There is not much to say about tonight's heartbreaker. It's a game we have seen number of times through out this season.

Our defense played their hearts out. They controlled the LOS and dominated the Sun Devils. They along with the special teams did everything they could to put our team in a position to get a win. But they were once again undone by glaring offensive mistakes coming from the QB. It was another brutal night for Kevin Craft and an anemic Bruin offense:

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Paul Connors (via ESPN)

The final score was 9-34. All four ASU TDs came courtesy of Craft TOs (3 picks and one fumble). Yes, the Bruin defense held ASU to 0 offensive TDs, 20 rushing yards and a total of 121 yards. Here is the box score.

It is difficult to single out a college kid like Kevin Craft who is out there giving everything he can. He was getting beaten and taking a pounding from the Sun Devils all night. He kept getting back up and kept fighting. He wasn't getting any protection from the OL, which also wasn't helping out by generating any kind of running attack. Yet ultimately it was those unexplainable, bad throws leading to defensive scores that once again killed the Bruins tonight.

Not sure how much we should look back at this game which as mentioned above featured a memorable defensive performance including spectacular night from a much maligned Michael Norris.

I think for all of us ... we need to take a deep breath ... gather ourselves ... and summon up all the positive feelings we can generate for this team leading into the biggest week of every Bruin football season.

We are not going to mope around and feel sorry for ourselves this coming week. We will discuss whatever this team needs to do to pull out a victory next Saturday.

No shooting for moral victories and no surrender in Bruin Nation.

BEAT SC.

GO BRUINS.

Bruins are hanging in on the road down by a score of 6-14.

The defense has been DOMINATING. At the end of first half, Bruin defense has held to 61 total yards and 0 rushing yards. They simply have been outstanding with strong pressure up front, stuffing the run game and disrupting Carpenter. The coverage from secondary has been right which even includes solid tackling and coverage (knock on wood from Norris).

Now it's up to the Bruin offense to focus, get it together, and come through with some smart football in the second half. Here is to our offense getting into the endzone:

Photo Credit: Mark Harrison/The Seattle Times

Here is to the OL hanging in there allowing Craft some time to make some plays. And here is to Craft staying composed.

We are still in this.

GO BRUINS.

Brian Price and co. are on the road again tonight.

Let's hope they can continue to play in the same form they did in their last game (which was also on the road):

Photo Credit: Mark Harrison/The Seattle Times

For all of our notes leading up to tonight's matchup, check out our game page.

The kickoff time is scheduled for 6:30 pm PST on ESPN2. As always you can click on the links below under "Related Item" for updated game stats and track the game via UCLA's official site and WWL's game page. We have also added a link to Bruinville.com, a great Bruin fan site which often streams our games for folks who can only follow the action via the internets.

Let’s hope the boys in road white can put out an upset.  With that said time to get started with another game thread filled with our passion buckets.

Fire away.

GO BRUINS.

The storyline for tonight’s game against Arizona State is pretty simple. For us to keep our slim bowl hopes alive we have to win. Same goes for ASU.  In my book, it is somewhat of an accomplishment that we are still in a position to contend for a bowl game following 0-59 and all the injury woes we have battled through the entire season. For ASU it’s about salvaging an extremely disappointing season given all the high expectations they had coming into this year. For us an upset victory in this game will give CRN another boost in his ongoing effort of culture change in Westwood.

Both teams are coming into this game, benefiting from an off week and a modicum of momentum at the expense of pathetic Washington schools. The numbers for both of these teams are fairly identical with ASU slightly ahead, which probably has something to do with our numbers being impacted by the ugly BYU game from earlier in the season. The offensive lines for both teams have been subpar this season:

UCLA and Arizona State find themselves in this predicament largely because of subpar play along the offensive line. Though the Bruins' ground game showed improvement against winless Washington two weeks ago, they still rank 116th in the nation at 85.7 yards a game.

The Sun Devils are a little better at an average of 101 yards but have given up 2.8 sacks a game, a fact not lost on UCLA's defensive linemen looking to boost their tackles for loss. "We know they've been struggling," defensive tackle Brigham Harwell said.

