New Bruins to get first Rose Bowl play in Saturday walkthrough
By Daily Bruin
Aug. 23, 2013 7:09 p.m.
When the UCLA football team participates in its walkthrough Saturday night at the Rose Bowl, it will do so knowing that, in a week, only the venue and the drills will remain the same.
For the first time in 2013, the opponent, Nevada, will not be wearing an Adidas practice uniform. Tens of thousands of screaming fans will crowd the stadium, a stark change from the emptiness of the closed walkthrough.
For coach Jim Mora, though, the exercise is less about making comparisons and more about making sure everything is down pat before the season begins and there’s less time to slow down.
“We’re just trying to cross all the t’s, dot all the i’s, and make sure we’re taking care of the details as we get ready to prepare for that first game on the 31st,” Mora said. “I like where we’re at. I think physically, we’re as healthy as you could expect coming out of three weeks of tough, grueling camp.”
All but a select few of the team’s freshmen, including wide receiver Eldridge Massington and defensive end Kylie Fitts, joined the program as of August and did not participate in spring ball. Saturday gives them a chance to get used to their home for the next four or five years, a home a few of them will likely have to produce in very early on.
“We’re going to play a lot of them,” said Mora of his freshmen, referring to UCLA’s opener. “They’ve earned that right. The next step is seeing if they can go out there and do it again on the grass at the Rose Bowl.”
The lights will be on and the Rose Bowl’s tunnel will once again be full. Playing a game that counts in the books, though, will have to wait just one more week.
Compiled by Andrew Erickson, Bruin Sports senior staff.
