Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti failed to lure a running back in the Ducks’ 2003 recruiting class.
Bellotti will face one of the top backs he failed to land when Maurice Drew takes the field for UCLA Saturday. Drew, who came to the Bruins from De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., was rated the sixth-best running back to come out of high school last season.
“You better get low,” Bellotti said. “He’s a very good runner. He’s 200 pounds, and he’s about 5-8 tops. He’s a complete running back that possesses speed. He’ll break tackles. He’s got a natural feel for the game and he runs very hard.”
Drew was on a short list of running backs that Bellotti was recruiting. The head coach failed to land one and was further criticized when Lynell Hamilton — now playing for San Diego State — raised concerns about his recruiting trip to Eugene.
Regardless, Bellotti and the Ducks will have a two-headed running back monster to deal with when they fly to Los Angeles. Drew and incumbent sophomore Tyler Ebell have shared the repetitions lately.
“He’s never been caught from behind in high school,” Bellotti said of Drew. “And he ran back punts.
“We knew that. We obviously coveted him a great deal. He’s stepped in and become their leading guy.”

Quarterback roulette
UCLA quarterback Matt Moore, demoted to backup this week in favor of Drew Olson, told the Los Angeles Times on Wednesday that he was surprised at the timing of the move.
UCLA head coach Karl Dorrell had said after the Bruins’ 31-13 loss to Washington State last Saturday that Moore would start against Oregon. Two days later, Dorrell’s tune had changed and Olson was penciled in as starter.
Moore went 11 of 29 for 138 yards against the Cougars.
“There were some things I didn’t hit — Marcedes (Lewis) was open in the end zone a couple times,” Moore said. “There were some flat routes I should have hit on third down. Just little things, man, and it happened a lot.
“That was a huge thing. It leads coach Dorrell to believe I don’t know what’s going on. Even though that’s not the case, that’s what it seemed like Saturday because I just didn’t perform like I should have.”
Earlier in the week, Bellotti was expecting Moore to start. However, he said it really doesn’t matter who starts for the Bruins at quarterback because the Ducks need to focus on other aspects of the UCLA offense.
“I think it’s about containing their running game, whether it be Maurice Drew or Tyler Ebell,” he said. “It’s about stopping their wide receivers. Craig Bragg had a career day against us last year.”

Award winners
Junior kicker Jared Siegel and senior offensive lineman Dan Weaver were named the 2003 CoSIDA All-District VIII Football Team on Thursday.
The award is focused on academics. Siegel has a 3.58 GPA in business administration while Weaver’s GPA is 3.28 in accounting.
District VIII states include Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and the province of British Columbia.
Ten Pacific-10 Conference players made the first team and nine more made the second team.

Quickie notes
Oregon wide receiver Samie Parker needs one pass reception to tie for eighth on Oregon’s single-season reception list.
Greg Bauer caught 53 passes in 1976. Parker would tie with Bauer with just one catch against the Bruins.
From then on, Parker would catch Bobby Moore (54 in 1969), and then Pat Johnson and Ricky Whittle — Johnson had 55 in 1997 and Whittle did the same in 1995.
On similar footing, wide receiver Demetrius Williams needs 36 receiving yards to catch Tony Hartley for seventh in receiving yards in a season.
Williams has caught 43 passes for 845 yards this season. Hartley had 881 in 1999.
Sitting sixth on the list is Marshaun Tucker, who accumulated 882 yards in 2000.

Television update
Saturday’s game will not be televised live. Duck fans, however, can catch the game on a tape delayed basis by tuning into KEZI at 11:30 p.m. Saturday.
On Tuesday, the Ducks announced that KEZI will air the Civil War live with Barry Tompkins doing play-by-play.