The poor OL performances have led to poor offensive numbers for both teams:

Arizona State's offense, despite being led by senior quarterback Rudy Carpenter (Westlake of Westlake Village), has been lethargic. The Sun Devils are seventh in the Pac-10 in total offense (342.9 ypg), rushing offense (101 ypg) and scoring (23 ppg), but have won their past two games.

UCLA is eighth in the conference in total offense (293.6 ypg), last in rushing offense (85.7 ypg) and eighth in scoring (19.6 ypg).

"I think we probably arrived at this place in different ways," Neuheisel said. "But I know they are feeling some sense of rejuvenation with the last two wins and a chance to reclaim what was a lot of hope for this season. So they have much to play for, just as we do."

For us to have a chance in this game (I know this is a broken record) UCLA will need a credible performance from Kevin Craft:

Craft can't give the ball away, but he also needs to make plays: It's a redundant point, but UCLA needs more out of quarterback Kevin Craft. Yes, he doesn't have much help. Yes, he's led some nice comebacks. Yes, the coaches still believe he and not any other quarterback on the roster gives the Bruins their best chance to win. Yes, a few of his 16 interceptions weren't his fault. Nonetheless, the Bruins slim bowl hopes depend on him not making poor decisions against Arizona State. The Sun Devils solid defense is going to gang up on the run and force the ball into Craft's hands. He will have to make plays for the Bruins to have a chance to win.

That was again from Ted Miller on WWL. While I agree that Craft has to make plays, his first priority should be to manage the game. Making plays doesn’t entail throwing shovel passes while he is on the run or throwing it exclusively to Sun Devil defenders. I think what we really need from Craft is to make sure he is aware of the game situations. If he has no options to throw, I rather have him tuck the ball in and gain positive yardage then giving it up. Moreover, I rather have us punt the ball and play a game of field position, depending on our defense and Austin’s ability to flip the field.

Speaking of Austin, he is under the spotlight as he is on pace to break MJD’s all purpose yardage record (1,863) from 2005. Austin heading into tonight’s game has 1,614. Yes the way have piled up the yardage is a little different considering Austin has gained his yardage via kickoff and punt returns, while MJD was pilling up TDs (MJD had 20 while Austin has had 1.). Still coaches deserve a lot of credit for putting him in position to make plays. From Kevin Pearson in the Press Enterprise:

"He's given us a playmaker, a guy who can make somebody miss and create some magic and excitement," Coach Rick Neuheisel said. "He's a guy that the opponent has to figure out how to handle. He's been a very, very valuable team member."

Austin had just 10 touches as a freshman but made an impact last season with 17 catches for 248 yards and 311 punt return yards. This season he has 1,135 return yards, and his 41 catches rank among the Pac-10 leaders.

"The staff puts him in great situations to showcase his abilities," said teammate Dominique Johnson, a fellow receiver and member of the junior class. "He's making the most of his opportunities."

The only thing he's not doing is finding the end zone. Drew scored 20 touchdowns in his record-setting season, but Austin has found the end zone just once this year, scoring his only career touchdown in a victory over Stanford.

Brian Dohn also has more on Austin in today’s report.

Other players in the spotlight this game day are E.J. Woods (Dohn wrote a great story on him for thanksgiving) and Scott Glicksberg.

We will end with a note from the OC Register’s game report. As they get ready to finish their last year at UCLA kids like Harwell and Bell are looking at this game more than just an opportunity to qualify for a bowl game. They have bought into the coach’s message of trying to build the foundation for something special in Westwood:

The Bruins are not solely motivated by playing in a bowl game. Bell talks about leaving a legacy at UCLA. Defensive tackle Brigham Harwell wants to be an All-American. Receiver Terrence Austin is threatening to break the school’s single-season all-purpose yardage record.

Each of them, though, said their biggest goal was to build the program. Austin, the only one of the aforementioned trio returning next year, said the Bruins would not have to start over in 2009 if they win their final two regular season games.

“This will signify a birth in our program — the turnaround,” he said. “If we win out, it’s only going to give us more confidence next year.”

