Moline Thrives With Quickness

Freshman defensive tackle Chase Moline, listed in the media guide at 274 pounds but actually barely weighing 245, has earned his keep this season by beating blockers with quickness.

In UCLA’s overtime victory over Stanford last week, Moline made back-to-back hustle plays that would have been tough for a larger lineman with less speed.

Early in the third quarter, Stanford had the ball on first down inside UCLA territory when Moline charged into the backfield untouched and tackled J.R. Lemon for a three-yard loss.

On the next play, the Cardinal ran a screen pass that had been successful most of the game. But this time, Moline read the play and recovered in time to tackle Lemon, which helped lead to a Stanford punt.

“It’s a huge achievement for me to be out there,” said Moline, who has 17 tackles, including 14 solo this season. “When I’m playing, I just keep my motor going and try not to stop. Even though I’m undersized, it helps me out that I go full speed all of the time.”

Splitting time with Kenneth Lombard, Moline has started five games this season next to sophomore tackle Brigham Harwell. Defensive coordinator Larry Kerr said that Moline is doing a better job of getting off blocks and making plays.

“I’ve been saying this from the start that Chase is an impressive football player,” Kerr said. “He just goes out and does his job. Nobody notices him for a lot of plays and then all of the sudden he pops up with a couple of big plays.”

Next season, Moline’s younger brother, Chane, a standout running back at Mission Viejo High, will join the Bruins. That will give the team three Molines with older brother Chad already a reserve walk-on linebacker.

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Offensive coordinator Tom Cable said there are a lot of similarities in the defenses between Arizona and Oklahoma, coached by the Stoops brothers, Mike and Bob. “They are aggressive,” Cable said about the Wildcats. “They fly around and hit you just like your typical Stoops team.”

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Coach Karl Dorrell said backup running back Chris Markey would play Saturday at Arizona despite suffering shortness of breath this week. ... Center Mike McCloskey, sidelined since Oct. 22 because of a right shoulder sprain, will not travel to Arizona because of a nagging shoulder injury.