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UCLA NOTEBOOK: UNHAPPY HALE LOSES STARTING SPOT.


Byline: BRIAN DOHN Staff Writer

PASADENA -- UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles
UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University)
UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX
 sophomore linebacker John Hale John Hale is the name of:
  • Saint John Hale (martyred 1535), British saint
  • John Hale (1636–1700), minister in Beverly, Massachusetts, involved with the Salem witch trials.
 made his season debut Saturday against Rice, a week after the Bruins started the season and not in the role he desired.

After starting seven games last season, Hale is in a backup role, which is where he never expected to be. Hale was supposed to be the only returner among an inexperienced linebacking corps. He was suspended for UCLA's season-opening defeat of Utah for his role in an offseason fight at the home of teammate Jess Ward, but said he was told by coach Karl Dorrell Karl Dorrell (born December 18, 1963 in Alameda, California) is the first black head coach in the history of the UCLA Bruins college football team, a position he took on December 18, 2002.  the discipline would not impact his status as a starter.

However, after losing his starting position to junior Aaron Whittington, Hale was asked if he still believed his suspension had nothing to do with losing his starting position.

``That's coach's decision,'' Hale said. ``You have to talk to him about it. I'm not the right guy. All I know is what I can do.''

At the beginning of the week, Dorrell said Whittington beat Hale out in training camp, and Whittington deserved to remain the starter. In fact, Whittington began working with the first-unit defense two weeks before UCLA's opener against Utah.

Hale chose several times not to answer as to the reason he lost his job, but said his goal was to win it back.

``I just have to work hard to get it back,'' Hale said. ``That's it. I missed a game, missed a week, so just have to come back and work my tail off the same way I did in camp and get it back. If I come out and play better than another person, then I still have a chance.''

But getting the chance could be difficult for Hale. As a backup, he received one-third of the reps in practice, which could limit his opportunities to win back the job.

``If it takes more than a week, it takes more than a week,'' Hale said. ``If it takes a couple of days, it takes that. There's a lot of good players that are playing right now. It's going to be a tough challenge to get back the No. 1 spot, but -- I have to work hard to get back in there.''

Punt return In American and Canadian football a punt return is one of the punt receiving team's options to respond to a punt. A player (usually a second or third string wide receiver or running back) positioned many yards from the line of scrimmage will attempt to catch or pick up the ball  problems: The Bruins continued to search for a competent punt returner Punt returner (PR) is a position on special teams in American football. Description
The role of a punt returner is to catch the ball after it is punted and to give his team good field position (or a touchdown if possible) by returning it.
, and didn't get an answer when receiver Marcus Everett muffed a punt. Rice recovered on UCLA's 2-yard line, but failed to score.

UCLA also tried safety Dennis Keyes in the first half, but he elected to let Jared Scrugg's punt land rather than catching it.

Tailback tail·back  
n. Football
The back on an offensive team who lines up farthest from the line of scrimmage.


tailback
Noun

Brit a queue of traffic stretching back from an obstruction

 Chris Markey muffed a punt in UCLA's opener.

Why Rice? Rice came into the Rose Bowl with 13 straight road losses, and having lost 17 of its last 18 games. The Owls were not an ideal opponent for UCLA, but the school did not have a lot of choices.

The Owls were a late addition to the 2005 schedule because BYU BYU Brigham Young University
BYU Bayou
BYU Bob's Your Uncle
BYU Bayreuth, Germany - Bindlacher Berg (Airport Code)
BYU Beyond Your Understanding
 pulled out when the Mountain West Confernce added a league game to the schedule. BYU was also scheduled to play UCLA this season, but the schools opted to change a four-year deal to a two-year deal, which will be fulfilled in 2007 and 2008.

So the search for a substitute for 2005 and 2006 began.

``When you're filling a slot at that late point in time, you have to find a school that matches open dates,'' UCLA spokesman Marc Dellins said. ``At the time, we only had five home games for 2006, so we worked out a two-for-one deal with Rice.''

Rice received a $400,000 guarantee when it lost to the Bruins last season at the Rose Bowl. The Owls received $250,000 for Saturday's contest.

UCLA will get $275,000 when it travels to Rice. Originally, that game was scheduled for 2010, but it was recently shifted to 2012, which will be UCLA's season-opener.

Also: UCLA defensive tackle Kevin Brown The name Kevin Brown can refer to several different people, including the following:
  • Kevin Brown (baseball) (b. 1965), a former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher with 211 career wins
  • Kevin D. Brown (b.
 returned to the starting lineup For the line of action figures, see .
A starting lineup in sports refers to the set of players actively participating in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes
 in place of Brigham Harwell, who played as a backup. ... UCLA is off next week before opening Pac-10 play at Washington on Sept. 23.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, 6 boxes

Photo:

(1) A host of UCLA defenders drag down Rice's Quinton Smith Quinton Bernard Smith (born January 14, 1984 in Tyler, Texas) is an American football running back who is currently a practice squad player for the New York Giants of the National Football League.  during the first half.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer

(2) Justin Medlock Justin Charles "J-Med" Medlock Born October 23, 1983 in Fremont, California is a free agent American football kicker. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs and played only one regular season game for the team. , UCLA kicker

Box:

(1) THEY SAID IT

(2) HERO

(3) GOAT

(4) STAT OF THE GAME

(5) UCLA (2-0) LOG

(6) UCLA 26, RICE 16
COPYRIGHT 2006 Daily News
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Article Details
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Title Annotation:Sports
Publication:Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
Date:Sep 10, 2006
Words:739
Previous Article:UCLA NOTEBOOK: MARKEY HAS SOMETHING IN RESERVE.(Sports)
Next Article:OLSON, UCLA'S OFFENSE CAN'T GET OFF GROUND PASSING GAME IS OUT OF SYNC AGAINST RICE.(Sports)



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