Wayward Quarterbacks Need Not Apply

Vagabond quarterbacks need not contact UCLA.

That’s the message from Coach Bob Toledo, who expressed no interest in Craig Ochs this week despite recruiting him out of high school. Ochs, a sophomore, left Colorado and was reportedly shopping around the Pacific 10 Conference before settling on Division I-AA Montana on Wednesday so that he is assured of being eligible next season.

Last year Toledo spurned overtures from Brandon Hance, who left Purdue and wanted to transfer to either UCLA or USC. He ended up with the Trojans.

And in 2000, Toledo rebuffed Adam Hall, a transfer from Texas who ended up at San Diego State, UCLA’s opponent Saturday. Hall is second in the nation with 1,621 passing yards, but Toledo is having no second thoughts.

“I’m pleased with what I’ve got,” he said. “I didn’t want somebody transferring in.”

Toledo is content with Drew Olson, Matt Moore and John Sciarra, all of whom will be sophomores next season. He didn’t want Hall’s presence to discourage Olson or Moore from signing with the Bruins.

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Cornerback Joe Hunter has done a solid job on pass coverage. But even on the rare occasion a receiver beats him to the ball, Hunter doesn’t feel like he was burned.

He has seen first-hand what getting burned really means.

Hunter, a senior honor student, is serving an internship with the Los Angeles Fire Department station on Veteran Avenue in Westwood. He likes it so much he has changed his career goal from broadcasting to firefighter.

“I love helping people,” Hunter said. “I’m getting paramedic training. This is what I want to do.”

About 15 of Hunter’s co-workers at the station plan to attend UCLA’s Oct. 26 game against Stanford at the Rose Bowl.

“They are great guys,” he said. “They’ve helped me out a lot.”

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Remarkably, three games into the season and coming off a physical game against Colorado, UCLA is free of injuries.

Linebacker Patrick Pierre-Louis (dislocated shoulder) and tight end Keith Carter (high ankle sprain), the only players who missed last Saturday’s game, have returned to practice.