VIEW FROM THE MIDWEST: SEPTEMBER 13, 2007

Dorrell Wary of Overconfidence as UCLA Tackles Utah

USC faces a familiar quarterback in Nebraska; Washington hosts Ohio State

By John Scheibe / watcher@collegeblitz.com

After racking up Brigham Young at the Rose Bowl last weekend, UCLA heads for the Great Salt Lake for a date with the Cougars’ Cousins, the Utes of Utah.

Unlike the easy time No. 11 UCLA had in its opener against Stanford, quarterback Ben Olson and the Bruins offense sputtered in the second half, much like it did last season before Olson was forced to the sidelines with an injury. UCLA lost a 20-0 lead but the defense rallied behind defensive end Bruce Davis to slow BYU’s comeback and the Bruins held on, 27-20.

The Utes are 0-2 and have injuries and two key positions—quarterback and running back, and are also banged up at wide receiver and on the offensive line. Even though UCLA is nearly a two-touchdown favorite, Coach Karl Dorrell is wary of his team’s possible overconfidence. “I think they are a pretty dangerous team,” Dorrell told beat writers at practice this week.

Dorrell hopes that the offense can revert to the production it had at Stanford when it amassed over 600 yards, but it appears that the strength of this team, as it was last season, is the defense. Saturday’s game begins at 2 p.m. Pacific Time on Versus.

The top-ranked USC Trojans will put on their overalls and heavy boots for a visit to the real “Farm” when it takes on 2-0 Nebraska in Lincoln. The Trojans are a 10-point favorite over the No. 14 Cornhuskers but the Watcher sees this as a much closer game. Last season, Nebraska came out to Los Angeles and played a tough, conservative contest, which USC won, 28-10.

The Huskers are expected to have the same game-plan, which would included pressuring quarterback John David Booty. Against Idaho two weeks ago, Booty looked ragged. He did pass for three touchdowns but he also threw two interceptions and had some throws miss receivers badly. The Huskers would love more of that.

On offense, Nebraska has a familiar face at quarterback, Sam Keller, who once called signals at Arizona State. Keller played against USC at Tempe two years ago in a game that had the Sun Devils leading at the half, 21-3. But the second half was a complete reversal, with Keller throwing four interceptions and the Trojans rallying for a 38-28 win.

Keller’s chances for payback will depend on Nebraska’s offense keeping USC’s offense off the field.

The surprise of the Pacific 10 Conference so far has been the excellent start by the Washington Huskies. Tyrone Willingham has put the Purple back in Seattle and the fear of playing on the road in the Great Northwest. Too many speed traps in Eugene, Corvalis, Pullman and even Berkeley. The Huskies beat Syracuse at the Carrier Dome and last week downed Boise State, the Fiesta Bowl champions.

Now comes No. 13 Ohio State, and after what happened to Michigan against Oregon last week and Wisconsin’s near disaster in Las Vegas, the Buckeyes will need their track shoes to keep up with another speedy West Coast team. Ohio State sure wasn’t wearing spikes in the BCS Championship against Florida. A new shoe contract may be inorder for the Big “Slow” Ten. The game will be televised on the West Coast by ESPN at 4 p.m. and Ohio State is favored by four points.

The Coast Watcher, John Scheibe, is the author of the new book "On the Road With Jim Murray: Baseball and the Summer of '79," which is available at Barnes and Noble stores and online at amazon.com and bn.com. Visit the book’s official website for more information.