Q: Should I be nervous about the Utah game? Do you get the sense that the players are focused on only the next game or are they beginning to become overconfident and far-sighted?
“Wary” might be a better word than “nervous.” I think UCLA is raring to go again after New Mexico State plus a bye week, so there shouldn’t be too much worry about overconfidence. Utah has a talented quarterback in Travis Wilson however; the 6-foot-7 sophomore can throw as well as he runs, and will be the Bruins biggest challenge yet at the position. There doesn’t seem to be any inclement weather ahead though.
Q: What’s up with all of the late starts for home games? I know TV, but can’t we play during the day once in a while?
All TV’s fault. It annoys me as much as it does you, I promise. Arizona State may be earlier if both teams are still ranked at that point.
Q: With all the scoring guards we have, how does Tony Parker look and do you thing the big guy is going to be able to man the middle, D up and get some boards?
As much as Parker has slimmed down, it’s hard to say how much he’s actually improved until he gets some extended action. He’ll certainly get more run than he did under Ben Howland, but that’s a low bar.
Q: How does the firing of Lane Kiffin impact recruiting? Do you see any current Trojan players possibly transferring to UCLA?
Shouldn’t hurt USC. Kiffin was a good recruiter in past years, but his 2013 class imploded late and his 2014 class was going nowhere fast. Highly unlikely to see transfers. Even if someone was interested, the future head coach won’t likely release a player to go to UCLA.
Q: Utah seems to be a breeding ground for linemen. Are there any recruits that UCLA will be looking at this weekend?
The offensive line isn’t as big a need for this upcoming class given all the guys still redshirting, but the ones that are drawing UCLA interest aren’t from Utah. Guards Damien Mama and Kammy Delp, for example, both play in the L.A. area. Similar situation on defense, with Salt Lake area native Bryan Mone — a four-star tackle — already committed to Michigan.
Q: What do you think our chances are of being 5-0 heading into the Stanford game? Is College GameDay going to be there for that game? If we go undefeated does Hundley win the Heisman?
I’d venture a very unscientific guess of 70 percent right now. That goes up significantly if the Bruins win in Salt Lake City. I don’t know about GameDay, what with it visiting FCS schools these days to throw everyone off. I doubt UCLA goes undefeated, but sure — Brett Hundley could very likely win the Heisman in that case.
Q: Is the performance of our group of running backs exceeding the preseason expectations (of coaches, sports writers, etc.)?