Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Eyes On A Foe: UCLA Loses QB Cowen For '08 Season


Let's just face it. UCLA is cursed when it comes to quarterbacks. It was a victory, when they landed one of the nation's top QB recruits in Ben Olsen. But unfortunately, Olsen has never been on the field long enough to live up to the hype. He and Patrick Cowen have been the interchangeable pieces to the Bruin QB position, with the healthy man receiving the start.

The Bruins entered the spring with both signal callers fresh and healthy. Cowen battled and was named the starting QB for the upcoming fall, and Olsen was again pushed back and placed in a "bust" position. But it only took one week of preparing for future ass splinters, before Olsen found himself back in the starting position, without having to do anything at all to secure it. His only requirement? Stay healthy?

Patrick Cowen is lost for the 2008 season, after tearing his ACL in non contact practice drills. This leaves the Bruins with the also fragile Ben Olsen to open a season where they'll see Tennessee in the second game. What are the odds that he'll survive that game? I'll give him 3 quarters, before limping off and passing the torch to an inexperienced player.

Injuries riddled the Bruins QB position last year, costing them a win against a lowly Notre Dame team in a "gimme" game. But hey, using a wide receiver at QB, they nearly beat Arizona State. With the new coaching dream team in place, people wondered if UCLA should be considered a threat to the Trojans. Now that spring is over and done, I'd have to confidently say "hell no".

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