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Friday, November 1, 1996

FOOTBALL:

Underdog Stanford may aid UCLA in getting back on trackBy Rob Kariakin

Daily Bruin Contributor

This weekend, the Bruins find themselves in a strange, but not uncomfortable, position.

They are the favorites.

Yes, that's right, UCLA is actually predicted to beat somebody. And badly. At last check, the Bruins were favored by 13 points.

How about that?

With a schedule that some publications have called the toughest in college football, this is truly a new experience.

The underdogs roll into town Saturday for UCLA's homecoming in the form of unranked Stanford (2-5, 1-3 Pac-10).

Stuck in the bottom half of the conference in all four major offensive categories and in two of four defensive categories, it's no wonder that the Cardinal finds itself similarly situated in the Pac-10 standings. They currently stand at eighth.

With four games remaining, any bowl hopes Stanford may have harbored are realistically gone. The boys from Palo Alto would need to win the rest of their games just to have the minimum six victories required for a bowl bid.

And finishing out the season with a sweep is highly unlikely, with the likes of USC, Washington State and California lurking in the upcoming weeks.

Goodbye, Copper Bowl.

See ya later, Holiday Bowl.

Hasta la vista, Aloha Bowl.

For the Cardinal, the turning point of the season may have come before the season had even begun.

Head coach Tyrone Willingham lost a veteran signal caller when junior Tim Carey transferred to Hawaii after redshirt freshman Chad Hutchinson was given the starting nod at quarterback.

That left Willingham with a starter who was one heck of a pitcher (the Atlanta Braves had offered him $1.4 million after drafting him out of high school), but had only played quarterback for one year in high school.

Todd Husak, a true freshman, is a backup who had never even stepped on a collegiate field prior to this year.

Oh, and by the way, Hutchinson may not be able to play this weekend due to a sprained thumb suffered in last week's blowout loss to Arizona State.

Think the Bruins are smelling blood?

An unranked opponent might be just what the doctor ordered for a team that has been increasingly comfortable straddling the fence of mediocrity.

UCLA, 2-2 in the conference, has scored 134 points. The Bruins have also given away 134 points in four conference games.

For the season, the Bruins have scored 207 points and given up, yep, 207 points. Coaches always talk about a team needing balance, but this is ridiculous.

However, thanks to the magic of odd numbers, UCLA has an overall record of only 3-4.

But it doesn't end there. The Bruins have made 526 tackles; their opponents 525. UCLA has eight fumble recoveries, their opponents seven. Interceptions? Eight to nine.

Maybe Stanford is just what's needed to get the Bruins over the hump.

In any case, the fight's on for 3:30 on Saturday at the Rose Bowl.

STEVE KIM/Daily Bruin

The UCLA defense hopes to continue against Stanford what they started last week at Cal, where they sacked quarterback Pat Barnes (here being taken down by Danjuan Magee) seven times.