A few weeks ago, once it became apparent the Bruins would probably finish with a losing record, Neuheisel began to play up the idea that this year’s team could still help lay those first bricks. The players apparently have bought in.

“I’ve always wanted to be part of a change,” Harwell said. “We know if we win these last two, it’ll be a change in the program.”

Here is to Harwell and Bell getting it done tonight.

The game will kick off around 6:30 pm PST. It will be on ESPN2. We will have a game thread up about half an hour before the kickoff. See you then.

GO BRUINS.

Looks like Brian Dohn the traditional media in LA is acting up again looking for a story when a story really doesn’t exist. Most of us have gotten tired and bored with camera shots following a Craft interception or bone head plays (ok we are getting tired of the interceptions and bonehead plays as well), in which CRN and Craft are engaged in a one-sided passionate discussion on the sideline. IMHO those shots were intriguing earlier in the season, when lot of us discovered what it feels like to have a head coach who doesn’t stand like a statute on the sidelines, and instead coaches his heart out and stays involved in all aspects of the game.

It’s clear that despite those much ballyhooed discussions CRN and his legendary OC – Norm Chow – are sticking with the kid, despite producing numbers (i.e. 0 TDs and 9 Ints in last 3 games) that would have gotten anyone else benched a while ago. They know this kid up to this point has been their best option based on their observations during practices and are sticking with him. Yet, despite all that the Daily News Dohn uncorks a story today looking for conflict/drama in our football program, when there is not much there there.

Apparently Dohn Doug Paddilla, a staff write of the Daily News went to Tom Craft, Kevin’s Dad (who is a former offensive coach) and got some fatherly quotes about how he hasn’t appreciated the way his son been treated at UCLA:

"It's hard for me to watch the physical pounding and the abuse he takes, a lot of times not even getting a chance to go to a second and third progression," said Tom Craft, an associate head football coach at Mt. San Antonio College. "And then I hear how they want him to go to the second progression. Well, that isn't even possible at times. It's unrealistic.

"And then when he gets yelled at, it's very difficult to watch that as a coach and as a father because I know what he is going through and I am shocked that they aren't seeing what they are going through."

The Bruins' offensive line has been in tatters this season, but Tom Craft doesn't want to point fingers. The running game has been mostly absent, with Kahlil Bell hobbled by an early-season injury, but Tom Craft prefers to focus on his son.

"He's been 70 percent of the offense in most cases," Tom Craft said. "He can perform under stress extremely well and has brought them from behind in two games. He totally got punished in (the Stanford) game and he was very upset because for all his efforts, once in a while a good pat on the back would be good."

Hmm. I agree with Mr. Craft that his son and our offense would be better off if we had a credible running game and an offensive line that could give him some time. However, at the same time watching our games this season, it was clear it me in many instances Craft did have time to throw (when he threw those picks) and still tried forced the issue by trying it to force it to his primary receiver or throw it straight to the opposing team. Moreover, the issues with offensive line, doesn’t explain some of the bonehead (I can’t think of a better term) he has made while scrambling. He has thrown inexplicable shovel passes pretending to be John Elway. That is on Kevin Craft.

Anyway, CRN to his credit, didn’t take Dohn’s Doug's bait when asked about Craft’s comment and addressed the issue in a classy way:

"Just like people who make watches, they may differ on how to make the watch. As long as it tells time, everybody is happy, right?" Neuheisel said. "I think quarterback coaches see ... the best way to go about things, but they can do it in different ways.

"Tom's been great in his ability to stay separate, to stay removed. I certainly respect and admire all he did as a quarterback coach and as an offensive coordinator and as a head coach."

Moreover, CRN diffused the whole story by pointing to how he understands what Mr. Craft is going through as a father of a QB:

"First of all, having a son of my own that is now competing at another level as a sophomore in high school, I would never, ever want Tom Craft to think Kevin Craft is anything other than perfect," Neuheisel said. "That's his boy. And I certainly am only trying to be helpful.

"He's playing for UCLA, so it's not as though I don't like him. I think he's wonderful and we're lucky to have him."

