To the casual channel surfer who flipped to Fox Sports Prime Ticket on Saturday evening, it looked as though redshirt freshman linebacker Aramide Olaniyan had just won the Super Bowl.
In reality, Olaniyan’s first tackle in a UCLA uniform merely helped the then-3-4 Bruins cement a win over the then-4-3 California Golden Bears.
In fact, most channel surfers probably surfed right past Prime Ticket on their way to ESPN to watch USC nearly upset Stanford, but none of that mattered to Olaniyan.
He flew past his blocker and took down Cal quarterback Zach Maynard for a loss of 4 yards. His teammates had to remind him to get off the field, but his celebration continued on the sideline.
“That was one of the best and most exciting moments I’ve had here at UCLA so far,” Olaniyan said. “It was a lot of fun being out there.”
Cal was forced to kick a 42-yard field goal on the next play that could have tied the game, but it missed wide left. Olaniyan, or “AO” for the well informed, had given the UCLA defense new life.
“A guy like AO is extremely enthusiastic and it’s contagious,” defensive coordinator Joe Tresey said. “Even when someone else makes a sack, he’s going crazy. That’s what you need. You need 11 guys playing with that type of enthusiasm.”
Olaniyan’s moment in the sun didn’t come without some setbacks. He was rated the No. 14 linebacker in the nation by Scout.com before coming to UCLA as a freshman last season.
He dominated at Woodberry Forest High School in Virginia but failed to gain enough weight to see the field, forcing coach Rick Neuheisel to redshirt him.
The early part of this season wasn’t much different. He has only gained 12 pounds since high school and his only playing time in UCLA’s previous seven games came on special teams.
“It can be depressing when you’re not on the field and your buddies are,” Olaniyan said.
But with the suspension of sophomore tackle Cassius Marsh, redshirt junior defensive end Datone Jones moved over to tackle, leaving an open spot at end.
Although Olaniyan is listed as a linebacker, the coaches liked the pass rushing ability they saw from him during the bye week.
Given the spark that Olaniyan gave the defense, he figures to play a more prominent role moving forward.
“It was a lot of fun to get out there and I want to continue doing things that keep me out there,” he said.
Locke-d and loaded
Neuheisel said he expects redshirt junior punter Jeff Locke to be ready to play on Saturday against Arizona State. Locke sprained his left shoulder during the Cal game but played through it.
McDonald honored
Redshirt freshman safety Tevin McDonald was named the Pac-12’s Defensive Player of the Week after his three-interception performance Saturday against Cal.
“I”˜m excited to be recognized for the game,” McDonald said. “I was very fortunate to have the ball in my area.”