Monday, October 22, 2012
Monday was devoted to practice and film study in preparation for the game against the Arizona Wildcats.
For Andrew, the work was even more specific. He spent much of the morning with Norm Chow and Rip Scherer, the quarterbacks coach, reviewing coverages, defensive tendencies, safety rotations, and third-down situations.
The advantage was that UCLA was coming off a bye week.
They had already known since the previous week that Arizona would be their next opponent, so Chow had not waited until Monday to get started. During the days off, he had already sent Andrew film, reports, and detailed explanations about the Wildcats' defense.
Now that game week had begun, with Saturday's matchup approaching, Andrew had already spent several days studying Arizona's defense.
In a way, they had enjoyed more time to prepare for this opponent than for any other team all season.
That was why Monday was not about starting from scratch, but about polishing and adjusting the details.
After practice and the meetings, Andrew went to shower. He still had classes later that day because, no matter how much the attention surrounding UCLA grew with each passing week, he was still a freshman trying to earn good grades in the courses he was taking toward his degree.
Meanwhile, close to noon, Jim Mora had an obligation of his own: a press conference.
On Mondays, as was customary in college football programs, the head coach sat in front of reporters to discuss the upcoming game. The opponent, injuries, the state of the team, the mood after the previous week, and whatever topics the media wanted to push.
The press conference was held in a room within UCLA's athletic department, near the J.D. Morgan Center.
The Morgan Center was one of the central buildings of UCLA athletics. It housed administrative offices and workspaces for the athletic department.
The room was medium-sized.
At the front stood a podium surrounded by microphones from radio stations, local television channels, and sports outlets. Seated just behind them was Jim Mora, with a bottle of water at his side and the calm expression of someone who had already grown accustomed to that kind of routine.
In front of him, around forty chairs were occupied by reporters.
At the back of the room, several cameras rested on tripods. Some operators adjusted their framing. Others checked the audio. Along the sides, members of UCLA's communications staff organized the order of questions, indicated who could speak, and kept the press conference under a certain degree of control.
Mora looked around the room.
He was already used to dealing with the media, but even so, he knew this was not normal.
For an ordinary regular-season game, even at a major program and with UCLA now ranked seventh in the country, fifteen or twenty reporters might show up. Perhaps a few more if the opponent was ranked.
But not forty.
The reason was obvious.
UCLA had become one of the biggest stories of the season, and at the center of it all was Andrew Pritchett-Tucker.
It was not only that he had arrived at college as the greatest high school prospect in history. It was not only that every major program in the country had tried to recruit him, or that his name had already carried enormous pressure before he had played a single college snap.
It was that, in only eight weeks, he had turned those expectations into something real.
Andrew was not merely playing well.
He was producing like the best quarterback in the country in terms of statistics, impact, and control of the game.
Geno Smith could still compete with him statistically, yes. But West Virginia had just lost two games in a row, and that had completely changed the national conversation. Andrew, on the other hand, had not experienced defeat since that early setback against Nebraska.
Since then, UCLA had not stopped winning, and he had not stopped improving.
That was why, for many analysts, the Heisman Watch already had a new number one: him.
The press officer stepped up to the microphone and briefly looked at the reporters.
"Coach Mora is here. He'll make an opening statement, and then we'll take questions."
Mora moved the bottle of water to one side, leaned slightly toward the microphones, and delivered an opening statement that lasted barely two minutes. He spoke about the bye week, the importance of recovering, Arizona's quality, and the need to regain their competitive rhythm after a week without a game.
When he finished, the press officer pointed to the first reporter.
"Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times," the man said, raising his hand slightly before asking his question. "Coach, Arizona has one of the most productive offenses in the conference. Outside of the Oregon game, they've been averaging more than forty points per game, and last week they scored fifty-two against Washington. How concerned are you about their offensive pace?"
Mora nodded slowly. He had expected that question.
Arizona was in a transitional year, just like UCLA. Although they had not been fortunate enough to have UCLA's players, especially Andrew.
They had a new coaching staff, and their new head coach was Rich Rodriguez. His arrival had completely changed the program's offensive identity. The Wildcats played an extremely fast-paced spread option offense, operating without a huddle, attacking quickly, and forcing opposing defenses to communicate under pressure.
It was a style that felt more like the dizzying pace of the Big 12 than the kind of football usually associated with the Pac-12.
That was why they scored so many points.
Mora adjusted the microphone slightly before answering. "There's no question they have a great offense," he said. "Rodriguez does an excellent job. His teams play fast, they force you to defend the entire width of the field, and if you make mistakes, they punish you. You can't relax against an offense like that. We've been preparing for them for several days, and the bye week helped."
