LATIMES.COM/SPORTS S TUESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2019D5
UCLA has its starting
quarterback now, or does it?
“As far as I’m concerned,”
Dorian Thompson-Rob-
insonsaid Monday, “it’s still
an open competition.”
Thompson-Robinson
said coach Chip Kellyhad
not informed him that he
would start over Austin
Burton or Chase Griffin
against Cincinnati on
Thursday during the Bruins’
season opener.
But the surest sign that
Thompson-Robinson will
take the first snap at Nip-
pert Stadium was his pres-
ence before reporters Mon-
day. No UCLA quarterback
spoke with the media in the
days before a game last sea-
son because of continued
uncertainty at the position.
Wilton Speightstarted
the opener last season and
went down in the second
quarter with a back injury,
and the starting job vacillat-
ed between Thompson-Rob-
inson and Speight the rest of
the season. Thompson-Rob-
inson, a sophomore, was
listed as the starter on the
depth chart that UCLA re-
leased Sunday, and it
seemed like such a foregone
conclusion that no reporters
asked Kelly about the deci-
sion a day later.
Thompson-Robinson de-
scribed himself as “ex-
tremely ready compared to
last year,” when he trotted
onto the field for his college
debut against Cincinnati be-
fore halftime after Speight’s
injury.
Thompson-Robinson
completed 15 of 25 passes for
117 yards without a touch-
down or an interception dur-
ing the Bruins’ 26-17 loss, but
the ball was stripped from
him, resulting in a safety,
and he misfired on a fourth-
down pass to Dymond Lee
that fell incomplete early in
the fourth quarter. Another
pass that would have gone
for a long gain to Christian
Pabicowas dropped.
“I was a little nervous, a
little excited, a little bit of
everything,” Thompson-
Robinson recalled, “but this
year, I’m going to be more
cool, calm and collected and
know what I’ve got to do to
get the job done.”
Thompson-Robinson
said the Bruins are seeking
more explosive plays this
season. It helps that nine
starters return on offense,
giving the team experience
and continuity it was lacking
against the Bearcats in 2018.
“It’s really comforting for
a quarterback to know that
the guy to the left of you and
the guy to the right of you
and the guys up front are
knowing what they’re doing
and they’re confident in
what they’re doing,”
Thompson Robinson said. “
... I’m ready to rock.”
Calvert out for eight
Kelly said his under-
standing was that sopho-
more linebacker Bo Calvert
would miss eight games be-
cause of his suspension for
an unspecified violation of
NCAA rules.
“I think it’s eight games,”
Kelly said. “I don’t know the
exact date” of his return.
Kelly said he could not com-
ment on the nature of the
violation but acknowledged
it was difficult to lose a play-
er for such a lengthy period.
“He’s an integral member
of this team, and he made a
mistake and he understands
it and he’ll become better
from it,” Kelly said of
Calvert, who has spent the
last few days of practice
working as a member of the
scout team.
Etc.
Cornerback Darnay
Holmesdid not participate
in the portion of practice
open to the media for a sec-
ond consecutive day, but
Kelly said he was fine and
would play against the
Bearcats. ... Kelly said wide
receiver Theo Howardand
left tackle Alec Anderson
were listed as backups be-
cause they were limited in
practice recently while re-
covering from injuries. How-
ard was behind Jaylen Er-
winand Anderson was be-
hind Sean Rhyanon the
depth chart released Sun-
day. Kelly said Anderson,
who recently had surgery on
his right leg, would be able to
play in the opener. ... Kelly
said freshman running back
Sitiveni Kaufusiwould sit
out the season as a redshirt
after undergoing surgery on
his shoulder. ... Cincinnati is
expected to be without
sophomore running back
Tavion Thomasagainst the
Bruins after Bearcats coach
Luke Fickelltold reporters
Monday that he didn’t ex-
pect Thomas to be available
“for a couple of weeks” after
he missed part of training
camp for unspecified rea-
sons. Thomas ran for 499
yards and six touchdowns
last season, though he did
not play against UCLA.
