UCLA to Give Aztecs Fast Test for New Defense

Few coaches in college football have a more thankless job than Ed Schmidt, the assistant in charge of rebuilding San Diego State’s much trampled defense.

Not only must he attempt to turn around a defense that was among the nation’s worst last season in almost every conceivable category, but he must start in the Rose Bowl at 7 tonight against No. 5 UCLA and its highly regarded quarterback, Troy Aikman.

What a way to begin. What a way to have to build confidence in an inexperienced unit that has found little to take pride in since it met the Bruins in the 1987 opener.

That was a 47-14 rout that set the tone for a 5-7 season that included several other high-scoring losses.

Schmidt realized, from the day in December when Coach Denny Stolz appointed him defensive coordinator, that he faced a considerable task. But even knowing the statistics and having seen some of the defensive play last season in his role as offensive line coach, Schmidt did not realize just how much work was needed until he was on the practice field.

“It’s never as easy as you think it will be,” Schmidt said. “People like Denny say they notice a difference (for the better). But I don’t know. How do you judge that?”

The best way is in a game, and that is why tonight is so important to Schmidt for evaluating progress. The problem is that the Bruins pose such a difficult first test.

UCLA Coach Terry Donahue repeatedly has said that while Aikman is a fine quarterback, he is not as surrounded by as much talent as he was last season. Few will argue that point, with the likes of Gaston Green and Willie Anderson now playing for the Rams, but the Aztecs still will find more than a few players to keep them fretting. Mike Farr, who averaged 12.3 yards on 24 catches last season, returns at flanker, and Eric Ball and Brian Brown, who combined for 830 yards playing behind Green last season, give the Bruins two solid tailbacks. (That’s if Brown his healthy; he’s doubtful for today with a hamstring problem.) Tight end Charles Arbuckle, who had 22 catches last season despite a knee injury, also returns.

That is enough talent that Schmidt worries not about a shutout but about how his defense will react when the Bruins score.

“They’re too good a team not to score,” Schmidt said. “And when they do, that will be the test. Will our players stand up to it, or will they react the other way?”

Too often last season, one score led to another and another and another. And that led to such embarrassments as a 49-7 loss at Air Force and 52-10 defeat at Wyoming. But the Aztec defense tonight will little resemble the one that played last season.

Only three players--end Bob Graff, free safety Lyndon Earley and cornerback Mario Mitchell--who opened against the Bruins last season are expected to start tonight. The Aztecs also have changed their defensive front, shifting to three down lineman and four linebackers from the 4-3 they used last season.

Schmidt and the other defensive assistants have worked hard to infuse their players with some confidence. After last year, they needed the boost.

“You lose confidence if you don’t perform well,” Schmidt said. “Are they going to be a better football team if you jump down their shorts? ‘You’re terrible! That’s terrible!’ (The player starts to think) ‘Yeah, it is, and that’s how I am.’ If you tell a guy he is a bad player, he is going to be a bad player.”

But while Schmidt preaches positive reinforcement, he said he realizes all the enthusiasm in the world will not stop the Bruins by itself. In last year’s game, UCLA was simply overpowering, rushing for 334 yards and gaining 514 total.

The game was a replay of all but the first between the two schools since the series was resumed in 1984 after a 50-year break. The Bruins needed six field goals by John Lee to win, 18-15, in San Diego in 1984, but in the three years since, they have won by scores of 34-16, 45-14 and 47-14. UCLA holds a 10-0-1 edge in the series; the tie was in 1924.

“We just haven’t been competitive against them,” Stolz said. “That’s something we want to change.”

To do so, the Aztecs probably will need a strong game from their usually potent offense. Most of the elements that gave SDSU the 10th ranked offense in the country last season return. Paul Hewitt, who rushed for 1,001 yards, caught 42 passes and scored a nation-leading 24 touchdowns, is back at tailback. The team’s top five players in pass receptions, including Hewitt, also return.

The only real question on offense is at quarterback, where junior Brad Platt is to make his major-college debut. Platt was redshirted last season after transferring from Southwestern College. He must replace Todd Santos, who passed for a major-college record 11,425 yards in his four seasons at SDSU. That will be a tough trick in the long run, but maybe not so tough tonight.

Santos opened last year’s game against the Bruins by prematurely ending the Aztecs’ first two possessions with interceptions. He spent much of the game trying to avoid the rush of outside linebacker Carnell Lake, who had nine tackles, three sacks, an interception and broke up a pass.

Lake is back, and that might be all Platt needs to know about the Bruin defense. Not the easiest team for a quarterback to face in his first major-college game.

“I don’t want to say I’m scared, but it’s going to test me,” Platt said. “It’s going to test the entire offensive team. It’s one heck of a way to make a debut.”