Dragovic’s ACL injury comes at bad time for a struggling UCLA run-stopping unit
By Seth Fast Glass
DAILY BRUIN SENIOR STAFF
Upon further review, UCLA did not escape from its comeback victory over Washington on Saturday completely unscathed. Starting defensive end Nikola Dragovic will miss the remainder of the Bruins' season after it was revealed Monday that he suffered an ACL sprain in his left knee. The injury occurred with 9:13 remaining in the third quarter of Saturday's game, when Dragovic, being blocked by a Husky offensive lineman, twisted awkwardly and fell to the ground clutching his left knee, where he spent several minutes writhing in pain. He did not return, but was able to walk off the field after the game. "It's like getting punched in the gut when you lose a guy like that," UCLA coach Karl Dorrell said. "But we have enough guys on this team that want to showcase how they can help this team, and this is one of those instances where we'll have a guy step up."
Though he wasn't a projected starter before the season, the 6-foot-3, 252-pound Dragovic, originally from the former Yugoslavia, caught the eye of Bruin coaches with his tenacity and aggressive pursuit of the ball. In just four weeks of fall camp, Dragovic vaulted himself over fellow defensive linemen Kyle Morgan and William Snead on the depth chart to earn a starting spot. The injury to Dragovic comes at a particularly unfortunate time for UCLA and a struggling run-defense unit that will be pitted against No. 9 California this Saturday at the Rose Bowl.
The Golden Bears feature the Pac-10's most potent rushing attack (259.4 yards per game) and two offensive linemen that were first team All-Pac-10 selections in 2004 in center Marvin Philip and 6-foot-7, 360-pound offensive lineman Ryan O'Callaghan. UCLA, which allowed a poor rushing offense in Washington to accumulate 213 yards on the ground this past Saturday, will now have to face Cal's offensive juggernaut without the services of Dragovic and defensive lineman Kevin Brown, who is still recovering from a high ankle sprain he suffered on Aug. 20.
One of the likely potential candidates to replace Dragovic on the line appears to be sophomore Bruce Davis, who Dorrell expects to see time at defensive end and linebacker this Saturday. Before the injury, Dragovic had recorded 11 tackles, a sack, and a blocked an extra point in the Bruins' first four games. With Dragovic out for the season, the running tally on injuries to sideline UCLA starters now stands at four. Brown and safety Chris Horton suffered injuries during fall camp and have not seen the field this season, while receiver Junior Taylor had his season come to an end against Oklahoma on Sept. 17 with a torn ACL. "Can't do anything about that now," said Dorrell of missing multiple starters. "That's part of football, part of the game. You're going to lose people week after week. But you can't let that stop the progress of the program."
NOTHING SPECIAL: Of the season-high 13 penalties the Bruins were flagged for Saturday against the Huskies, an astounding 10 of them were committed on special teams. "We had 10 special teams penalties – 10," Dorrell said. "I don't think I've ever had in my career 10 penalties related to special teams."
HEELS OVER HEAD: Quarterback Drew Olson knew he couldn't run over two Washington defenders to get to the end zone at the end of the third quarter, so he tried jumping over them. That didn't exactly pan out as planned. "I was looking to land on my feet, not my head," Olson said.
EXTRA POINTS: UCLA's game against Washington State on Oct. 15 will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. and be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net. ... Saturday's game against Washington was the Bruins' third night game this season. Last year, UCLA didn't play a regular-season game at night. ... This is the third-straight week the Bruins are ranked in the top 25, the longest such stretch since 2001.
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