Still Waiting to Go Deep

UCLA quarterback Drew Olson could not have asked for a better start to his senior season.

He leads the Pacific 10 Conference in completion percentage and has passed for 1,049 yards and eight touchdowns for the 4-0 Bruins.

However, there has been one thing missing from UCLA’s passing game: the deep ball.

“That’s not what we do; we don’t chuck the ball down the field,” said Olson, whose 160.3 passing efficiency rating ranks 13th in the nation and third in the conference. “But I do think we need to stretch defenses.”

With opponents determined to slow UCLA’s rushing attack, Olson said he has noticed opportunities for longer passes but for whatever reason the Bruins’ haven’t completed many.

Olson’s longest completion of the season is 48 yards to sophomore Brandon Breazell, who did most of the work after catching a mid-range crossing pass in a 63-21 victory over Rice.

The lack of a deep passing game may have contributed to UCLA’s being held to 65 yards rushing in last week’s 21-17 victory over Washington. Olson completed 29 of 44 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns, but his biggest gain was for 39 yards to Marcus Everett, who turned a short pass into a big play by breaking two tackles.

“We called a couple of [long pass plays] early and we missed,” Olson said.

This week, the Bruins face a California defense that leads the Pac-10 in fewest yards given up, fewest points scored against and pass efficiency. The Bears give up averages of only 10.6 points and 288.6 yards a game.