The press officer pointed to another reporter.
"Chris Foster, ESPN," introduced a middle-aged man with a neatly trimmed beard. "Coach, Arizona is 0-3 in conference play. Technically, their backs are against the wall in the South Division, with all of their wins coming outside the conference. Do you think there's an obvious weakness when they face Pac-12 opponents?"
"I don't think they have a weakness in conference play," Mora replied, shaking his head. "I think they had an extremely difficult Pac-12 schedule. Oregon, Oregon State, and Stanford in consecutive weeks. Three enormous tests. They lost, yes, but after that they managed to regroup, win important games, and break into the rankings. That says a lot about their character."
Mora paused briefly before continuing. "And I think that makes them more dangerous. They know that if they want to preserve even the slightest chance of competing for the division, they can't afford to lose this game. So we expect a desperate, motivated, and very talented team."
Several reporters nodded at his words.
Underestimating Arizona because of its conference record would be a serious mistake.
Mathematically, the Wildcats no longer completely controlled their own destiny in the South Division. Their losses had come against teams from the North Division, which complicated the situation. But if they could beat UCLA and USC, and also get some help through additional losses by the Bruins and Trojans, they could still cling to a remote possibility.
A very slim one, but one that still existed.
And even if the divisional race appeared to be an uphill battle, that did not mean they were going to hand the game to anyone. Arizona had just entered the national rankings. They wanted to hold on to that spot and prove that their resurgence was real, and UCLA would be the perfect opportunity to do it.
A woman raised her hand from the third row. "Jill Painter, Daily News," she introduced herself. "Coach, Andrew Pritchett-Tucker has thirty total touchdowns in seven games and is currently considered one of the Heisman favorites. Did you expect such an immediate impact when he decided to come to UCLA?"
Mora let out a small smile. "Not even in my wildest dreams did I imagine he would put up those numbers in seven games."
A few laughs could be heard around the room.
Mora smiled a little more, but quickly returned to a more serious tone. "Andrew has made an impact even faster than anyone could have projected. We knew he was talented. Everyone knew it. That's why every university fought to recruit him. But there's a huge difference between having talent in high school and running a college offense, facing college defenses, dealing with this kind of pressure, and earning the trust of a locker room that has to believe in you. That's the part that has impressed me the most."
He paused briefly before continuing. "That said, we can't allow him to become distracted by individual awards. The Heisman, the rankings, all of that is still a long way off. It's October. Our job is to keep him focused on the next opponent and the next practice. Andrew understands that. He's competitive, intelligent, and works as if he still has to earn the starting job every week. That's what we want from him."
Being considered a Heisman favorite could change far too quickly.
Of course, it would be an immense source of pride for UCLA to have a Heisman Trophy winner. In the entire history of the university, only Gary Beban, nicknamed "The Great Bruin," had accomplished it. That had been between 1965 and 1967, an era that already seemed to belong to another world.
Forty-five years had passed since then.
Having another Heisman winner would be enormous for the university. And if he also became the first freshman in history to win the award, the achievement would become even more legendary. It would be something UCLA, its students, its alumni, and its fans could remember for decades.
But a Heisman campaign could also collapse in one or two games.
Geno Smith was the most recent example.
On October 13, West Virginia was still undefeated, and Smith looked like the most dominant quarterback in the country. To many people, he was even a step ahead of Andrew. Then came Texas Tech, an opponent that, in theory, was not supposed to destroy them.
But they did.
49-14.
West Virginia fell from fifth to thirteenth in the rankings. The drop was not even greater because it was still their first loss, but the damage to Smith's candidacy was obvious.
Then, just two days earlier, West Virginia had faced Kansas State, the fourth-ranked team in the country, with Collin Klein also firmly involved in the Heisman race.
Everyone expected an offensive battle.
A duel between the two most closely watched quarterbacks of the season.
But there was no duel.
Kansas State won 55-14.
Geno Smith once again finished far below the numbers he had posted during the first five weeks of the season.
That was why Mora insisted so much on keeping everyone's feet firmly on the ground.
Another reporter spoke from the side of the room. "Jack Wang, Daily Bruin. Coach, after several weeks, we're going to face another ranked opponent. It will also be on the road, at Arizona Stadium, in front of a pretty intense crowd. Do you think that increase in intensity, combined with a week without football, could hurt us?"
Jack was a twenty-two-year-old UCLA journalism student.
The Daily Bruin was the university's official independent student-run newspaper, which was why he referred to UCLA as "we" when he spoke.