UCLA FOOTBALL REPORT
Likely starter
doesn’t think
job is secured
By Ben Bolch
just one career reception at
USC, set about teaching
himself to catch. He
bounced a tennis ball
against a wall over and over.
He worked on a Jugs mach-
ine for hours every week. He
caught passes after practice
and ran routes wherever he
could. Soon, coaches started
to notice a difference.
“I’ll tell you where he’s
progressed the most is
catching the ball out of the
backfield,” Trojans coach
Clay Helton said of Stepp,
who will maintain his status
as a freshman because he
played in only four games
last season. “He realized
coming into this system that
that was part of the deal, and
he did a really nice job.”
His work as a receiver has
with his size, but his shifti-
ness often surprised unsus-
pecting defenders. It was a
devastating combination,
one that helped him emerge
with 1,700 yards rushing as a
sophomore despite splitting
carries with a senior back.
Major college programs
took notice. Rick Streiff, his
coach at Cathedral, remem-
bers wondering that season
whether Stepp might finish
his career as the top rusher
in Indiana high school his-
tory. Then, the spring after
his stellar sophomore cam-
paign, Stepp’s hamstring
seized up during a workout.
The injury lingered into
the next season, and the
next one after that. Stepp
tried to play through it any-
way, tearing off a touchdown
run on one of his first carries
as a junior.
But his touchdown sprint
only aggravated the ham-
string. He spent the next few
months on the sideline, and
when he returned for the
postseason, Cathedral
played him only in the red
zone, so as to limit any po-
tential breakaway runs.
“When we got down close,
we put him in the game,”
said Streiff, who’s now Ca-
thedral’s athletic director.
“It was almost like a pitcher
with a pitch count.”
As a senior, Stepp ran for
nearly 1,000 yards as the lead
back in a committee at Ca-
thedral. But most of the sea-
son was spent managing his
health and limiting his
carries.
“I just couldn’t get heal-
thy,” Stepp said. “It was
really hard to catch all the
way back up.”
Which didn’t leave much
time for Stepp to learn how
to catch. He can count his
high school reception totals
with his hands. Cathedral’s
offense rarely called for him
to even run an actual route.
“If there’s a little chink in
the armor,” Streiff said, “I’d
say probably his ball skills
were not as good as they
could be. But we just never
asked him to do it.”
That won’t be the case at
USC, where new offensive
coordinator Graham Har-
rell’s version of the Air Raid
demands that running
backs be a threat out of the
backfield. Over his last two
seasons as offensive coordi-
nator at North Texas, run-
ning backs accounted for
16% of the team’s receptions.
Even before Harrell
brought the Air Raid to L.A.,
Stepp understood his hands
needed work. Last season,
he realized he could no long-
er count on just plowing
through defenders. He
wanted to be a complete
back.
But a reputation was al-
ready cemented when Jinks
arrived in the offseason, and
it was up to Stepp to prove
that wrong. In a backfield
crowded with talented
backs, his hopes of emerging
hinged on his hands improv-
ing.
So Stepp, who boasted
only just begun. When it
comes to catching passes,
Stepp is still the most raw
option in USC’s stable of
running backs.
But none of those other
backs is quite capable of
what Stepp does at his best.
During a recent scrimmage,
on fourth down at the goal
line, he offered a reminder.
Bursting forward with the
handoff, Stepp lowered a
shoulder into linebacker
Ralen Goforth, who
bounced backward off him
into the end zone.
That power was why
Stepp wound up at USC. But
with a new season ahead and
a new offense in place, the
battering ram who couldn’t
catch has the chance to be
much more.
USC’s Stepp seeks to prove he can be a complete back
[Stepp,from D1]
SEASON OPENER
UCLA at
Cincinnati
AT NIPPERT STADIUM
Thursday, 4 p.m. PDT
TV:ESPN.
