UCLA-Washington Preview

Last season, as loss piled on loss, injury stacked on injury, UCLA found solace in Week 10 against a down-on-its-luck Washington team.

The Huskies were in the midst of a winless season that eventually culminated in the firing of head coach Tyrone Willingham. Star quarterback Jake Locker was sidelined with a broken thumb. Optimism gave way to realism, and the facts were simple: Washington was a lost cause.

Now the Huskies have a new coach, former USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian.
They have Locker back.
They have a huge win over USC in Week 3 under their belts.
It's safe to say, the Bruins aren't welcoming Washington into town this year with such open arms.

"Sark is off to a great start," said UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel, who coached the Huskies from 1999-2002. "They've had a couple of signature performances, and it's fun to see Husky Stadium jumping around again. I've watched bits and pieces of the SC game, and when the camera starts shaken, it harkens back to some fond memories."

Locker was at his best down the stretch against the Trojans, completing 4-of-4 passes for 56 yards as Washington drove down for the game-winning field goal.

Locker's return this season is not lost on Neuheisel.

Last year, the Bruins punished Washington backup quarterback Ronnie Fouch to a 7-for-22 performance, allowing just 39 passing yards and 135 total yards, the team's best defensive performance in nearly 20 years.

What a difference a year - and a new coach and a Davey O'Brien Award semifinalist - makes.

"What a fabulous player (Locker) is," Neuheisel said. "He's truly a remarkable guy. I know there are a lot of quarterbacks who get the accolades because of the program they're in. But I don't think there's a better quarterback in the country than him."

The UCLA coach hopes to one day say the same about his own quarterback.
If the fourth quarter last week against Oregon State was any indication, redshirt freshman Kevin Prince is on his way.

Prince completed 9-of-13 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns in nearly leading UCLA back from a 16-point deficit. The Bruins tied the game at 19 with just more than two minutes to play, but the Beavers marched down the field quickly and wide receiver James Rodgers ran the ball in from 17 yards out for the 26-19 win.

After Prince's best week of practice this season, Neuheisel thinks he could just be starting to blossom.

"I know that's a huge step in the right direction," Neuheisel said of the UCLA passing game. "Quarterbacking is a combination of ability and confidence. The conclusion of the Oregon State game, I think is a huge boon from a standpoint of confidence. Once you have that, it's much easier to come in and focus on getting better."

That has been Neuheisel's calling card this season, the "focus on getting better."
Too much time focusing on getting better without actually getting better, though, is a recipe for frustration.

And frustration is certainly starting to set in for a team that is 0-5 in Pac-10 play for the first time in 15 years and suffering its first five-game losing streak since 2003.

"Our guys are dying to win," Neuheisel said. "A week or so ago I talked about you can't get in that comfort zone or that protective cocoon of, `I'm not going to let this pain get to me. It's OK. I'm just going to keep doing my best.' We have to let it go and believe that everything is going to go exactly as we hoped. But you have to risk it before you can achieve it. You can't just go in there, and (think), 'It'll be OK if it doesn't go well.''"

But even in the midst of such a skid, Neuheisel still sees signs.
Then again, the ever-optimistic Neuheisel could find a single ray of sunshine on a rainy day.

"There's nothing magic about the plan," he said. "The magic is in the belief. Therein lies why patience is such a virtue. You just have to believe we're going in the right direction. I think there are signs.

"The quarterback had his best week of practice. Guys are getting healthier. Reggie Carter is healthier than he's been. Hopefully, it will lead to a great win on Saturday."