The bottom line Dohn Doug and all other journalists in the traditional media need to chill out and find another storyline than to write about CRN-Craft interaction in the sidelines. There is nothing extra ordinary about exchanges between a passionate head coach (who is former Rose Bowl winning QB and has a proven track record of mentoring some of the best ever in this game) trying to coach up a young mistake prone QB. That’s how CRN coached his QBs in Colorado and in Washington with pretty solid results. It sure appears that Kevin Craft is fine with it and persevering through it and if he is fine with it, then not sure why Dohn Doug and other folks in the traditional media need to keep beating on a dead horse.

Anyway, it looks like CRN and Chow might have another option than Kevin Craft. Per Dohn’s report today Forcier has had some good practices in last two weeks:

A month ago, UCLA redshirt freshman quarterback Chris Forcier was incorporated into the Stanford game plan because of his running ability, but he has been criticized by the coaching staff for not having a better understanding of the playbook.

However, his improved understanding of the offense has allowed him to perform well in practice lately, and the coaching staff's comfort level in him increased greatly.

"He's played well in the last few weeks," Bruins offensive coordinator Norm Chow said. "He seems to have a better grasp of what we're trying to do. You feel better about using him if you have to."

Whether it means starting quarterback Kevin Craft, who has thrown nine interceptions and no touchdowns in his past three games, could be pulled if he has another poor performance Friday at Arizona State remains to be seen.

However, Forcier said he has spent more time watching film and going over his playbook lately.

"I'm catching the little things, in terms of making checks, reading the right people, and knowing what the defense is doing, so then I know what I have to do," Forcier said. "Our plays are based on what the defenses are doing, and we have multiple checks during the play. Now, I can check it and get in a better fit.

Hopefully Forcier’s improved performance in practice means it will put some more competitive pressure on Craft to perform better in game situations.

Elsewhere, the UCLA DL took note of number of sacks given up by ASU this season:

This fall, the Sun Devils rank near the bottom of the Pacific 10 Conference, giving up 28 sacks.

Watching videotape of Arizona State's loss to Georgia earlier this season, UCLA defensive tackle Brigham Harwell saw that Carpenter becomes far less effective when forced to rush his throws.

"We have to do what they did," Harwell said of the Georgia defense. "They made him uncomfortable."

But Neuheisel said he would be judicious in using blitz packages against the senior quarterback.

At the same time, it would be deadly to let a senior quarterback get in rhythm early in the game.

In other note, Micah Kia will be starting at LG to replace the injured Darius Savage. Kia will start but also expect Scott Glicksberg to get some time at that position as well. Glicksberg took over after Savage went down in Washington, but due to injury issues coaches don’t want to use him for 60-70 plays for an entire game. So they will try a package deal with Kia-Glicksberg. We will see how that works out.

GO BRUINS.

UPDATE - N: As has been pointed in the comment section Brian Dohn wasn't the author of the article concerning Tom Craft. It was written by Doug Padilla, a "staff writer" from the Daily News.

I will start with an ominous number as we head into this Friday’s game following bye week. Our guys have been blasted by a score of 93-6 in two games coming out of bye weeks this year against BYU and Oregon State. For that to change this Friday, Bruins will need a steady performance from Kevin Craft which we haven’t seen the entire season. Kevin Pearson from the Press Enterprise has the following notes on CRN hoping that Craft can stretch the field:

UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft has thrown for 2,048 yards this season but is averaging just 5.8 yards per attempt and has just 19 completions (out of 350 attempts) of 20 or more yards.

Neuheisel has often criticized him for his inability to go to his second and third reads on plays, and Craft has shown a tendency to look more comfortable in the short passing game.

Neuheisel said Monday that part of the problem was that the Bruins' revolving door at offensive line has made it difficult to protect long enough for Craft to do seven-step drops and throw the deep ball.

"He's capable of it," Neuheisel said. "I would not call his arm an overly strong arm, but it's an accurate and flexible arm that can do these things with the ball. It's just a matter of getting it off in the right timing."

