LOS ANGELES — UCLA starting quarterback Ethan Garbers was not seen practicing during the media viewing period of practice on Monday evening.
“He’s out here but I would rather him rest today to give (backup) Justyn (Martin) a couple more reps just to make sure just in case Ethan isn’t available,” head coach DeShaun Foster told reporters. “But he’s in good spirits and I’m looking forward to see what he can do later on in the week.”
Garbers played with a taped left ankle in Saturday’s 34-14 loss to Oregon and exited the game early after taking a big hit. He was sacked four times in the game, which brings the total number of sacks this season to 12.
The quarterback’s competitive nature could push him to play this Saturday when UCLA (1-3 overall, 0-2 Big Ten) travels to No. 7 Penn State (4-0, 1-0).
“When I talked to Ethan, he told me he was playing,” Foster said. “So unless we hold him out, he’s going to try to get out there and play.”
Foster added that beyond Martin, Nick Billoups is the third-string quarterback and Henry Hasselbeck is fourth.
Martin, a redshirt sophomore, relieved Garbers in the Oregon game and completed 1 of 4 passes for 7 yards and had one rushing attempt.
“It’s more of just getting him live reps,” Foster said of Martin. “There wasn’t a lot of tackling out here during spring or fall camp, so it’s just good to get some of the younger quarterbacks that haven’t played in games live reps. And I think he handled it pretty well and hopefully, we can build on that for Justin.”
Starting left tackle Reuben Unije left the Oregon game early due to injury and was not seen practicing during the media viewing period on Monday.
Redshirt senior Jaylan Jeffers and Niki Prongos received playing time in his absence.
“It’s just mostly guys just making plays and trying to find the combination that works,” Foster said. “But guys get banged up. They all wanted to fight stay out there. Reuben didn’t want to come out of the game.”
On the defensive line, defensive tackle Sitiveni Havili Kaufusi was in street clothing for the Oregon game but practiced on Monday.
“He got cleared a little later in the week,” Foster said. “So we couldn’t throw him out there and I wouldn’t want to put him in a bad situation.”
UCLA announced on Monday afternoon that kickoff for its Oct. 12 home game against Minnesota will be at 6 p.m. at the Rose Bowl. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
The Bruins hosted one 6 p.m. game at the Rose Bowl last season against Arizona State and lost, 17-7.
