Running Game Is Finding Its Stride

Considering UCLA’s 107-yard rushing effort in the season opener against Utah, the Bruins’ ground attack has come a long way.

Junior Chris Markey ranks 13th in the nation and second in the Pacific 10 Conference in rushing at 113 yards a game. As a team, the Bruins have averaged 207 yards on the ground over their last three games.

“But we still left yards on the field,” Markey said after rushing for 88 yards in UCLA’s 31-0 victory Saturday over Stanford. “Our line wants to do great things every game. That’s how they practice and that’s how they talk. We want to wear teams down and as a running back, that’s the way you want it. To keep getting after people.”

A key to UCLA’s improvement has been the play of redshirt freshman tackle Aleksey Lanis and junior guard Shannon Tevaga.

In their first season working as a tandem, Lanis and Tevaga have developed into a solid force for the Bruins. That was evident on a 32-yard run by Kahlil Bell in the third quarter against Stanford, when Bell went through a gaping hole opened on the right side by Lanis and Tevaga.

“Aleksey Lanis is off to a really good start and he’s getting better and better every week,” Coach Karl Dorrell said. “It’s good to have a guy inside of him that’s a stabilizing force for Aleksey. Shannon gives him a great comfort level to have an experienced guard next to him that can help him through some tough times.

“They work well together and that’s going to be a good strong side for us as the season goes forward.”

Lanis said UCLA’s line never lost confidence against Stanford, even after failing to score a touchdown in the first half.

“We weren’t getting frustrated because we knew that we were working on them, wearing them down,” Lanis said. “We just had to keep our heads in the game because we knew we were one big play from breaking things open.”

Tevaga, a preseason candidate for the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award, has quietly grown into the leader of the offensive line. At 6 feet 3 and 316 pounds, the junior has started 22 consecutive games -- the longest current streak on the team -- and is now more comfortable speaking up to his teammates.

“His leadership is starting to come,” Dorrell said about Tevaga, who earned All-Pacific 10 Conference honorable mention last season. “He’s never wanted to look upon himself as a leader, but he really understands that he is the senior veteran of the offensive line with the most experience playing.”

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After watching UCLA struggle on offense for the last six quarters, Dorrell is still optimistic about the Bruins becoming a high-scoring unit.

“We’re trying to make sure that our players stay confident and be aggressive,” Dorrell said about UCLA’s offense, which ranks sixth in the Pac-10 in total yards at 373.2 a game. “I’m fully confident that we’re going to have a very good offense. We’re just misfiring here and there, but I think we’ve made up some of that gap with some of the success we had in the second half.”

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Last year, Arizona embarrassed UCLA, 52-14, in Tucson and ended the Bruins’ eight-game winning streak to start the season. The Wildcats are 0-2 in Pac-10 play after a 21-10 loss at home Saturday to Washington. Arizona sophomore quarterback Willie Tuitama, who passed for 204 yards and two touchdowns against UCLA last year, is 10th in the Pac-10 in passing efficiency with a 105.4 rating this year. UCLA quarterback Ben Olson is No. 7 at 124.5.

lonnie.white@latimes.com