DOUBLE TROUBLE BALL TWINS TO BRUINS' DEFENSE.

Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer

Their names are Mat and Dave Ball. If it were put to a vote by their UCLA teammates, their names would be Odd Ball and Goof Ball. Or is it Goof Ball and Odd Ball?

The look-alike twins are distinguishable only by their uniform numbers (Dave wears 43, Mat 49) and this week the cast on Mat's broken right hand. Oh, there's the mole on Mat's left ear, but you probably don't want to get that close.

The Balls, redshirt-freshman defensive ends, descended upon UCLA from Dixon, a small town about 20 miles southwest of Sacramento, and it's becoming increasingly clear that life around Westwood won't be the same for the next four years.

On the field, the Balls play with old-school ferocity. Off it, they're old-school characters.

``They're crazy,'' said receiver Brian Poli-Dixon. ``They're like the Bushwackers from the old-school WWF. They're such nice guys and they're good players, but they're crazy.

``They're constantly joking around and making smart remarks and the way they look - they're big with bald heads. They're like cartoon characters. I don't think it would be funny if it was just one of them.''

Until recently, the Balls have been an inside joke. However, with a spate of injuries at defensive end - Kenyon Coleman and Sean Phillips might not return this season and Rusty Williams is playing through shoulder and foot injuries - the Balls, both 6-foot-6 and 260-plus pounds, have been unleashed on the rest of mankind.

Mat started against Oregon State and when linebacker Tony White tipped a pass by Beavers quarterback Jonathan Smith into the air, Mat gathered it in and raced 15 yards for a touchdown. Dave also saw extensive action and contributed three tackles, including an 8-yard sack of Smith.

``They were both very consistent, snap after snap,'' said defensive ends coach John Pearce. ``Dave played some against Cal, but this was Mat's first game. They both played better than a lot of redshirt freshmen would play.

``They're very athletic. They run extremely well, use their hands and understand leverage. The thing I like is that they're not looking for the easy way out. To me, they remind me of Mike and Marlin McKeever (twins who starred at USC from 1958 to 1960). They're a brother combination that has the opportunity to become well known if they continue to improve.''

If the Balls, with their buzz cuts and farm-boy looks, look like throwbacks, then they play like it, too - with toughness and a mean streak.

``They have a bad attitude when they get to the quarterback,'' said UCLA coach Bob Toledo.

It figures then that the Balls' football heroes are Dick Butkus and Deacon Jones, whom they learned about watching NFL Films as teen-agers.

``I like the way the game was played then,'' said Mat Ball, who had to be forced by doctors to wrap his broken hand before returning during the Oregon State game. ``You played hard-nosed football and hustled. It was a different world back then, but it seems like that's how football should be played. Now, there's a lot of talking. All the jabber, jabber takes away from the game.''

Said Dave: ``I liked all the characters. Players had nicknames like Night Train Lane. The players seemed larger than life. People don't worship their team as much anymore. Pro football now is so commercialized. You always see the guy in shoe ads and selling products. People at home get tired of that. They just want to see football.''

Obviously, the Balls like their football serious - but not too serious. In fact, they are the class clowns of the team.

They pester assistant coach Kelly Skipper about letting them return punts. They switch practice jerseys and assigned seats in meetings to see whether Pearce will notice (he doesn't). If you see one of them at a party, the one with a lampshade on his head would be one Ball. The other one would be out in the street chasing cars.

Surprisingly, they haven't taken much advantage of being twins. No switching dates or getting in trouble and blaming it on the other. Teammates fool with them by saying, ``Hi, Dave,'' to Mat, and vice versa. Or they just give up and say ``Hey, Ball.''

``People always ask twin questions,'' Dave said. ``They don't know what it's like, but we're used to it every day. People confuse our names and then they're sorry about it, but it's not an insult. It's not like we're freaks of nature.''

In fact, there are six sets of brothers in the program and another set of twins (Josh and Micah Webb), but none are like the Balls.

``There's never a dull moment with the Balls,'' said tight end Blane Kezirian. ``I roomed with Mat last year and it was about the best freshman year a guy can have.''

Last year, the Balls took turns calling a UCLA cable-access TV call-in show (think ``Wayne's World'') using made-up voices and names. They were funny enough to be invited on as guests.

When Dave was waiting for the Oregon State offense to break its huddle, he'd hop up and down, twisting his hips in some sort of dance/mating ritual. He says it was to get the crowd excited.

``That epitomizes what the Balls are about,'' Kezirian said.

When Mat scored his touchdown, many teammates were anticipating something special afterward. ``When Ball scored,'' said Poli-Dixon, ``I said, `Watch. He'll do something stupid.' ''

Instead, Ball waited to get mobbed in the end zone by his teammates. It was Odd, all right.

UCLA at ARIZONA

Saturday, 4 p.m.

TV/RADIO: Ch. 7/1150-AM

CAPTION(S):

photo, box

Photo: Twins Mat, left, and Dave Ball have brought increased intensity to UCLA defense since injuries have given the redshirt freshmen more playing time. They've also brought a sense of humor.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

Box: UCLA at ARIZONA (see text)