 Keeping It Bruin: A Look Into UCLA Athletics
WESTWOOD—The day we have all been anxiously waiting is
almost here. In a little over a week the Bruins begin training camp and when that
is all said and done, the college football season will finally be upon us.
For the past six weeks, the Bruins have been pushing
their bodies past their limits to make sure they are completely prepared for
San Diego State, come September 5. Winning doesn’t come without a price
and by working out four days a week in the morning and afternoon, the Bruin
football team has definitely earned their pay, but it still remains to be seen
whether they cash in or not.
“I am
confident this season is going to be good. You can tell by the team’s
offseason work that we are a lot bigger, faster and stronger team,” said senior
defensive back Alterraun Verner.
Now with a 4-8 finish to the season last year and an
almost non-existent offense, many people might be wondering why the team is feeling
so confident about how they are going to do this season. Well one of the
answers to that question would be the evolution of the offense.
The afternoon workouts have been most helpful for the
offense because it has given them the opportunity to improve the passing game.
Freshman quarterback Kevin Prince, who has been named the new starting
quarterback, has shown that he is more than ready to assume control of the
Bruin offense.
“I think he has
come a long way over the summer, especially with the timing of everything. The
timing between him and the receivers has definitely gotten a lot better. His
confidence has grown a lot throughout the summer and he has made all the hard
throws look easy,” said sophomore wide receiver Taylor Embree.
With what seems like a never ending depth when it
comes to receivers, Prince has been able to forge great timing and a better
understanding of what each receiver likes to do. All of that and a lot of
success against the defense for most of the summer during the afternoon passing
sessions has the offense thinking they can take over the role of being the
strongest aspect of the team this season.
Another answer would be the highly touted freshmen
class the Bruins have brought in. Players like top rated tight end Morrell
Presley, wide receiver Randall Carroll and running back Damian Thigpen have
added a new element of speed and explosiveness that was not really seen last
year on the offensive side of the ball. It is always hard to tell how much
freshmen will factor into the game plan because of a lack of experience, but
with the skill set these players possess it might be tough to keep them off the
field.
A lot of focus has been put on the offense because of
what happened last season, but the defense is not to be forgotten. Leading the
way for the defense are senior linebacker Reggie Carter and fellow senior
Alterraun Verner. For the past three years the Bruin defense has been one of
the best in the Pac-10 and with their leadership things figure to continue
along that same path.
It not surprising there are a lot of questions about
the strength of the UCLA football and most people believe they really have no
shot of doing anything significant, but on September 5 the Bruins will make
sure those critics will all be proven wrong.
© Copyright 2011 by canyon-news.com |