UCLA NOTEBOOK: DREW KNOWS HE'S A TARGET FOR AZTECS.

Byline: Brian Dohn Staff Writer

UCLA tailback Maurice Drew talked to his friends at San Diego State this week. Not football-playing friends, just some buddies from his days at Concorde De La Salle High.

And each of them said the same thing, that San Diego State's defense was prepping to shut the sophomore down.

Drew, coming off of his 322-yard, five-touchdown rushing performance at Washington, said he expects to be the focal point of the Aztecs' defensive game plan.

``Sometimes when you have a game like I had, you gotta come out and work harder because everyone is going to be gunning for you,'' Drew said. ``This is going to be a great opportunity for (running back) Manny (White) to come out and show what he can do.''

Although its in the Mountain West Conference, San Diego State has the best defense the Bruins will have faced so far. The Aztecs are 23rd in the nation in stopping the run, allowing 92.7 yards per game.

``Maurice is like a vet, I'm telling you,'' White said. ``You'd think he's been here for five years. He understands people are going to be gunning for him because he's shown what he can do.''

UCLA running backs coach Eric Bieniemy said one thing Drew has to be cognizant of is not trying to make the perfect run, especially since Drew scored four times on runs of more than 35 yards against the Huskies.

``You can't always look for the home run,'' Bieniemy said. ``He knows the goal is to get 4 1/2 yards per carry.''

--Perry feeling better: After sitting out most of the last two practices with a sore hamstring, receiver Tab Perry looked good in going through most of practice and is expected to start in place of injured Craig Bragg.

``He looked better,'' UCLA coach Karl Dorrell said. ``We didn't want him doing too much, and he wound up doing more than I wanted him to do. But he felt pretty good. That's a good sign, and hell be ready to go.''

--London update: Dorrell said inside linebacker Justin London (ankle) will play, but not much.

``He will play, but if and what he does is going to be a very limited basis,'' Dorrell said. ``He wants to play. I'm doing my best to keep him involved in our team. He wants to be involved in every minute of our team. He's kind of our players' coach. He misses playing.''

--Avoiding a letdown: Dorrell addressed a possible letdown because of several factors. The Bruins are 18-0-1 against the Aztecs, had a strong offensive performance in the Pac-10 opener at Washington, are coming off a bye week and begin the heart of their conference schedule next week against Arizona.

``You don't want to lose your focus,'' Dorrell said. ``You have a seven- or eight-game stretch in the Pac-10, and you throw this one in between. That is a little bit of a concern, but we're mature enough as a team. I feel pretty good about that, but as a coach you're always concerned about whether there will be a letdown.''

--Odds and ends: UCLA transfer Nnamdi Ohaeri said he will wait until April to enroll in a school. He said his revised list is UNLV, Northwestern and San Diego State ... Dorrell said defensive end Kevin Harbour (ACL tear) recently was cleared to begin lateral movement. Doctors have slowed his rehabilitation, but he could be back by the end of October ... Backup linebacker Aaron Whittington (hip) is expected to play.

Brian Dohn, [phone]

brian.dohn(at)dailynews.com

UCLA vs. SAN DIEGO STATE

Kickoff: 4 p.m., Saturday, Rose Bowl

TV/radio: FSN West 2, AM-1150/690

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