AVOIDING ATKINS ISN'T EASY.Byline: Gerry Gittelson Daily News Staff Writer Football teams don't have to be reminded about Larry Atkins anymore. Atkins has seen to that personally. Steadily asserting himself as the Bruins' defensive leader, Atkins was the arsonist in UCLA's firestorm fire·storm n. 1. A fire of great size and intensity that generates and is fed by strong inrushing winds from all sides: the firestorm that leveled Hiroshima after the atomic blast. 2. defense Saturday, as the Bruins' overcame a slow start to knock off to cease, as from work; to desist. - De Quincey. To force off by a blow or by beating. To assign to a bidder at an auction, by a blow on the counter. To leave off (work, etc.). See also: Knock Knock Knock Knock Oregon State 34-10 at the Rose Bowl. The strong safety intercepted a pass, blocked a field goal, recovered a fumble, registered four unassisted tackles and, for good measure, had two sacks for minus-23 yards. Going in, he had a reputation. He was seventh in the nation in interceptions (four), had already recovered two fumbles and was leading UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX (5-2, 3-1) in tackles. For a time, Oregon State (3-3, 0-3) did what made sense - it stayed away from him. Such a strategy had been employed by UCLA's last two opponents, Houston and Oregon. But being ignored didn't sit well with Atkins. It's like starving starve v. starved, starv·ing, starves v.intr. 1. To suffer or die from extreme or prolonged lack of food. 2. Informal To be hungry. 3. To suffer from deprivation. a lion. If prey doesn't come along eventually, the time comes to go hunting. ``I guess teams started knowing where Larry is,'' coach Bob Toledo Bob Toledo (born March 4, 1946, in San Jose, California) is an American football coach, recently hired as head coach at Tulane University. He is best-known as the thirteenth head coach at UCLA. said. By the end of the first quarter, Atkins was getting tired of watching action at the other side of the field, and it was time to strike. No one wanted to pass or run in his direction, so when Oregon State tried something a little different - an option play - Atkins chased down tailback tail·back n. Football The back on an offensive team who lines up farthest from the line of scrimmage. tailback Noun Brit a queue of traffic stretching back from an obstruction Cobbe Davis for a 12-yard loss, then recovered his fumble for the game's first turnover. Later, Atkins blocked Jose Cortez's 54-yard field-goal attempt to end the first half. With UCLA nursing a 14-3 lead, Atkins set the tone for the second half by sacking sack·ing n. A coarse, stout woven cloth, such as burlap or gunny, used for making sacks; sackcloth. sacking Noun coarse cloth woven from flax, hemp, or jute, and used to make sacks Noun Tim Alexander Tim "Herb" Alexander (born April 10, 1965 in Cherry Point, North Carolina) is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Primus. Tim played on the Primus recordings Suck on This, Frizzle Fry, Sailing the Seas of Cheese, for an 8-yard loss on the first play of the third quarter. Oregon State's next substantial rally - if you can call two straight first downs a rally - was once again thwarted by Atkins, who intercepted a Tyler Tomich pass and returned it 22 yards. ``Yeah, it was time to get my hands on the ball again,'' Atkins said. ``I was getting sort of hungry for it.'' Atkins wasn't through. A few minutes later, he sacked Tomich again, this time for a 15-yard loss that put Oregon State all the back on its 5-yard line. ``Larry made a lot of big plays,'' said Bob Field, UCLA's defensive backs coach Defensive Backs Coach is a coach in charge of the safeties and cornerbacks in American Football. This position is very common in the NFL and college football programs. Some common titles are: Safeties Coach, Cornerbacks Coach, Secondary Coach, Secondary/Safeties Coach, . ``It was getting to the point where Larry was playing so well that plays weren't coming to him anymore. That's just a sign that Larry has come into his own and really matured. It's really something how much he's developed.'' Middle linebacker Brian Willmer felt the game sway when Atkins got down to business: ``Larry just kind of took control.'' CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO UCLA strong safety Larry Atkins comes up with an Oregon State fumble in the first quarter. He also had an interception and a blocked kick. Terri Thuente / Daily News |
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