UCLA not focused on whether Arizona's Wright will play
UCLA receiver Devin Fuller isn't exerting much effort to find out whether Arizona All-America linebacker Scooby Wright will return from a knee injury to play in the Pac-12 opener for both teams Saturday.
"I haven't really looked into it too much," Fuller said.
The ninth-ranked Bruins have plenty of respect for Wright and the No. 16 Wildcats, but can't waste time trying to decipher his status while their passing offense struggles.
UCLA will get one of its top defensive players back with cornerback Ishmael Adams being reinstated from a three-game suspension.
Adams, who was arrested last month on suspicion of robbery and spent two days in custody, started every game in his first two seasons, earning all-conference honors last year.
Freshman quarterback Josh Rosen had a spectacular debut against Virginia, but has since completed just 33 of 65 passes for 329 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions in wins over UNLV and BYU. Rosen leads the Pac-12 with those four picks -- no one else in the conference has thrown more than two -- and ranks 10th in completion percentage and ninth in passer rating.
With Rosen throwing three interceptions in the first half against the Cougars, UCLA was forced to rely on a heavy dose of running backs Paul Perkins and Nate Starks and some timely defensive stops to secure the 24-23 comeback win. Perkins and Starks combined for 300 yards rushing, two touchdowns and a healthy dose of confidence that UCLA can overcome adversity.
"We're never out of the fight," Fuller said. "That's basically what I took from the game."
Perkins rushed for a career-high 219 yards and was especially impressive in keeping the chains moving, as half of his 26 carries gained at least five yards.
Until Rosen gets back on track, Perkins and Starks will be carrying the offense. Doing so means Rosen will have to improve on his meager 4.6 yards per pass attempt against BYU.
Fuller said Rosen has not lost any confidence despite his struggles, and continues to display the even temperament that coach Jim Mora pointed to when he chose a starting quarterback. And with a powerful rushing offense led by Perkins and a veteran defense, Rosen only needs to manage the game for UCLA to keep winning and to challenge for the Pac-12 South crown.
"He's not worried about the mistakes," Starks said. "It's all about moving on to the next game. We're getting ready for Arizona, and that's the main goal."
The challenge of facing the Wildcats becomes much greater if Wright returns. Injured in the first quarter of the season opener and originally expected to be sidelined for three to four weeks, Wright plans to try practicing this week for Arizona, which because of injuries is down to its fourth-string middle linebacker.
Without Wright, who swept the major defensive player of the year awards as a sophomore last season, the Wildcats have struggled at times defensively. They allowed 525 yards in their opener against Texas-San Antonio and permitted 200 first-half yards to Nevada a week later.
Arizona's offense, however, has had no such problems, ranking fifth in the FBS with 1,754 scrimmage yards and averaging 9.0 yards per play. The Wildcats shredded Northern Arizona last Saturday, setting team marks for points and total yards in a 77-13 rout of the outmatched FCS school.
"Offensively I think we're executing really well," said wide receiver David Richards, who has team highs of 14 receptions for 203 yards. "I think that's going to help us going into next week. If we can stay on the same page as we did the first three games, I think we can roll into the Pac-12 really hard."
Anu Solomon is the driving force behind Arizona's offense, throwing for 778 yards with 10 touchdowns and no interceptions. One of his worst performances as a freshman last season came against UCLA, however, as he completed 18 of 48 passes for 175 yards with a touchdown and interception.
The Wildcats entered last season's matchup with the Bruins averaging 40.6 points and 541.9 yards but were held to 255 yards in a 17-7 loss.
Coach Rich Rodriguez is 0-3 against UCLA with Arizona, but the Wildcats have defeated a top 10 team in each of Rodriguez's first three seasons.
"All the games are big, as I told the team, but you can sense or feel the big-game feel on campus this week, whether I want to preach or not, it is going to be there," Rodriguez said. "(ESPN College) GameDay is coming to town, there will be a lot of buzz about it all week. It is a division game against a highly ranked and undefeated team. Our guys came to Arizona to play in these big games and they get a chance to do it on Saturday."
