UCLA?s Brehaut gets another turn as starter

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UCLA quarterback RIchard Brehaut has passed for 559 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions this season. He'll be the starter for the Bruins against Oregon State Saturday in Corvallis, Ore.

ANA P. GUTIERREZ, FOR THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

BY ADAM MAYA

LOS ANGELES ? In search of a starting quarterback, take four. Lights, camera, action!

Richard Brehaut has been on this audition before. He's lost it, filled in as a last-second replacement, won it, lost it and filled in again. And that's just this season. After three games, UCLA has changed its quarterback three times.

Brehaut will make his second start of the year Saturday as UCLA makes its Pac-12 debut against Oregon State in Corvallis at 12:30 p.m.

For Brehaut, the difference between this audition and all his others is that he's the favorite to land the lead role for the first time in three years. Coach Rick Neuheisel named Brehaut the starter at the beginning of the week, just days after benching Kevin Prince during UCLA's loss to Texas.

Neuheisel said he will revisit the situation after Saturday. That's fine with Brehaut, who is making his ninth career start but first in which he's not replacing an injured Prince.

"This is something I've been working for for a long time," Brehaut said. "It's been a long time coming. I'm just taking it week to week, not looking too far into the future, not looking over my shoulder. That's all under my control. It's up to me if it's going to be week to week or for the season.

"If I play well, it's going to be my job."

There is reason to believe he can. In the season opener at Houston, Brehaut rallied UCLA from a 31-14 deficit while totaling 351 yards of offense in less than three quarters, this after Prince was knocked out with a concussion. Neuheisel started Brehaut the following week, only he didn't announce it publicly. Brehaut was inconsistent as UCLA earned a sloppy victory against San Jose State.

It opened the door for Prince, who sat out the game with a sprained right shoulder, to reclaim the job going into Texas. But after Prince threw three interceptions in the first quarter, Brehaut took over and guided UCLA on four scoring drives in his first five series.

Neuheisel said he played "pretty darn well," though the Bruins fell way short in a 49-20 loss. Now it's Brehaut's job to lose.

"I said all along I wanted one to separate himself," Neuheisel said. "I look forward to the day when we have one. Richard's got that opportunity now as the starter to keep it."

Brehaut will have to do more than put up numbers, which he's already done. He's passed for 559 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Prince, who has played about only two quarters, has just 84 passing yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions.

The primary issue with Brehaut has always been his decision making. Neuheisel has often criticized the junior for not having a handle on everything in the Pistol offense. Brehaut can help himself and the Bruins if he manages to ignite a passing game that has been victimized by dropped balls, poor route running and a lack of timing.

Offensive coordinator Mike Johnson said that could improve quickly.

"It helps when you have one guy as far as the timing of the reps," Johnson said. "You should see an improvement in the passing game going forward if we stick with one guy.

"He's a better thrower than Kevin is runner."

Brehaut can run, too. He's rushed for 130 yards, including a career-high 87 against Houston. Johnson said UCLA's offense won't look much different with Brehaut at quarterback.

"He's a different style, but we still have to execute the plays in the run game that we have," Johnson said. "He may not go 30 or 40 like Kevin, but he's an effective enough runner where he can go get 10 and move the chains.

"Somebody's going to have to make our offense go. We're in desperate need of a win."

At 1-2, with the redshirt junior Prince watching from the sideline, Brehaut knows he has to prove himself this week. And the following week. And the week after that.

"It's nothing I haven't had to do my whole career here," Brehaut said. "It was pretty challenging at the beginning, thinking, all right, I've done well but I wasn't getting rewarded. It's nothing I'm not used to.

"This is how my career here's been at UCLA, competing with Kevin Prince. It's how I expect it to be until the very end."

Contact the writer: amaya@ocregister.com

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