Cowan takes reins
UCLA coach Karl Dorrell is spending his week in a most unenviable position for a Pac-10 coach.
In a league where, more than any other, quarterback play tends to mean everything for a team, Dorrell watched his starter, Ben Olson, go down for at least a month with a knee injury last weekend.
That moves Patrick Cowan, Olson’s backup, into the spotlight and means he’ll shoulder the bowl hopes of the Bruins for the bulk of the remaining season, if not for all of it.
On Tuesday, Dorrell downplayed the significance of the switch, citing the snaps Cowan got in August while ostensibly battling Olson for the starting job – one that was widely assumed to be Olson’s the whole time.
“It won’t,” Dorrell said, when asked if the move changes his offense. “He’s a guy that has had half the reps in training camp because of the competition with he and Ben.”
Cowan did impress in his time against Arizona on Saturday after Olson’s injury. The sophomore completed eight of his first nine passes and finished 20 of 29 with a pair of touchdowns in UCLA’s 27-7 win.
“He’s got a big arm too,” Dorrell said. “It’s been one of those things where I know from an offensive skill position standpoint they didn’t see any difference.”
Just a snap
Washington fans are still lamenting the Huskies’ narrow loss at USC last week, and with good reason.
Washington had the ball in Trojan territory needing a touchdown to win, much like Washington State the week before it. But whereas the Cougars’ Hail Mary fell short of the end zone, the Huskies didn’t even get one off as the offense failed to get the ball snapped in time when it was put into play with 2 seconds on the clock.
“We had a play,” coach Tyrone Willingham said. “We just did not have (a snap), and I attribute it to me.”
The Huskies should have had at least four or five seconds on the clock, it appeared, but a few precious ticks ran off before the standard stoppage for a first down. Had Washington been given those few seconds, Willingham said his team would have opted to spike the ball, then attempt a Hail Mary. As it was, they simply stood on the field as time expired, left to wonder what might have been.
Cal in control
Mike Bellotti’s words won’t come as much comfort for WSU fans.
The Oregon coach watched his team get throttled by California in what was supposed to be a clash of Pac-10 titans and Bellotti has little doubt that WSU’s next opponent is a good one
“They’re the best team we’ve played,” Bellotti said. “The quarterback is playing at a really high level. They have the combination of running backs and wide receivers to keep you off balance.”
Notes
Arizona has ruled out quarterback Willie Tuitama for this week because of a concussion, and the sophomore quarterback may wear a specially designed helmet since he has now suffered two in a month. Adam Austin will start in his place. … Oregon State’s Mike Riley said he’s still toying with the idea of playing two quarterbacks as senior Matt Moore has struggled. … USC’s Pete Carroll said his team isn’t getting lucky even after winning the last two games by less than a score. The coach opined that his No. 3 Trojans are still playing well, just not winning by the margins many have gotten used to over the last two or three seasons.