Well for KC to stretch the field he will need his OL to provide credible protection and generate a semblance of running game. It would also help if KC can eliminate some of the surreal plays he has tried to make this season while scrambling out of the pocket (for i.e. the shovel pass he attempted while scrambling towards the end zone in Washington that resulted in a near pick). I think KC has a decent arm but as CRN said it’s a matter of making the right reads, with right timing and not locking into his first option like he has done numerous times this season.

On the other side of the ball, ASU’s Dennis Erickson showered the Bruin DL with praise this week:

"They are as good as any defense we've seen," Erickson said.

Friday night means a lot to both teams in that they need to win the remainder of their games to become bowl eligible. Both teams also are coming off victories.

The Sun Devils, led by senior quarterback Rudy Carpenter, were expected to have a good season but, like UCLA, have not played well up front.

They did, however, score 39 and 31 points in their last two games, against Washington and Washington State, respectively. Erickson expects UCLA to be tougher, especially for a Sun Devils offense that is giving up almost three sacks a game.

Erickson singled out the play of UCLA defensive tackles Brigham Harwell and Brian Price.

"If you're good in the middle, like they are, and penetrate and create problems, that's where it starts," he said. "They have a lot of experience in their front seven, and their secondary has played well for them."

It will be imperative for Price and Harwell to set the tone early on Friday night. ASU’s OL has been struggling somewhat through this season. If our guys let the Sun Devils gain some confidence in the trenches early on that could be sign of trouble.

Elsewhere, today on the coaching front, Dohn has a scathing report on Karl Dorrell, criticizing the former Bruin head coach for wasting first years of number of Bruin football players, Dohn calls out Dorrell for wasting freshmen seasons of OLs like Chris Joseph (the Rhodes Scholar), Brian Abraham, whose freshmen year was wasted in field goal units and extra point situation. Dohn writes that lot of the depth problem our current staff is dealing with results from Dorrell’s incompetent roster management that goes beyond handling the OL:

Dorrell's questionable decisions extended beyond the offensive line, and past the what-could-have-been category. It could also have a large impact on the next fewseasons.

Strong safety Bret Lockett, a first-year starter, had a rough beginning to the season, but has settled into the starting position in the last month. Lockett said the experience he is gaining this year would have benefited him in the offseason, and he would be a markedly better player as a fifth-year senior.

However, a fifth year is not an option because he spent his freshman season as a member of UCLA's kickoff coverage and kickoff return teams. His only action on defense was four snaps in a 63-21 win against Rice in the second game of the season.

"I wish I could say, `No, I don't regret that,' but I wish I had another season," Lockett said. "Every game I look at it. I think, man, this is the last time I get to do this, last time I get to do that. There's a lot of pressure. I think it was the last (four plays) of the game."

Bruins junior receiver Terrence Austin faces a similar issue. Although he received more playing time at his position than any of the aforementioned players, he said he was never given the opportunity to redshirt.

"I really wish I did because looking at (current freshman) Nelson (Rosario) and Antwon (Moutra), both of those guys have played in almost every game. I may have played half the season," Austin said.

"I didn't get any reps in practice. We basically just had a freshman period where we just all scrimmaged the plays we learned that day."

And I wonder why this community was castigated as bunch “haters”? While Dohn and others are catching up with reality after the damage has been done, rest of us were writing and calling out the individual of gutting a football program as it was happening.

Anyway, let’s get back to present. As CRN and his staff are slowly working out of the Dorrell created mess in Westwood, Walker’s name is showing up wrt to number of head coaching vacancies:

"I'm excited for him, and I know it's an exciting time in a coach's life (to be considered for a head job), and I certainly would help in any way I could," Neuheisel said. "That being said, I'd also advise him, for what it's worth because he doesn't need to listen to me, that there are great opportunities and there are less than great opportunities. I just hope that he gets exactly what he wants."

A few of the job openings Walker could become involved with are San Diego State, New Mexico, Syracuse, Utah State and Wyoming.

Others are expected to open as well, but there is also a chance Walker remains at UCLA. He was a finalist for the UCLA job Neuheisel got, and signed a two-year deal to remain as the defensive coordinator.

"I'm real happy at UCLA," Walker said. "They have been good to me and my family, but any coach who's been coaching for more than 20 years would like an opportunity to run their own program."

