Bruins Are No. 1 in the Turner Poll

UCLA isn’t ranked in the top 25, but listening to Illinois Coach Ron Turner, who must have gone to the Lou Holtz School of Sandbagging, you’d think the Bruins were national title contenders.

“They’re very talented, very well-coached, and they’ve got a big offensive line -- not just big, but good,” Turner, whose team plays UCLA at the Rose Bowl on Saturday, said in a conference call this week. “I’m real impressed with their quarterback; he showed great leadership, poise, a very good, accurate arm. They have good speed at receiver, and they’re very athletic.

“And their front four is as good as any we’ve played since I’ve been here. They’re real physical, strong, they have great technique, they’re fundamentally sound. Their linebackers are very athletic, and they have experience in the secondary. They’re as good a team as we’ll face all year.”

Asked if he expected the Bruins to alter their running game this week, Turner said (and it’s not known if he had a straight face): “Looking at our films, they could run, throw ... they could do whatever they want to do against us.”

UCLA Coach Karl Dorrell hardly saw it that way, acknowledging that UCLA’s game plan was conservative against Colorado and the offense needs to get better.

“I’m hoping we’re going to have marked improvement,” he said.

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Dorrell joked about his cautious nature, and said he won’t be installing any rah-rah new traditions, nor will the Bruins walk through the crowd into the stadium. “I don’t like that stuff,” he said. “I’m kind of a bland guy. I’m not into any fads. I’m just trying to get it done.”

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Fullback Manuel White, who rushed for 691 yards and eight touchdowns in his first two college seasons, didn’t touch the ball against Colorado -- he said he couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t even touch the ball in a game -- and fans e-mailed newspapers, phoned sports talk radio stations and flooded Bruin Web sites all week, demanding an explanation.

Dorrell seemed to take heed of the complaints; he said White will move to backup tailback against Illinois and will be integrated into the offense. White said he was amused by all the criticism.

“They were talking like I was insignificant in the game, but I blocked some people too,” he said. “... It’s nice to know they care. But whether I get 20 carries or none, we’ve got to win. If we won, we wouldn’t have heard anything about it.”

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Tailback Tyler Ebell and defensive lineman Ryan Boschetti resumed practice after limited outings Wednesday, and offensive tackle Steve Vieira and defensive lineman C.J. Niusulu were held out of contact because of minor injuries, though all are expected to play Saturday.