PAUS OR FAIL UCLA NEEDS ITS QB HEALTHY.

Byline: Billy Witz Staff Writer

After two seasons of spending as much time in the trainer's room as on the football field, Cory Paus is no longer viewed as a quarterback. Instead, he is an investment, a piece of working capital whose value isn't tied to an earnings report but to an injury report.

If Paus is healthy, then so is the Bruins' offense. When he's hurt, so are their chances.

After he was knocked out of five games over the past two seasons and twice suffered season-ending broken collarbones, the shareholders in C. Paus Inc. are doing all they can to ensure a maximum return this season.

Paus' parents have taken him to a nutritionist. The equipment managers have fitted him with more-protective shoulder pads. The offensive line has altered its protections. And the coaches have rewritten parts of the playbook.

Paus has done his part, too, adding a half-dozen pounds and taking calcium-supplement drinks to strengthen his bones.

Asked at the start of fall camp what the key to the Bruins' season was, UCLA coach Bob Toledo was to the point.

``The health of our quarterback,'' he said. ``Cory Paus needs to stay healthy. If he stays healthy, I think we have a chance to have a pretty good offense.''

In the seven games Paus started and finished last season, the Bruins were more than that. They averaged 34.4 points per game and never scored fewer than 27. Without him, they averaged 21.1 per game.

Paus' regular-season passing efficiency rating of 145.8 and his passing-yards-per-game average of 250.9 would have led the Pacific-10 Conference had he played enough games to qualify.

At times, the subject of his health becomes a tiring subject for Paus, perhaps because nobody feels worse about it than he does.

When he separated his shoulder on the first play from scrimmage last season against Alabama, an injury that cost him four games, he joked that people were going to think he was a sissy.

``I don't feel a burden,'' Paus said. ``But it's my job to stay healthy. When I'm healthy, we're supposed to play better.

``When I've gotten hurt, at first I get pissed, then I'm sad, then it's why me? After a few days, I'm over that and it's what do I need to do to not let it happen again? I've been at that stage for a long time now.''

Since four of the five injuries - two shoulder separations and two broken collarbones - have been to his shoulders, Paus began a weight-lifting regimen to build up muscle around his shoulders. At 6-foot-2 and 218 pounds, he's 12 pounds heavier and noticeably thicker than he was last August.

The new shoulder pads, which cover a broader area around his collarbone, also are designed to help.

Of course, Paus' best protection against injury is not to get hit. In each of the past two seasons, the offensive line has allowed 35 sacks, which ranks near the worst of the Pac-10.

``Knowing he's been hurt, I'm sure it's in the back of our minds,'' said left tackle Bryce Bohlander, who protects Paus' blind side. ``But we're not trying to block any harder because he's the quarterback. The main objective is always not to get him touched, but that's the same no matter who the quarterback is.''

In an effort to improve protection, Bohlander and right tackle Mike Saffer are changing their pass-blocking technique in order to create a wider pocket.

Also, Paus is being given more latitude to place himself out of harm's way. If he approaches the line of scrimmage and sees a defensive formation that might force him to take a hit, he can not only change the play but the protection. This might've helped last season as both of Paus' injuries occurred not on sacks but on hits after he delivered the ball.

``The first thing we talked about this spring was protection,'' quarterback coach John Pearce said. ``Not patterns, not formations, but protections.

``I told Cory, 'Tell your mama that if you get hit, it's your fault 'cause you have the ability to change the protection.' ''

Mrs. Paus is all too happy to hear the news.

``Boy, I hope it's over,'' Nancy Paus said. ``It's so frustrating from his point of view. He's a tough competitor, he's not afraid to play hurt.

``Sometimes I say I don't know how many injuries this kid can take, but football has always been his life. It's something he loves and he just wants to have the success he's always dreamed about.''

MEDICAL HISTORY

Name: Cory Paus

Occupation: Student at UCLA

Year: Junior

Height: 6-foot-2

Weight: 212 pounds

INJURIES

Dec. 30, 2000: Broken left collarbone. ... Season-ending injury occurred on last play of the first half in the Sun Bowl when he was hit by blitzing linebacker Nick Greisen while attempting a Hail Mary pass. UCLA, leading 17-7 at the time, eventually lost 21-20.

Sept. 2, 2000: Separated right shoulder. ... Injury occurred on the first play of season-opener against Alabama. After rolling to his left and throwing the ball, Paus was hit by Jarrett Johnson, a blow UCLA coaches felt was a late hit. Paus stayed in for two more plays, then left. Ryan McCann guided UCLA to a 3-1 record in his absence.

Nov. 13, 1999: Broken left collarbone. ... Season-ending injury occurred early in the second quarter against Washington when Paus was hit at the end of a 9-yard run. McCann relieved him and rallied the Bruins to a 23-20 overtime win, knocking the Huskies out of the Rose Bowl. Oct. 23, 1999: Separated left shoulder. ... Injury occurred in the third quarter of an eventual 55-7 loss to Oregon State but didn't keep Paus from starting the next week. However, he had surgery in the offseason to tighten the shoulder socket.

Sept. 18, 1999: Bruised ribs. ... In his first start, Paus was knocked from the game in the second quarter of an eventual 35-21 win over Fresno State. The injury caused him to miss the next game at Stanford.

November 1997: Separated left shoulder. ... In the Illinois 6A championship game, Paus' Lincoln Way team concluded an undefeated season but not before Paus, playing defense, suffered a separated left shoulder, the same one he would injure two years later.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) In the seven games Cory Paus started and finished last season, UCLA averaged 34.4 points per game.

Evan Yee/Staff Photographer

(2) no caption (Cory Paus on a clipboard)

Box: MEDICAL HISTORY (see text)