Mora shook his head. "We've already faced ranked opponents, and it wasn't an eternity ago. It was only a few weeks back," he replied. "The team has improved since then, and that's what matters. Every game has taught us something. Some opponents weren't ranked, but that doesn't mean they were games we could afford to underestimate. This season has already shown that major programs can lose to teams that, on paper, appear weaker or enter the game unranked."
Mora placed both hands on the table and continued. "As for playing in a hostile environment, we already had an important experience at Nebraska. We went there and competed very well. The guys know what it's like to play through noise and what it feels like to have an entire stadium against you."
After a few more questions, Mora's press conference came to an end. He stood, offered a brief nod, and left the room accompanied by members of UCLA's communications staff.
But the media session was not over yet.
A few minutes later, two players entered: Shaq Evans and Datone Jones.
Shaq was one of the offensive leaders because of his age and experience. A senior and starting wide receiver, he had become an important presence in the locker room.
Datone Jones, meanwhile, was the defensive captain.
The two of them sat down at the table, this time without Mora beside them.
Several reporters adjusted their recorders and raised their notebooks. Even so, it was impossible not to notice a certain disappointment in the room.
Many had expected to see Andrew. It was not difficult to understand why.
For obvious football-related reasons, Andrew was the player everyone wanted to interview.
And it was not only about football.
Andrew had already carried an unusual level of fame before ever stepping onto UCLA's campus. His YouTube channel, the attention he had received during high school, his friendships with celebrities such as Justin Bieber, and all the noise surrounding his recruitment had turned him into a media magnet.
Every time he spoke, he generated headlines.
That was precisely why Mora and UCLA's staff appeared to manage his exposure carefully. Andrew had attended some previous press conferences, yes, but not every Monday.
They did not put him in front of the media more than necessary. They did not want the constant attention to distract him, nor did they want a freshman to end up carrying even more public pressure than he already had.
After all, no matter how incredible the numbers he was putting up, he was still a new eighteen-year-old college student.
…
And just as UCLA's press conference began circulating across different media outlets, the same thing happened with Arizona's.
ESPN
Arizona Heats Up the Build-Up to UCLA: Rodriguez Praises Pritchett-Tucker, but Wildcats Do Not Appear Intimidated
Tucson, Arizona — ESPNcom
The unavoidable topic was the Bruins' quarterback.
Pritchett-Tucker enters the game as one of the biggest stories of the season. To many, UCLA's sensational freshman is already the most influential player in the conference.
Rich Rodriguez did not avoid the question when he was asked how Arizona planned to stop him.
"He's a great player," Rodriguez said. "He's talented, he understands every aspect of the game, and the pressure doesn't seem to affect him much. But it's still football. If you make him uncomfortable, that's where you start finding opportunities. Look at Geno Smith. He seemed invincible after throwing eight touchdowns, and now what? Two losses. Nobody is invincible. Nebraska already proved that."
Rodriguez avoided turning it into a direct provocation, but he made it clear that Arizona did not intend to treat UCLA's freshman as an untouchable figure.
"He's having an impressive season," he added. "But every quarterback, even the best ones, can be beaten."
Shortly afterward, linebacker Jake Fischer was considerably less diplomatic.
"He's good. Nobody is saying otherwise," Fischer said. "But he's also a freshman. People forget that. Freshmen are the most likely to make mistakes when you put them under physical pressure."
A reporter then asked whether they felt the national media was disrespecting them by making them such heavy underdogs against a first-year quarterback.
Fischer gave a faint, ironic smile.
"The media sells good stories," he replied. "And an eighteen-year-old kid on the cover of a magazine is one of them. But the truth is, Pritchett still hasn't seen a real defense hitting him for four quarters in a hostile environment."
His smile widened slightly. "On Saturday, we want to see whether he keeps that same calm when he feels the Tucson heat and has three linemen on top of him every play. It's not going to be so easy that he can sit back with a towel over his shoulders after two or three quarters."
…
On Tuesday, the anticipation surrounding the game began to grow even more.
The slight tension building before the matchup was no longer limited to fans or sports programs trying to fill airtime. Rodriguez's words had been measured, but Fischer's had spread much faster.
On social media, local radio, opinion columns, and among the students themselves, the matchup between UCLA and Arizona was beginning to take on a more personal tone.
After practice on the field, UCLA allowed the media access for a few minutes.
It was standard procedure.
Reporters could approach the sideline, ask a few quick questions, gather some quotes, and then leave before the team closed practice again. It was not a formal press conference, but a brief media session in which the players spoke while still wearing their practice gear, with the fatigue of training still evident on them.
The reporters were not free to choose whom they interviewed.
UCLA decided which players would be made available to the media.
That was why, when they saw Andrew walking toward them accompanied by a member of the athletic communications department, they all reacted almost at once.
