UCLA FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: BROWN BACK AFTER A YEAR OFF.

Byline: BRIAN DOHN Staff Writer

When UCLA defensive tackle Kevin Brown last played at the Rose Bowl, he tormented USC in a near-upset en route to a two-sack performance. That was in 2004.

Brown redshirted last season after suffering an ankle injury two weeks before the first game. It required surgery, and the rehab was long and exhaustive, but he finally returns to UCLA's home turf in today's opener against Utah.

``Not playing for a year, you have to have a lot of patience,'' Brown, a junior, said. ``Hopefully, I go out there, enthusiastic and ready to go wild.''

At 6-foot-2 and 295 pounds, Brown is the most physically impressive member of UCLA's undersized defensive line. He won't start -- Kenneth Lombard gets the nod -- but Bruins coach Karl Dorrell said Brown should get at least half of the snaps.

Brown said ``I'm just rusty'' after missing last season and being held out of spring practice, but is eager to return to his 2004 form, when he led UCLA with five sacks.

``I think he's running around a lot better,'' Dorrell said of Brown. ``He wants to showcase that he can play, and he wants to prove to the coaches that he's supposed to be a starter.''

No frosh worries: The last time Dorrell entrusted the kick return duties to a true freshman, Maurice Drew muffed a pivotal kickoff in a season-opening loss at Colorado in 2003.

But as Jeremy McGee and Alterraun Verner prepare to return kicks against the Utes, Dorrell was asked if he had any apprehension about two true freshmen returning kicks.

``No, not those guys,'' Dorrell said. ``They secure the ball really well. That's something that is real important to them. I feel comfortable with those guys.''