Breaking Down UCLA's Preparation for Ohio State

Tim Skipper's Early Scouting Report on No. 1 Ohio State

The UCLA Bruins (3-6, 3-3 Big Ten) haven't lost consecutive games since Tim Skipper took over as interim head coach until dropping back-to-back contests to No. 2 Indiana and Nebraska. Quite the feat considering the Bruins started 0-4, but the road ahead only gets tougher.

Up next, Skipper and UCLA take on the best team in the nation on the road -- the first-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. The odds may be against them, but that doesn't mean the Bruins aren't preparing like it's any other team.

Skipper gave his early thoughts on the Buckeyes during Monday's media availability.

• "I will say this; they have a lot of big time players, and the most impressive thing is, they're playing complimentary football and playing as a team," Skipper said. "I mean, it's good to see that that can still happen. Their offense, defense, special teams, it's all tied in to each other.

• "The offense is ball-controlling and getting the defense off the field. The defense is getting the ball back for the offense. And the special teams is getting out there and making a difference. Like, it is good to just see team ball happening. We'll have to have a good plan. We'll go up there, we'll have to be ready to go. It's going to take everybody on the trip, every single person, whether you're playing or coaching, to come up with a good plan and by the time kickoff hits to be ready to go."

Saturday's clash isn't a new test for Skipper and UCLA. The Bruins had to go on the road to take on Curt Cignetti and the red-hot Hoosiers, and Skipper learned from that experience.

Skipper Leaning on Indiana Loss Ahead of Ohio State Clash

It was a tough loss and a reality check, Skipper admitted, but every loss is something to learn from, and the Bruins are going into basically the same situation on Saturday. Skipper, during Monday's media availability, detailed what he learned against Indiana that he can take in the clash with the Buckeyes.

• "It's always going to come back to us just doing what we're supposed to do," Skipper said. "The big message from that game to this one will be just starting fast. That was basically our last road game, so when we get back on the road, we want to make sure we put a big-time emphasis on starting fast. That's going to be the big thing.

• "But we have to take care of us. We can't worry about who we're playing, things like that. Control the controllables and we can control what we do. That's going to be our focus."

UCLA was punched in the mouth by Indiana in their matchup. The Bruins also started pretty slow against Nebraska last week, but woke up and nearly came all the way back. It's going to be a tall task, but with Skipper at the helm, you always feel like he has a chance.