Bruins lose Cowan to season-ending surgery

UCLA’s quarterback situation became a little clearer, though not more positive, on Saturday.

Patrick Cowan said he will undergo surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and will be unable to play in the 2008 season. Ben Olson, meanwhile, will likely undergo surgery to have a screw put in his right foot to help his fractured fifth metatarsal heal. He said he would be out six to eight weeks.

Both quarterbacks, who will be seniors in the fall, were injured during Thursday’s practice on back-to-back plays.

Cowan, overwhelmed by the news, met with reporters before Saturday’s scrimmage, saying, “All I know is I need the surgery and I’m not going to be able to play next season.”

Coach Rick Neuheisel tried to put a positive spin on the situation.

“We’re going to play that position well,” Neuheisel said. “I have full confidence in [offensive coordinator] Norm Chow. I have full confidence in the kids.”

Cowan, who has already used a redshirt season, was unsure whether he would petition for a sixth year of eligibility, saying, “I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting this. There are a lot of things that can happen at this point. I need some time to think about what’s going to happen.”

Cowan had won the starting spot this spring.

Olson said he expected to be ready by fall practice, though he is not guaranteed the starting spot. He and community college transfer Kevin Craft will be the top two quarterbacks.

“I am not going to worry about that, as far as if I’m the starter or not,” said Olson, who has suffered knee injuries each of the last two seasons. “As far as if I’m the starter, that’s not my call, never has been, never will be.”

Olson will meet with doctors Monday to discuss whether to have the screw put in his foot, though he said, “Everybody I talked to with this type of fracture said the screw is probably the way to go.”

The six-to-eight week recovery period will cut into time Olson needed to assimilate to the new offensive system. He hopes to be back in workouts by July.

“It’s tough, because you’re missing out on that time where you could be learning,” Olson said. “I’m going to have to stay in the playbook, watch a lot of film and try to get the mental reps that way.”

Chow said that Olson wouldn’t miss much field work if he returned by the first of July.

“They won’t be throwing the ball around much before that,” Chow said.

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Craft played with the first unit during the scrimmage that ended spring drills. He completed 11 of 24 passes for 95 yards after a slow start. Craft threw one touchdown pass and had one pass intercepted.

“He’s just going too fast,” Neuheisel said. “He’s almost hyperventilating. He’s trying so hard, he just needs to calm down.”

It has been a whirlwind month for Craft, who enrolled at UCLA and began spring practice the same day he started classes. The adjustment was made tougher by having to relearn how to play under center. He worked out of the shotgun at Mt. San Antonio College.

“I still have a lot of work to do during the off-season,” Craft said. “I have to watch more film, get acclimated with the offense. I’ve got to get in the weight room too.”

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Linebacker John Hale will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee to repair the medial meniscus. . . . Free safety Glenn Love left the scrimmage with an injured right knee.

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chris.foster@latimes.com