Bruins prepare to blast Ducks out of the water

Friday, October 16, 1998

Bruins prepare to blast Ducks out of the water

PREVIEW: Battle against Oregon must be won by overcoming power,
speed

By Rocky Salmon

Daily Bruin Staff

An offensive blitzkrieg will hit the Rose Bowl this weekend. The
winner of this stand-off will sit at the top of the Pac-10 alone
and in control of their own destiny. The defeated will leave
battered and bruised, carrying their first loss of the season.

No. 11 Oregon stands at 5-0 (2-0 in Pac-10) with the second-best
offense in the nation and ranked No. 1 in pass efficiency because
of Akili Smith.

No. 2 UCLA (4-0, 2-0 Pac-10) is riding a 14-game winning streak
and is second to Oregon in scoring offense, rushing offense and in
overall total offense.

Two out of the last three times the Ducks migrated to the Rose
Bowl, they came away with wins. The last two times the Bruins
ventured up to Eugene, Ore., they won, coming back from a 21-10
first quarter deficit last year to pull out a 39-31 win.

The stage has been set for a major offensive battle where the
winner will be the team that fires last.

UCLA played in a big game last weekend against
offensive-oriented Arizona, winning 52-28, setting up the showdown
for the Pac-10 lead.

Now the Bruins will have to come back to battle another
offensive threat. Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti has brought his
undefeated Ducks to the visiting trenches of the Rose Bowl with
strong offensive artillery, ranging from the running back to the
place-kicker.

‘This is the best Oregon team I have seen,’ UCLA head coach Bob
Toledo said. ‘Every time I turn on the film, it’s 21-0 in the first
quarter. It’s frightening … they score a point a minute.’

The general of this Delta Force is senior Akili Smith. This No.
11 player shared time with Jason Maas last year but blossomed into
the No. 1 leader of passing efficiency as well as the leader in
Pac-10 in touchdowns (15), yards per completion (19.4) and total
offense per game (297.0).

The Ducks’ high-flying, bomb-dropping passing game is deadly
because of Smith and his athletic skills.

‘When we tackle Smith, we have to corral him and hold on,’
Toledo said. ‘We can’t afford to miss him because that is when he
makes the big plays. He is a strong guy who is very similar to
McNown.’

Helping General Smith lead the calvary is the leading rusher in
the Pac-10, Reuben Droughns, who has kept the opposing defense off
guard.

‘He is physical with good speed and could break for a couple of
hundred yards if you don’t control him,’ Toledo said.

Droughns has replaced the leading rusher of the Pac-10 last
year, Saladin McCullough. And finishing off the strong arsenal from
Oregon is the place-kicker Nathan Villegas who is 10-10 in field
goals, averaging 2.30 field goals a game.

Across the battlefield are the Bruins. Offensive professionals
will be led by Cade McNown, who is third in the Pac-10 in passing
efficiency.

McNown may not have the stellar numbers of Akili Smith, but the
Bruin offense is second in total yards thanks to his
leadership.

Standing behind him is UCLA’s set of three backs that have
rumbled and bashed their way through the opposition’s defense.

‘Cade McNown is a great quarterback who’s a veteran,’ Bellotti
said. ‘They’ve got great running backs, not one, but several, and
probably one of the best offensive lines.

‘Two explosive offenses are going up against each other, but it
will probably be decided by the defense.’

UCLA’s defense stepped up with the introduction of new defensive
coordinator Nick Aliotti. Aliotti was the defensive coordinator for
the fabled Oregon ‘Gang Green’ defense that went to the Rose Bowl
in 1995.

Aliotti has kept the same philosophy as Rocky Long, last year’s
coordinator, and the defense has responded by playing physically.
The key to holding off Oregon’s blitzkrieg skills is through tough
play and clean tackling.

‘We just have to out-tough them,’ linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo
said. ‘We have to chase them down from behind, smash them and crush
them.’

Even with the defense being a critical factor in the game, both
offenses have put up jaw-dropping numbers to put the defense in the
shadows.

When the final whistle blows on Saturday, the dust will clear,
the points will be tallied and one undefeated season will be
dismantled. And the winner will breathe easier, knowing that it
just defeated the toughest foe in the Pac-10.

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