back on a third-down play from the Husky five-yard line, eventually his passes were as crisp as a Washington apple.

“He was anxious, antsy, then he started to smooth it out,” receiver Tab Perry said. “When he called plays early in the game he was rushing, but he picked up more confidence after he completed a few passes.”

Olson had modest numbers, completing 13 of 27 passes for 189 yards with no touchdowns. But like Moore a week earlier, he did not have a pass intercepted.

“This was such a loud stadium,” Olson said. “Once I completed a few, I relaxed and calmed down.”

Washington held a brief 7-3 lead after a blocked punt set up a 13-yard touchdown pass from Pickett to Reggie Williams. After Ebell, who rushed for 102 yards, scored twice on one-yard runs, Pickett hit Kevin Ware from 20 yards for Washington’s only other points of the half.

Olson’s early nervousness was masked by big plays from his teammates. Ebell bolted 23 yards on his first carry, Craig Bragg returned a punt 48 yards and Junior Taylor took a pitch from Olson on a swinging gate trick play for 38 yards.

“A lot of guys contributed, young and old,” Ball said. “That’s the way it’s gotten on this team. It’s becoming a fun season.”