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By BETH HARRIS AP Sports Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Coming off a 10-win season and a Sun Bowl victory, UCLA wants to validate last season's success. To do so, the Bruins will have to incorporate a slew of new talent in and out of uniform, while overcoming the departures of three major offensive playmakers.
Gone are quarterback Drew Olson, running back Maurice Drew and tight end Marcedes Lewis.
"You just don't replace Maurice," said sophomore Kahlil Bell, whose strength and speed make him the top pass protector among the Bruins' tailback corps. "He was a home-run hitter. But I've worked hard over the offseason and can only try my best."
Bell joins redshirt senior J.J. Hair (two starts, one catch for 5 yards), and sophomores Ryan Moya (two starts, 10 catches for 153 yards) and Logan Paulsen (six games, two catches for 33 yards) as successors to Drew, who had 58 receptions last season.
Coach Karl Dorrell named Brigham Young transfer Ben Olson as the starting quarterback, ahead of sophomore Pat Cowan, who appeared in one game last season.
At 23, Olson brings maturity from a two-year Mormon church mission after narrowly losing out to Drew Olson for the starting spot last season, when the 6-foot-5, 225-pound sophomore played in two games after breaking his left throwing hand the week before the season began.
"The upside is that he gets the majority of the reps now," Dorrell said. "So that gets him more entrenched with what we do and what it means to be the No. 1 quarterback."
Olson will lead the Bruins into their Sept. 2 opener against Utah in the Rose Bowl, where they'll play four of their first five games. It will be his first start since his senior year at Thousand Oaks High in 2001.
Having worked out with the first-team during training camp, Cowan has made steady improvements to his confidence, throwing arm and 6-4, 220-pound frame, adding 30 pounds. As a right-hander, he gives Bruin receivers a different look than Olson.
Cowan's brother Joe is a senior wide receiver, whose 35 catches last season leads returnees. He tore a ligament in his right knee, but is optimistic about possibly returning in time for the opener.
Having Olson at the helm is one of several changes for the Bruins, who finished last season ranked 16th in the AP poll. They are unranked to start the season and remain in the lengthy shadow of crosstown rival Southern California.
Last year's 10-2 record and bowl victory earned Dorrell a better deal and Pac-10 co-coach of the year honors. He got a new guaranteed contract for $850,000 -- a raise of $250,000. He is 22-15 entering his fourth season in Westwood.
He's working with a predominantly new staff, with three holdovers among the nine full-time assistants. Three left for the NFL and Dorrell fired defensive coordinator Larry Kerr.
Kerr was replaced by DeWayne Walker of the Washington Redskins, whose task is to fix one of the worst defenses in the nation. Already, Walker has influenced the practice tempo, speeding things up.
The mostly new staff is overseeing a majority of new players, with 12 returning starters -- five on offense, seven on defense.
Last season, the Bruins opened with eight consecutive victories before stumbling in their final four games, giving up 191 points. The streak ended with a 52-14 throttling at Arizona, and the regular season was capped with a 66-19 whipping at USC.
This season's schedule includes all nine Pac-10 opponents for the first time in years. Rice follows Utah into the Rose Bowl on Sept. 9. After a bye week, the Bruins open Pac-10 play at Washington on Sept. 23.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APTV-08-24-06 1813MDT
