Defense Braces for Walker

UCLA’s defense had trouble stopping Oregon’s Jonathan Stewart and gave up 256 yards rushing in a 10-point loss to the Ducks last week.

Today, the Bruins’ challenge will be to slow down Notre Dame’s workhorse running back, Darius Walker, who has gained 526 of the team’s 641 rushing yards.

Walker, a junior who averages 4.4 yards a carry, has rushed for 299 yards in his last two games. He will be a marked man for UCLA linebackers Christian Taylor, Aaron Whittington and Reggie Carter.

“No matter who you are playing you have to do things right,” said Chuck Bullough, who coaches UCLA’s linebackers. “You have to fill the right gap, get into the right coverage and do the things you are supposed to do. It’s really about us.”

Walker, who led Notre Dame in rushing the last two seasons, is also dangerous as a receiver. He leads the team with 38 catches and has a streak of 21 games in which he has caught at least one pass.

In Walker’s last game, against Purdue, he had a career-high nine catches.

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UCLA cornerback Rodney Van on Notre Dame senior quarterback Brady Quinn, who has thrown 74 touchdown passes in his career, including 48 in his last 18 games: “He’s a good athlete who will find the open receiver. He’s not the type of runner [Duck quarterback Dennis Dixon] was last week, but he can hurt us with the pass. If we don’t play proper technique and start playing within our system, he’s going to make us look bad.”

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Sophomore Patrick Cowan will make the second start of his career, facing a Notre Dame defense that is giving up an average of 347.67 yards a game.

Jim Svoboda, the Bruins’ offensive coordinator, said the Irish -- who have nine senior starters on defense -- do not use many gimmicks.

“The first thing that jumps out at you is that they play real hard,” Svoboda said. “Their front line is very strong. They are good against the run and are solid pass rushers. Because they do such a good job getting to the passer, they don’t bring pressure that much. They mix it up very well, and it’s hard to get a bead on them. Your quarterback has to be on his toes.”

Defensive tackle Trevor Laws leads Notre Dame linemen with 31 tackles and is second on the team in sacks with 2.5.

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UCLA Coach Karl Dorrell on playing Notre Dame after last week’s 30-20 loss at Oregon: “I think we’re ready to bounce back after last week’s loss. We’ve been short in some area for every game this season, and we think that the time is now for our breakout game where we put everything together.”

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Notre Dame has 12 players on its roster from California; UCLA does not have a player from Indiana.... UCLA has not lost consecutive games since 2004 when the Bruins closed the season with defeats by USC and Wyoming.... With Dorrell as coach, UCLA is 16-2 when it takes more turnovers than it gives away. Both losses came this season, at Washington and Oregon.

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lonnie.white@latimes.com

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KEYS TO THE GAME

1 Jump balls. Look for Notre Dame receivers Rhema McKnight and Jeff Samardzija to try to use their size advantage against UCLA cornerbacks Trey Brown, Rodney Van and Alterraun Verner, who have to be aggressive to compensate for their lack of height.

2 Stop or go. UCLA’s ground game has been inconsistent with tailbacks Chris Markey and Kahlil Bell, but Notre Dame’s defense against the run has been shaky. The Irish give up an average of nearly 135 yards a game on the ground and have already seem two individual opponents run for more than 100 yards in a game this season.

3 Timing is everything. UCLA ranks second in the Pacific 10 Conference in time of possession, averaging 31 minutes 23 seconds a game. But Notre Dame holds the ball even longer on average, 31:57.

-- Lonnie White