Drew Drops on Depth Chart

Coach Karl Dorrell has said that he hasn’t lost confidence in freshman tailback Maurice Drew, who fumbled the only two times he touched the ball against Colorado, but that won’t be reflected in the depth chart for Saturday night’s game against Illinois.

Manuel White, a fullback who blocked but did not carry the ball against Colorado, will be the Bruins’ backup tailback behind Tyler Ebell, Dorrell said Wednesday. Drew will still return kickoffs, but it’s doubtful he’ll play tailback.

“He’s trying to push through it, his attitude has been good,” Dorrell said of Drew. “He was just a freshman with first-game jitters. He was clamping at the ball instead of just letting it come into his hands.”

Dorrell said there wasn’t a good connection between quarterback Matt Moore and Drew on the handoff, faulting neither Moore nor Drew for the fumble, but Drew took the blame.

“It was my fault,” he said. “My pocket wasn’t big enough.... I just have to keep my head up and practice hard. The best way to heal a loss is by getting another win.”

How would Drew know? His teams at Concord De La Salle High School went undefeated all four years he played there. Did he even remember the last time he lost a football game?

“Yeah, the seventh grade -- my eighth-grade team went undefeated too,” Drew said. “It was kind of weird, but it was a good experience, because I need to learn how to rebound.”

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Ebell (general soreness) and defensive linemen Ryan Boschetti (flu-like symptoms) and C.J. Niusulu (pain in his surgically repaired knee) were limited in practice Wednesday, but all three are expected to play Saturday. Linebacker Spencer Havner, who sat out the second half of the Colorado game because of a sprained shoulder and was listed as doubtful Monday, participated in contact drills Wednesday and is expected to start Saturday night.