UCLA football: A fan’s look back at Oregon State

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We apologize for the delay in this blog, but we figured if UCLA wasn’t good enough to be shown on live television over the weekend, then we’d follow suit too.

Too bad because the Bruins -- for one half at least -- turned in one of their better performances of the Pac-10 season.

Though there are definite seedlings of growth in several areas, it still wasn’t good enough for a victory, but when you consider that that other L.A. college team can’t seem to win in the state of Oregon either, it’s not so bad after all.

Here are ‘observations, opinions and reflections from the fan’s chair’ after UCLA’s 26-19 loss to Oregon State.

-- Was this the week Kevin Prince finally grew up? Well, if you consider what he did in the fourth quarter in almost delivering the Bruins a victory, you’d have to say yes.

-- Prince completed 22 of 34 passes for 323 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdown passes. His ball had zip, he looked like a leader and you can only hope with a home game against a young Washington team looming that he can build on this effort to continue raising the output of the offense.

-- Early on it didn’t look good for Prince, and his habit of having the ball knocked out of his hands while under pressure is of high concern.

-- Felt a little bad for freshman Richard Brehaut, who didn’t really get a chance to show what he can do after the coaches led us to believe he would play more than a three-and-out series that featured two handoffs -- though Prince’s effort surely put an end to any continued thoughts of a rotation next week, right?

-- Every week we’ve been waiting for a go-to receiver to emerge, and this week there were two -- Nelson Rosario and Taylor Embree.

-- Rosario, though only a sophomore, has been sometimes frustrating to watch because of his inconsistency. But after his 58-yard touchdown catch and two-point conversion brought UCLA to within 19-11 in the fourth quarter, as a fan you get really excited in hopes that the potential for this 6-foot-5 weapon is finally being unlocked.

-- By the same token, this effort -- he had six catches for 152 yards and his touchdown catch was not only impressive because of the acrobatic catch but also because of the breakaway speed and strength he exhibited once he had the ball in hand -- needs to become a habit.

-- Embree, also a sophomore, had five catches for 88 yards and came up huge on a fade pattern on a fourth-and-goal play to tie the score late in the fourth quarter.

-- If Rosario and Embree can get it going, and the hands of tight ends Ryan Moya and Logan Paulsen can be counted upon, there might be hope for this offense yet (but where is the running game?).

-- There definitely seemed to be more creativity in the offensive play-calling by coordinator Norm Chow, including a double reverse that freshman Randall Carroll turned into a five-yard gain. Chow also seemed more comfortable letting Prince throw more than 10 yards down field.

-- Bruins coaches always talk about players needing to step up when an opportunity arises, and defensive tackle Jess Ward did just that in place of injured Jerzy Siewierski. Ward had six tackles, including one for a loss.

-- The defense looked lost on Oregon State’s first touchdown when running back Jacquizz Rodgers lined up in the wildcat formation (they call it the ‘wild beaver’ in Corvallis) and threw a touchdown pass to a wide open Brady Camp to make it 13-0.

-- After that play, color analyst James Washington had this to say: ‘I think Stevie Wonder could’ve hit this guy because he was wide open.’ Yes, he really said that.

-- UCLA’s first possession of the second half was a bit perplexing. After going from its own 25 to the Oregon 14 with the aid of two major penalties by the Beavers, the Bruins decided to use Johnathan Franklin on three consecutive runs to reach the six-yard line at which point they called a timeout before their fourth-down play to ... attempt a field goal. Huh? Even analyst Steve Preece didn’t get it: ‘Someone’s going to have to explain this one to me, James,’ he said to Washington. Agreed.

-- Not lost on us: The game might’ve had a totally different ending had Alterraun Verner come up with what should have been a sure interception and touchdown return on Oregon State’s first play from scrimmage after the Bruins tied the score at 19-19. I wonder what Akeem Ayers was thinking when he saw that. Remember Arizona?

-- Trailing 19-11, Terrence Austin had a 90-plus yard punt return called back because of an illegal block in the back, but there was no arguing against it, though Coach Rick Neuheisel certainly tried.

-- Let me be clear when I say no offense to Kai Forbath in any way whatsoever, but it was kind of nice to not hear the kicker’s name very much during the broadcast. Though it’s not as if the Bruins were scoring touchdowns -- at least for most of the game -- in place of Forbath’s nearly automatic field goals.

-- Speaking of special teams, kickoff specialist/punter Jeff Locke had his worst game of the season, but since he’s leading the conference in punting we can let it slide. Locke averaged only 37.1 yards on seven punts and did not have a touchback on a kickoff.

-- Positive spin: The defense held Oregon State to two for 11 on third-down conversions, one of their best success rates of the season.... UCLA had only two penalties for 11 yards ... The Bruins did not commit a turnover, though they fumbled four times but recovered all of them.

-- Final grade: B-minus. Of course 0 for October doesn’t feel good for any fan, but at least this team doesn’t seem to be showing signs of giving up the way some Bruins teams in the past have had the tendency to do. Once again, the defense kept things within striking distance and the offense finally made it count by coming back late. Still, it’s all about the scoreboard and getting close can only buy you so much time. It’s time to build on these positive efforts by Prince and the receivers and show there indeed is something to look forward to.

-- Jim Barrero