The cameras rose, and the microphones extended toward him.
The man walking beside Andrew was named Mark, one of the UCLA athletic department's media relations officials. He moved at Andrew's side with a calm expression, although his eyes were already measuring the size of the group forming in front of them.
Andrew wore a black practice shirt clinging to his body with sweat, practice shorts, and carried a bottle of water in his right hand. His hair was still slightly damp, and his breathing retained the heavy rhythm of someone who had just finished an intense session.
By the time he stopped, twelve reporters had already surrounded him.
There were three cameras, several radio microphones, and a few faces he was beginning to recognize. A middle-aged man from the Los Angeles Times. An ESPN reporter who had already interviewed him once. And a young woman from the Daily Bruin who, unless he was mistaken, was named Jessica.
Mark raised a hand to bring the group to order. "One at a time," he said. "We only have a few minutes."
The ESPN reporter got the first question.
"Andrew, I'm sure you saw or heard what Arizona's head coach and defensive captain said about you. Rodriguez said no one is invincible, and Fischer was a little more direct, talking about hitting you for four quarters. What do you think about that?"
Andrew looked toward the reporter. "I agree with Coach Rodriguez," he replied. "No player is invincible. If someone were, football would be pretty boring."
Andrew had listened to the full comments. In fact, Rodriguez's words had seemed fairly respectful to him. He did not expect an opposing head coach to say that stopping him was impossible. That would have been harmful to his own team.
No coach was going to send his players into a game believing they were about to face someone destined to destroy them.
Although the reference to Nebraska had bothered him a little.
The wound from that loss, along with his desire to get revenge on the Cornhuskers, was still very much alive. But he was not going to show that there.
"As for the defender…" Andrew began.
"Jake Fischer," the reporter supplied.
"Right, Jake," Andrew said, nodding once. "He said something about me not having faced a real defense yet."
A faint smile appeared on his face. "I think he forgot about Oregon State."
The group of reporters reacted immediately. Some lowered their eyes to write it down. Others simply moved their microphones closer.
Andrew continued. "We beat Oregon State. They didn't. So I'm not exactly sure what he considers a real defense, but maybe he should go back and watch that game before he starts talking."
The response had an edge to it, and it also made sense.
It was strange for an Arizona defender to try to sell the idea that UCLA had not truly been tested when the Bruins had already faced and defeated Oregon State, with Andrew playing the entire game and serving as one of the key reasons for the victory.
Jake might have been able to use that argument if UCLA had built its record entirely against weak opponents, unranked teams, or defenses incapable of holding up for a full game.
But that was not the case.
The Bruins had already faced a top-25 team known especially for its defense.
So Andrew's remark was not merely a provocation. It was a correction.
Andrew was not finished yet. "He said it won't be over in three quarters, but it will be."
One of the cameras adjusted its focus on his face.
Andrew took a drink of water, lowered the bottle, and delivered the final line. "After three quarters, you'll see me on television sitting on the sideline with a towel over my shoulders, enjoying how nice Arizona Stadium looks from the visitors' bench."
For a second, no one reacted. No one had expected that answer.
They knew Andrew was not a player without an ego. No one who had accomplished what he had in high school and then arrived at UCLA only to become a Heisman favorite as a true freshman could be completely devoid of one.
But up to that point, he had always presented a measured image in front of the media.
Competitive and confident, yes, but controlled.
To Jessica from the Daily Bruin, it brought back memories of an old slip of the tongue Andrew had made in high school before a game against Bosco. When he learned that the matchup would be broadcast nationally, he had said, with almost accidental delight, that the whole country would get to watch the beating.
At the time, many people dismissed it as youthful arrogance.
The problem, or perhaps the worst part, was that he had backed it up. He scored seven touchdowns, breaking several Trinity League and Southern Section records.
That was why, when she heard him promise that the game against Arizona would be over after three quarters, Jessica could not help believing him a little.
Mark turned his head slightly toward Andrew. His expression barely changed, but inside he was probably already regretting it.
Or, at the very least, calculating how many headlines, clips, and hours of debate that answer could generate.
The Los Angeles Times reporter smiled like someone who had just been handed the headline of the day without having to work very hard for it. Taking advantage of the brief silence, he stepped in with another question.
"Andrew, is your confidence really that high? Arizona is a ranked opponent. Aren't you worried those words could come back to haunt you if the game doesn't go the way you expect?"
Andrew shrugged. "We beat Oregon State, and they're ranked ninth in the country. We're seventh. If we lose to number twenty-four, it would be a step backward for us."
"Our goal is to compete for more than this. If we can't win this game, what is Oregon supposed to do to us next week?" he added.
