BRUINS' MOST WANTED: PLAYMAKERS LACK OF THE BIG PLAYS HURTING UCLA OFFENSE.

Byline: BRIAN DOHN Staff Writer

Drew Olson had the best quarterbacking season in school history, Marcedes Lewis had the best year for a tight end and Maurice Drew scored the second-most points in a season.

Each player moved on to the NFL, and UCLA's offense still is trying to recover from the departures of the most prolific players on last season's 10-2 squad.

``We're just trying to find guys to be playmakers,'' Bruins junior fullback Michael Pitre said. ``Those guys are playmakers. They just made plays. It's just trying to find guys anywhere on the offense, at this point, to make plays.''

The search is intense, having already lasted two months without coming to a conclusion. UCLA (4-4, 2-3 Pacific 10) enters the final third of its season, beginning with Saturday's game at No. 10 California, with an offense still reeling from the loss of the Big Three.

``I never really look at it that way, to be honest,'' UCLA offensive coordinator Jim Svoboda said. ``I think the bottom line is we have enough talent to be successful, and I don't think we're achieving to the level we should. And I take responsibility for that.''

UCLA's offense, which averaged 39.1 points last season and failed to score more than 21 points just twice, is stagnant. In each of their four losses this season, the Bruins have not managed to score 21 points, and now the play of backup quarterback Patrick Cowan is being scrutinized.

Before being injured, starter Ben Olson completed 63.7 percent of his passes with five touchdowns and five interceptions. Cowan, albeit against tougher opponents, is completing 53.5 percent of his throws since taking over for Olson on Oct. 7. He has thrown five touchdown passes and four interceptions.

By contrast, Drew Olson, who was in his third season as a starter, completed 64 percent of his passes with a school-record 34 touchdowns and six interceptions in leading the Bruins in 2005.

``Your quarterback has to play well, and then everything else kind of branches out, kind of grows from there,'' UCLA coach Karl Dorrell said. ``We have two young quarterbacks this year, both sophomores and both potentially very, very good players.

``But they're going through (gaining) experience right now. I think when that position gets to be as good as it can be, then that will help all the other positions.''

Youth, and inexperience, is a factor. Drew Olson was one of five senior starters on offense last season. Currently, center Robert Chai is the lone senior starter.

Meanwhile, tailback Chris Markey, who replaced Drew in the backfield, saw his workload cut in last week's loss to Washington State as the coaching staff gave backups Derrick Williams and Chane Moline more carries.

Markey has not topped the 100-yard mark in the past five games and has a combined 54 rushing yards the past two weeks. Drew, who left after his junior season, ran for 914 yards and 13 touchdowns last season. Drew's speed also made punters kick the ball out of bounds out of fear of a big return, and he made defenses leery of committing extra defenders to pressure the quarterback too often. He had had five touchdown plays of at least 40 yards last season. The Bruins have one this season.

Drew was also dynamic in the passing game. He averaged 14.6 yards on 31 catches last season. No UCLA player with more than two catches this season is averaging better than 13.5 yards per catch.

Lewis also made defenses change. The athletic 6-foot-6, 260-pound tight end had 58 receptions and scored 10touchdowns last season, both school records for the position.

In doing so Lewis drew double teams, which left single coverage on UCLA's other receivers.

``To make the big plays, it's really more about opportunities,'' said senior receiver Junior Taylor, who leads the Bruins with 21catches. ``If you don't get opportunities to make a big play, it's hard to make a big play. I know Maurice was given all the opportunities in the world to make the big play, and the same with Marcedes. It was something they could do.

``We just need to get the ball to the guys we have who can make big plays. I feel that's part of the problem. We haven't been able to get the guys who can make the big play consistently. That's part of our struggles.''

Another problem with UCLA's offense is its inability to finish drives.

Justin Medlock leads the Pacific-10 Conference with 18 field goals (12 inside the red zone), but UCLA ranks eighth in the league in scoring touchdowns (12) from within the red zone. The Bruins' 41.3 percent touchdown conversion rate after moving inside their opponents' 20-yard line bests only Stanford in the Pac-10.

A year ago that wasn't an issue. Drew and Lewis combined for 21 scores from in the red zone. In fact, all 10 of Lewis' touchdown catches came from 19 yards or closer.

``We may not have Marcedes and Maurice, a big-play running back, but we're moving the ball all the way until the 30, and then we stall out,'' Taylor said. ``We can't take a play for granted. You think, well, that was a good 30-yard catch, we'll pound it in. We've got to try and make that second effort and get the ball in.''

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UCLA RB Chris Markey, right, was held to a season-worst 1.7 yards per carry in the Bruins' loss to Notre Dame.

Michael Conroy/Associated Press