Eddie Vanderdoes: It’s ‘do or die’ this week for UCLA

UCLA is hanging on for dear life in the Pac-12 South. The Bruins are currently in fifth place in the six-team division, but can get back to first place by winning the rest of their divisional games.

The first step toward that goal is beating No. 14 Arizona on Saturday. Another subpar performance isn’t going to cut it against the Wildcats, one of the better teams UCLA will play this season.

So this week is more important than most.

“It’s definitely a do-or-die week going into Arizona,” sophomore defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes said Tuesday. “This is a crucial game for us.”

Coach Jim Mora didn’t want to use the same phrase Vanderdoes did, but had similar thoughts Tuesday.

“You’re trying to get me say must-win, and I don’t like that term,” Mora said with a laugh. “I think that over the course of building your program, you want to try and treat everything the same, but this game, there’s an enhanced sense of urgency. There must be. And there is. I felt it today, I felt it in meetings, and the important thing is that we continue to feel it through the course of the week, and then we play well on Saturday.”

Through eight games this season, the word to describe this UCLA team has been inconsistent. The team looked like a legitimate contender against Arizona State but then played down to inferior teams such as California and Colorado.

UCLA won’t have that luxury on Saturday. Arizona has one of the best offenses in the country. If the Bruins don’t play like they did against Arizona State, whatever hopes they have for a conference title are shot.

“To me, it’s a mindset. It’s a mindset change,” Mora said. “It’s not necessarily how we practice, it’s a mindset. It’s bearing down even more than we typically do. We practice well, we’re focused, but it’s now finding the next level. We’ve had repetition, we’re doing the same thing, so less tolerance for errors on the practice field and trying to be perfect in practice so when you get to the game, you play a little more fearless.

“It’s not necessarily changing the structure in what we do, it’s the mindset. We’re always doing that, but now, it’s ‘Let’s go. Enough.’ I’m sure everybody out there feels the same way. Enough. It’ll be a great game. They’re a great team. We’ve got our work cut out for us, and it’s going to be fun.”

For more Bruin observations, follow Everett Cook on Twitter @everettcook