LOS ANGELES — When Nico Iamaleava crumpled to the floor, holding his right knee close to his chest Saturday night against Maryland, Tim Skipper took a deep breath.
The Bruins’ interim coach needed to relax, the tightly contested matchup between UCLA and Maryland coming down to the wire as his star redshirt sophomore quarterback hobbled off the field and into the medical tent.
Adrenaline high, Iamaleava trotted back onto the field to lead the Bruins to their game-winning drive against the Terrapins. He wasn’t coming off the Rose Bowl’s green grass and conceding a chance to win three consecutive games.
Monday, however, Skipper was likely holding his breath.
When asked about Iamaleava’s status, Skipper said the day was serious when it came to rehabilitation and treatment and wouldn’t speculate on Iamaleava’s status.
Tuesday put an end to those worries. Skipper can take a deep sigh of relief. He can breathe – maybe breathe a little more lightly compared to Saturday night. Iamaleava practiced Tuesday morning, leading the quarterbacks’ line through stretching and position drills during the 40-minute media-watching period.
The 6-foot-6 signal caller opted out of some agility drills, but outside of the high-knee stepovers the rest of the Bruins (3-4, 3-1 Big Ten) hiked through, Iamaleava – along with battered and bruised running backs Anthony Woods and Jaivian Thomas – appeared to be full-go.
Woods, who was nursing ailments during the week, and Thomas departed midway through the game against Maryland, according to UCLA’s radio broadcast, leaving much of the reps to Anthony Frias II (who had a standout, 97-yard performance) and Jalen Berger (who came off a three-touchdown game against Michigan State).
Looking back at the game film, Skipper said the effort from his running backs’ room was better in retrospect than in the moment. Ultimately, the Bruins attempted 35 passes and 35 rushes versus Maryland.
“It felt like as I was watching the game, it felt like we weren’t getting a lot of push, we weren’t moving it that well, but as you watched the film, we were running it pretty well,” Skipper said of his tailbacks, who combined for 168 rushing yards. “The feel from the sideline compared to when I watched it was just completely different.”
Either way, UCLA will need its full squad and best effort come Saturday in Bloomington when No. 2 Indiana (7-0, 4-0) hosts Fox’s Big Noon before a 9 a.m. PT kickoff. The Hoosiers and coach Curt Cignetti – who just earned a lucrative extension in his second year in Indiana – are treating the Bruins as the hottest team in college football.
“We’re playing a 3-0 football team that’s undefeated,” Cignetti told reporters Monday morning.
Does the change in expectation, turning into one of the most dangerous teams in college football – rather than the most-likely FBS program to go winless – change UCLA’s mindset for games such as Saturday’s?
The Bruins do technically control their own destiny for the Big Ten Championship and a College Football Playoff bracket berth.
“In our locker room, we rely on each other just to push each other and be the best version of ourselves every day,” Bruins defensive back Cole Martin said. “Our huge focus has been on the rise. So we’re trying to just be on the rise every single day, just trying to get better every single day.”