Players Relish Role of Pac-10 Underdogs

In Year 4 of Coach Karl Dorrell’s era, UCLA exudes quiet confidence as it enters the final week of preparation for its season opener against Utah on Saturday.

Last year’s 10-2 record is a big reason why.

“Obviously, our expectations here are pretty high,” sophomore running back Kahlil Bell said. “We feel that we have the talent on this team to have an even better season. We have a lot of potential, but as everybody knows, potential is a very scary word. Because if you don’t live up to it, then you’re nothing.”

Picked in a preseason media poll to finish fifth in the Pacific 10 Conference, the Bruins have relished the underdog role in training camp.

With mostly sophomores and juniors on its two-deep list, UCLA began camp working at a breakneck pace, installing multiple plays and schemes daily. Young players were forced to keep up and, at times, the Bruins looked like a team in transition because of the heavy amount of scrimmaging done during camp.

“We hit more this fall camp than we did last year,” Dorrell said. “We scrimmaged something [different] every day.”

Bell said the Bruins liked the difficult workload.

“We know that we’re not there yet, but the attitude is that we’re going to be ready for Utah and continue to build,” Bell said.

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Last season, Utah relied on senior Quinton Ganther, who had 1,120 yards in 205 carries, as its main running back, but UCLA may see a group of runners Saturday. USC transfer Darryl Poston is listed as the starter but he recently returned to the lineup after being sidelined because of a hamstring injury. Coach Kyle Whittingham plans to give Mike Liti and Darrell Mack work against the Bruins.

“In fact, in a lot of ways it’s an advantage,” Whittingham told the Deseret Morning News. “As long as you get the production from that position, it’s no issue whether you go with one, two or three guys.”

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Dorrell said that UCLA’s offensive line is superior to last season’s group because of its mobility despite having three 300-pound players in the unit. Guard Shannon Tevaga and tackle Aleksey Lanis, each listed at 316 pounds, and tackle Noah Sutherland, listed at 299, have led the first-team line since camp started. Center Robert Chai (280) and guard Chris Joseph (282) are the other starters. Last season, UCLA averaged 431 yards a game in offense.

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Dorrell on UCLA sophomore defensive lineman Kenneth Lombard: “He quietly has had a great camp. He’s the most versatile of all the defensive linemen. He can play all four spots and knows them well.”