Guerrero isn’t about to panic

UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero heard some harsh words from fans as he walked off the Rose Bowl field Saturday after a 37-15 loss to Washington State.

The words were directed toward Guerrero, but the topic was Coach Karl Dorrell, whose team is 4-4 after three consecutive defeats.

Some in the crowd made it clear that they wanted a new coach, but Guerrero would have none of it.

Guerrero said Dorrell, whose teams had won 10 straight at the Rose Bowl before Saturday’s defeat, has four games left to “right the ship.”

“With any program, my issue is to provide the resources and the things needed to develop a successful program and that’s what we’re going to do,” Guerrero said. “Last year we had a pretty darn good year, so you don’t throw out that good year just because we’re struggling right now.

“There are reasons why we’re not clicking on all cylinders. Obviously, we just need to bring this team along and allow them to grow.

“Hopefully, we’ll get some good wins here at the end of the season.”

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As the Bruins’ leading rusher this season, tailback Chris Markey said he did not know why he spent much of the first half watching from the sideline, carrying the ball only four times for 14 yards.

“You have to talk to the coaches about that one,” he said. “I have no clue.”

Dorrell said he went with Chane Moline and Derrick Williams early because “we were just trying to find ways to be productive.”

The second half wasn’t much better for Markey. He finished with eight carries for 22 yards, his lowest output of the season.

“I feel I could have helped the team out,” he said.

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After last week’s 20-17 loss at Notre Dame, UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker was questioned about how the Bruins allowed the Irish to drive 80 yards in three plays to score the winning touchdown.

On Saturday, Walker was forced to talk about UCLA’s poor play in the second half against the Cougars.

“My first inclination is that it seemed like we were in position to make plays but we didn’t,” Walker said. “We had a couple of pass-interference calls, and I don’t like lying or crying, but I thought some of them may be questionable.”

Cornerback Rodney Van had a particularly tough day. He was often picked on by Washington State quarterback Alex Brink, who passed for 405 yards and three touchdowns.

“It hurts just to realize the things that we need to work on,” Van said. “As good as we think we are, there’s always something we can work on.”

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Washington State punter Darryl Blunt was taken to a local hospital after falling ill during pregame warmups.

The Cougars used kicker Loren Langley in his place during the first half and had receiver Michael Bumpus punt after halftime.

No further details were available regarding the condition of Blunt, a sophomore who played for Bellflower St. John Bosco High. He returned to the Rose Bowl late in the third quarter and stood with his team on the sideline but was not in uniform.

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UCLA receiver Brandon Breazell suffered an injury to his ribs in pregame warmups and played only briefly in the first quarter.... Linebacker Aaron Whittington, who suffered a right ankle sprain against Notre Dame last week, started but aggravated his injury and did not play in the second half.... Safeties Dennis Keyes and Chris Horton led UCLA with nine tackles each.

lonnie.white@latimes.com

david.wharton@latimes.com