I wish Walker luck. Hopefully whatever he decides to do, the situation and timing works out well for him. I personally hope he gets to stick around for one or two more years, and move on with even better and more high profile options at hand. Yet, if he thinks he is ready, no one will stand in his way. 

For now though, he will definitely help his case if his defense can continue its last total performance against Washington, by putting together a great showing on national TV this Friday night.

GO BRUINS.

Bruins get back in game week mode tonight. From the LA Times:

The UCLA football team begins a short week of preparation for Arizona State with an unusual evening practice today.

Coach Rick Neuheisel won't gather his players on Spaulding Field until 7:25 p.m., getting them ready for a Friday night game at Sun Devil Stadium.

The Bruins will practice at home through Wednesday, then have meetings and a walk-through Thursday morning before traveling in the afternoon. A Thanksgiving dinner is planned in Tempe.

The matchup is vitally important to the Bruins and the Sun Devils, both of whom must win their final two games to become bowl-eligible.

"Obviously, UCLA is going to be more difficult," Arizona State Coach Dennis Erickson said after his team defeated Washington State on Nov. 15. "But we're playing for something."

Like UCLA, Arizona State had a bye this weekend.

UCLA and ASU have identical 4-6 (3-4 in the Pac-10) records and will be fighting to stay alive for a bowl berth. The Sun Devils are coming into this game in a bit of roll by taking care of Washington schools (like every other team in the conference). Given their pre-season expectations, they have had a hugely disappointing season as they fell hard after a 2-0 start, losing 6 games in a row. So they are going to come in focused, fired up, trying to end their year in Dennis Erickson’s second season on a positive note.

As for our guys, we will have a chance to fight and win in this game. The formula to pull it out will be a familiar one. Kevin Craft will have to minimize his mistakes while our defense will have to do it best to hang in there and keep the game close heading into fourth quarter.

Adam Rose, from LAT’s What’s Bruin posted some pretty interesting data points last week, which put our season in interesting light. While our over all record doesn’t indicate it, the following numbers on penalties in Adam’s words are “testament to coaching sound fundamentals”:

A good sign of discipline is improvement on penalties, which have fallen dramatically. Last year, the Bruins were flagged 78 times for 656 yards, while this year it's only 59 times for 480 yards. Considering how many new coaches and inexperienced players the Bruins are using, that's a testament to coaching sound fundamentals.

Adding to those numbers is the following breakdown of TOs this season:

Despite giving up six more interceptions, total turnovers are up only by one. Last year, UCLA put the ball on the ground 23 times and lost it 12 of those times. This year, the Bruins have dropped it only 12 times and recovered it all but seven times.

In other words, just imagine what our offense would have looked like if we had a 100% Pat Cowan or Ben Olson to work with. Even with Kevin Craft, as Class of 66 has pointed all season, our offense has done a remarkable job of ball control, alleviating the preseason fears that an inexperienced offense would put too much pressure on our defense:

It is a surprise that UCLA has improved in time of possession. Many expected that this Bruin defense would get worn out because it would spend a lot of time on the field. Not so. UCLA had the ball for 28:54 per game last year after 10 games, and 30:28 this year. In a related statistic, opponent first downs have dropped from 197 to 182. The cause and effect can go either way on this one.

Again if you go back and look at our season, except for the BYU blowout, we have been fighting and scratching in every game deep into second half. Again, if we had gotten even above average or averaging performance from our QB position (and I don’t write this to knock Craft, I think he himself will admit looking at his numbers that there is a whole lot of room for improvement), our record would have been a little different than 4-6.

Meanwhile, the defense to its credit, has been getting better as pointed out by the following numbers:

Even though opponents are running better against the Bruins this year (1,807 yards compared to 1,111), the UCLA pass defense is much improved. Last year it gave up 2,501 yards. This year? Only 1,642. As a result, opponents' total offense is down slightly, from 3,612 to 3,449.

 You can check out more data points Adam posted by going here.

The key for our defense this Friday night will be to play an entire game in which they come out with hairs on fire and then finish strong. We will have more on the ’Devils later this week.

GO BRUINS.