DORIAN THOMPSON-ROBINSONsaid he hasn’t
been told he’ll start at quarterback versus Cincinnati.
Luis SincoLos Angeles Times
SAN DIEGO — Hyun-
Jin Ryu says he under-
stands the logic. He has
pitched more innings this
year than any since 2014, be-
fore a litany of injuries cost
him dozens of starts, and his
recent performances have
only stimulated the theory
that he is fatigued. But Mon-
day, the Dodgers left-hander
again insisted he is not tiring
with a month remaining in
the regular season.
“To be completely hon-
est, this year has been really
good in terms of condition-
ing and my health,” Ryu said
through his interpreter,
Bryan Lee. “Just by the feel
of things, I feel really good.”
Ryu spoke three days be-
fore his next scheduled start
and three days after the New
York Yankees pummeled
him over 4^1 ⁄ 3 innings. He gave
up seven runs against the
American League World Se-
ries contenders after giving
up four runs over 5^2 ⁄ 3 innings
to Atlanta. The 11 earned
runs given up in the two
starts were as many as he
surrendered in his previous
12 starts.
“I’m actually really opti-
mistic about my future just
because I wasn’t satisfied
with how I pitched,” Ryu
said. “If I’m giving up that
many runs and hits and I
think I’m performing well,
that’s one thing. But in those
two cases I definitely wasn’t
commanding my pitches
well and it’s definitely not
how I wanted to pitch. So I’m
really more focused on inter-
nally how I can improve, in
terms of commanding my
pitches, rather than looking
at something on the out-
side.”
Ryu has logged 152^2 ⁄ 3 in-
nings after recording 213^2 ⁄ 3
regular-season innings the
previous four years com-
bined. His career high for a
regular season is the 192 in-
nings he accumulated his
rookie year in 2013. There’s a
chance he won’t reach that
total this season even if he
doesn’t miss a start.
The Dodgers currently
employ a six-man rotation,
affording starters an extra
day of rest as the club plays
16 games in 16 days. Over the
weekend, manager Dave
Roberts said the team will
either skip Ryu’s turn once
or shorten one of his outings
in September to avoid weari-
ness. Ryu said he has not
spoken with Roberts about
any changes to his schedule.
In the background looms
the National League Cy
Young race. Ryu has been
the front-runner most of the
season and perhaps remains
so despite his recent hic-
cups. His 2.00 earned-run av-
erage still leads the majors.
His 3.18 FIP (Fielding Inde-
pendent Pitching) is fourth
in the league and his walk
rate is the best. Max
Scherzer is considered
Ryu’s chief competitor for
the award. The Washington
right-hander is second in the
majors with a 2.41 ERA and
first in the NL in FIP (2.19).
But Scherzer, a three-time
Cy Young Award winner, has
missed time with injuries
and thrown 138^1 ⁄ 3 innings.
“I like to take a game at a
time and I don’t think any
pitcher goes out there think-
ing that he’s going to win a
Cy Young,” Ryu said. “It’s
more of a result that you get
after finishing your season
strong, so I’m really focused
on the next start.”
The race will come down
to September and whether
Ryu, fatigued or not, can get
back on track before the
postseason.
Short hops
Dylan Floro, on the in-
jured list with an intercostal
strain, logged a 25-pitch
bullpen session Monday at
Petco Park. Roberts said the
right-handed reliever’s next
step is pitching an inning for
Class-A Rancho Cuca-
monga on Thursday. ... Rich
Hill will throw his second
bullpen session Tuesday
since going on the injured
list in June with a forearm
strain. The left-hander will
mix in curveballs after toss-
ing only fastballs in his first
session.... Catcher Russell
Martin is scheduled to rejoin
the Dodgers on Tuesday af-
ter a three-day stint on the
bereavement list. Roberts
said the plan is to option
Austin Barnes back to
triple-A Oklahoma City.
