By JEFF MILLER
COLUMNIST
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
PASADENA ? He isn't the No. 1 quarterback on his team and Saturday was no better than the third-best quarterback playing in the Southland.
Over at the Coliseum, Andrew Luck and Matt Barkley were battling for Pac-12 supremacy, Heisman votes and ABC's cameras.
Here at the Rose Bowl, Kevin Prince, playing a throwing position, for a head coach who first became famous for his passing, was running.
If not for his life, then at least for his coach's job.
"You can not run not to get hurt tonight," Rick Neuheisel told his frequently fragile quarterback over breakfast. "I want 100 yards."
So the coach was willing to put Prince's joints, ligaments and bones on the line. Not surprising, since Neuheisel's fanny is on there, too.
And for one night, having second billing in the city, playing for Southern California's other team, being a UCLA football Bruin, felt nothing like a demotion to junior varsity.
"This was big," Prince said after a 31-14 victory over California, "especially after getting embarrassed in Arizona the way we did."
Oh, yeah, Tucson last week. The Bruins quickly fell behind by three touchdowns, en route to eventually falling behind by six touchdowns, en route to being upstaged by a fake referee who turned out to be a real streaker.
This time, though, Prince was the blur racing downfield and the Cal defenders were the ones left, shall we say, exposed.
Prince ran for a career-high 163 yards ? he had 72 rushing yards for the season before Saturday ? and repeatedly baffled the Bears with fake handoffs so convincing they apparently could be solved only through forensics.
He kept plays alive with his feet, drives alive with his legs and hope alive with his decisions.
By hope, we mean the Bruins' bowl future and Neuheisel's employment future, neither of which, frankly, appears terribly rosy, if you get our drift.
"He's a valiant kid," Neuheisel said. "I told him I was going to be on his tail if he didn't get his shoulder pads down and go. He did as we asked, and that's always fun as a coach, to get guys to battle like that."
Prince was everything he hasn't always been for the Bruins during his three seasons. But more than anything Saturday, he was a winner.
The late afternoon set up perfectly for the Bruins ... assuming they enjoy embarrassing slaps across the chops.
They could not have been cast in more of a secondary role had they been allowed to play only during commercial breaks of the real college football game being staged locally.
That game featured a Heisman Trophy favorite, a Heisman Trophy longshot, the No. 6 team in the country and the USC Trojans, who attract interest the way your cell phone screen attracts greasy cheek prints.
Yes, the shadow here at the Rose Bowl was so dark the Bruins needed a shovel to emerge from it.
Then, by the time the main event in town kicked off, the Bruins had:
1) Lost a fumble.
2) Surrendered a touchdown.
3) Fallen behind in their attempt to finally beat a team with a winning record.
But on UCLA's fifth possession, Prince threw for 19 yards, rushed for 32 and rushed for five more, leading his team to its first score and reviving its faint heart.
"I like running the ball," Prince confirmed, unnecessarily. "I was just playing a little more cautious last week in terms of running it. When they gave me the green light, it kind of fired me up. It's fun, as long as I stay healthy."
That has been an issue, an issue times five.
Prince missed two games as a redshirt freshman with a broken jaw. He suffered a concussion later that season and missed half a game.
He played through back and shoulder ailments early last season and injured his knee in late September. He missed the final six games after undergoing arthroscopic surgery.
In the Bruins' opener this season, he landed on his head and suffered a concussion.
Other than that, there's little risk in having him run with the ball all game long.
"We didn't have a lot of options," Neuheisel said. "We were down to very few wide receivers. It was how to play the game and, fortunately, it worked.
"It's just a great story of what can be if you block out some of the distractions and focus on just what's important."
And, of course, you schedule Cal.
These Bears are not an overwhelmingly impressive animal, their five turnovers providing just the boost the Bruins needed.
Given that push, UCLA was good enough to seize the chance this time. The Bruins were off, off and running, running behind a quarterback with legs strong enough to carry a coach.
Contact the writer: jmiller@ocregister.com
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