The Ducks had beaten Arizona 49-0. If UCLA wanted to think like a winning team and truly compete for the Pac-12 championship and the BCS, they could not approach the game believing Arizona would keep it close. They had to destroy them.
His words did not sound like impulsive trash talk, but like something he genuinely believed.
Following that logic, it was not difficult to understand why. UCLA had already defeated an opponent tougher than Arizona, one with a better defense.
Jessica raised her hand, although she was standing close enough that the gesture was barely necessary.
"Jessica Harper, Daily Bruin," she said.
It was not always necessary to introduce yourself during those quick interviews, especially when they had already spoken before. But Jessica did it anyway.
She wanted Andrew to remember her name.
She was also a UCLA student. She was twenty-one, only slightly older than him, and followed the team with a mixture of journalistic duty and genuine passion for football. And although she would never admit it out loud, she found it difficult to ignore how attractive Andrew could be, especially when he answered like that, calm, sweaty after practice, with an almost irritating confidence in his eyes.
She hid it behind a professional smile.
"You're four touchdown passes away from UCLA's single-season record. Drew Olson had thirty-four. At your current pace, you could tie or even break it this Saturday. What would that mean to you?"
Andrew's expression changed.
The provocation disappeared for a moment, along with the cold certainty with which he had spoken about Arizona's level. His face became calmer, more like the player UCLA preferred to present in front of the microphones.
"It would be an honor," he replied. "I'm not going to say I don't care, because breaking records does motivate me. Drew Olson was a great player for UCLA and left a huge mark on this program. Being this close to something like that in my first year means a lot."
He paused briefly before adding, "If I can tie it or break it this Saturday, that would be pretty special."
Jessica nodded as she wrote it down.
That answer sounded much more like the Andrew the athletic department wanted in front of the cameras. Respectful. Ambitious, but measured.
Although it was already too late.
Everyone in that circle knew what the headline would be: Andrew Pritchett-Tucker promises Arizona will not make it to the fourth quarter alive.
A few more questions followed. Nothing especially important.
When the brief session ended, Mark closed the questioning and guided Andrew away from the group of reporters.
As soon as they were out of microphone range, Mark brought a hand to his forehead and let out a long sigh. "Couldn't you have been a little more diplomatic?"
"Being humble or letting things go and saying you'll do your talking on the field doesn't always work," Andrew said, glancing at him from the corner of his eye.
Mark did not respond.
"We have to change the mentality," Andrew continued. "If they provoke us, we respond. They need to respect the pecking order."
He said it with an irritated grimace.
Because yes, Fischer's words had bothered him.
Arizona had only just entered the top 25. They were barely beginning to receive national attention. And yet one of their defenders had the nerve to challenge him as if UCLA had proven nothing while they had?
The Bruins had spent eight weeks in the national conversation, climbing the rankings almost every week, winning, convincing people, and carrying a level of pressure that Arizona was only beginning to experience.
Besides, Andrew had spent days studying the Wildcats' defense.
The numbers did not lie.
Arizona had one of the weakest defenses in the country, allowing more than thirty points per game. UCLA, by contrast, was giving up just over fifteen. And that was despite its defense being criticized for a few games in which it had allowed too much, such as against Nebraska and California.
That was why hearing a captain from that defense suggest UCLA had not faced anyone sounded almost funny.
Or outright insulting.
Did he even watch football?
Mark did not respond immediately.
Part of him was already imagining how he would explain all of this to Mora. The comments were going to spread, especially because Andrew had made them. Sports shows would replay them throughout the week. Arizona fans would take them as a sign of disrespect. And on Saturday, every hit on Andrew would be celebrated as if it were a personal victory.
But another part of Mark understood his point.
Fischer's comments had clearly been a provocation. He had implied that UCLA had not faced any real challenges, as if their number-seven ranking were the product of hype rather than what they had accomplished on the field.
That was not true.
UCLA had earned its place.
Mark let out a sigh and lowered his gaze slightly. "You're right…" he murmured.
It was difficult for him to admit, but he meant it.
There was something about that mentality that he liked. Something that could backfire spectacularly, but that also felt necessary. Bruin pride and genuine ambition.
It gave him the sense that, with Andrew leading the way, UCLA could do more than simply have a good season.
They could become great again, or reach a level of greatness they had never achieved before.
And so the days passed.
With every article, every statement, every replay of the clip, and every television comment, the game began to feel less like a simple trip to Tucson and more like a test loaded with pride.
And then, finally, Saturday arrived.
-------------------------------------------------
You can read 15 chapters in advance on my patreon.
Link: https://[email protected]/Nathe07