The past three games, Arizona Wildcats fans and the rest of the Pac-10 have sought the best way to describe Nick Foles.
After watching film of the UA quarterback complete 40 of 51 passes for 415 yards in Saturday's game against Stanford, UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel might have found the perfect phrase.
"He makes you kinda dance to his tune," Neuheisel said.
Here's what that means for the Bruins, Saturday's opponent at Arizona Stadium: putting the strength of their team up against Foles' short, thus-far all-too-easy throws.
"We definitely look forward to it," UCLA cornerback Alterraun Verner said. "That means we're going to get opportunities to make plays on the ball and do things back there that are a little fun."
The Wildcats' sophomore completed 78.4 percent of his passes against Stanford, the highest mark in UA history. His 73.9 percent completion percentage this season has him threatening the Arizona record.
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"I think he's a very, very adept quarterback at handling what they're asking him to do," Neuheisel said. "The quick game is his forte. He gets the ball out of his hands quickly. He is hard to get pressure on because of that."
The short pass is starting to define Foles.
The sophomore averages 9.9 passing yards for every completion; by comparison, last week's opponent, Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, averages 16.4.
Against Stanford, the Wildcats played a lot of four-receiver sets, with Foles throwing the ball quickly and asking his receivers to beat the Cardinal out in space.
He did it often, too, throwing for three touchdowns.
"It was a very effective game plan, and one their quarterback executed to a T," Neuheisel said.
It will be harder for the Wildcats to torch the more athletic UCLA defense; the Bruins' best feature is probably their pass coverage.
UCLA is No. 27 nationally in pass efficiency defense, and No. 20 with 169 passing yards allowed per game.
The team's struggles — it has lost three straight after winning a trio of games to start the season — can be traced more to its horrific offense, No. 104 in the NCAA.
"We've been pretty pleased by our performance," Verner said of the defense. "The past couple games, we haven't created as many turnovers as we wanted. We started very hot in the beginning. We want to step it up like we had in the beginning."
The Bruins have forced 11 turnovers this season, nine of them interceptions. Sophomore cornerback Rahim Moore is tied for first in the nation in interceptions with .83 per game; Verner is tied for No. 15 with .50 per game.
"Sometimes it's luck, the fact that a ball's tipped," Verner said. "You're there, or a ball's overthrown.
"Or sometimes it'll just be the conservative nature of a team — don't force anything, don't take any shots. Sometimes the offense is jelling and making plays, and we're not."
UCLA will have to make those plays Saturday to stay close with the Foles-led Air Zona offense, which is more than living up to its nickname.
And the Bruins know the little things — or throws — will add up.
"We have to contest everything," Verner said. "We can't just be satisfied with them getting a short pass. Those can accumulate or one can bust out.
"We definitely have to be aggressive on all their routes and not worry about being beat deep. They're going to take shots.
"We just have to be on guard for everything."
SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE
Arizona quarterback Nick Foles is red hot. UCLA's pass defense is in the top 20 among Division I-A teams.
73.9 percent
Foles' completion rate this season, best in the Pac-10
169
UCLA's passing yards allowed per game, No. 20 in Division I-A