Barnes will return when ros-
ters expand Sunday.
DODGERS REPORT
Ryu insists he isn’t fatigued
By Jorge Castillo
calling borderline low
pitches strikes. The frustra-
tion peaked with the game’s
final pitch — a 94-mph fast-
ball from Padres closer
Kirby Yates. Turner thought
it was too low but Drake
called Strike 3. A con-
founded Turner burst with
anger. Dodgers manager
Dave Roberts soon followed.
“I asked him, ‘You call
that a strike?’ ” Turner said.
“He told me it was right
down the middle, which was
pretty upsetting. If he thinks
that’s down the middle .... no
matter, he was missing a lot
of pitches throughout the
night.
“And then he walks into
me and told me not to bump
him, which also upsets me.
I’m not trying to bump him
or touch him in any way, but
when you walk into me, and
then cry foul like I hit you or
something, is brutal.”
Monday began with
Dustin May’s latest audi-
tion. For five innings, the
hard-throwing prospect
looked the part, dominating
the Padres’ lineup behind a
wicked, tailing, two-seam
fastball. Then he hit a famil-
iar wall. Like in his first four
major league starts, May
stumbled into trouble in the
sixth and didn’t escape.
May’s undoing began
with a leadoff double by
pinch-hitter Austin Allen.
Greg Garcia singled and
Josh Naylor snuck a single
through the infield to score
Allen. Center fielder A.J. Pol-
lock fielded the ball and fired
to third base as Garcia
rounded second. Garcia
held up, but the ball sailed
over the cutoff man’s head
and bounced through third
baseman Turner’s legs. May
wasn’t backing Turner up,
so the ball bounced into the
Dodgers’ dugout.
“There’s no excuse,” May
said. “I can’t let the ball go
into the dugout.”
Garcia was awarded two
bases to tie the score as Nay-
lor advanced to third. Mo-
ments later, he scored on
Manny Machado’s ground-
out to put San Diego ahead.
That spelled the end of
May’s night after 5^1 ⁄ 3 innings.
Two of the four runs he gave
up were earned. He struck
out two and walked one.
“The takeaway is Dustin
threw the ball pretty well,”
Roberts said.
The Dodgers (86-46) took
the short bus ride to San Di-
ego late Sunday after losing
two of three to the New York
Yankees in a series that
carried more wattage than
just about any. It also served
as a reminder that beyond
the weak National League
are other loaded clubs capa-
ble of trouncing them.
“We still got some work to
do,” Roberts said.
Roberts said his biggest
takeaway from the weekend
was his team’s unusually
poor at-bat quality. He cred-
ited the Yankees’ pitching
staff for holding Los Angeles
to five runs in three games,
but also pointed to his bat-
ters’ approach.
“When you’re talking
about having a plan and
staying in the strike zone,
that’s on the hitter,” he said.
The Dodgers weren’t
much better Monday
against Eric Lauer, who en-
tered the game with a 1.72
ERA in six starts against
them. The left-hander sur-
rendered three runs and six
hits and struck out eight be-
fore left-hander Matt
Strahm and Yates combined
for three scoreless innings.
The Dodgers had scored
first after the hosts took a
jab. The Padres teased
Turner on the video board,
comparing him to the Phila-
delphia Flyers’ mascot
Gritty. Turner then cracked
the third pitch of the at-bat
over the left-field wall for his
24th home run and a 1-0 lead.
Turner struck again in the
fifth when he smacked a ball
down the third base line to
score Max Muncy from first.
In the sixth, Enrique Her-
nandez clubbed a solo ho-
mer for a 3-1 lead.
DUSTIN MAY,making his fourth big league start, stumbled in the sixth inning at
Petco Park and didn’t escape, losing his lead thanks in part to a costly error.
Sean M. HaffeySan Diego Union-Tribune
Padres
beat
L.A.
[Dodgers,from D1]