Pac-12 Network’s The Drive Episode 4 Recap – Jerry World
As if there was any mystery as to what would be featured on Pac-12 Network’s The Drive episode 4, Bruin fans are treated to an epic chronicle of UCLA’s dramatic win against the Texas Longhorn’s last Saturday. The bonus is that this week’s edition of The Drive not only provides terrific coverage of Jerry Neuheisel’s heroic fill-in performance in Dallas, but it also gives viewers a nice profile of one of the most important players on the field: UCLA’s terrific Center Jake Brendel.
“. . . if you can watch this episode without welling up just a little bit, then you have a heart of stone . . .”
Episode 4 opens with the story of Jake Brendel. This is a natural profile to give the week of the Texas game, as Brendel hails from Plano, Texas (8 players are listed from Texas on the UCLA roster, but we only hear Brendel’s story). We learn that Jake had to adjust to the challenges of college life when he first came to UCLA in 2011, but he shares that he was “anxious to get [to UCLA], to meet [his] new team and make new friends.” We hear how Brendel’s dad asked Coach Jim Mora’s permission to send Brendel’s Harley Davidson Motorcycle out to Westwood, and we are shown shots of him cruising slowly around West LA. Despite the dangerous images that a 20 year old on a motorcycle might conjure, Mora says, “I don’t worry to much about Jake.”
screen cap from Pac12Net The Drive
The true joy of the opening segment begins when Brendel is shown on the practice field dealing with his teammates and discussing his role as center. We get to hear some lovely line calls (like “Reach!”, “Toe Tag” and “Fan!”) during a scrimmage, and we also see him helping teammate Kenny Lacy with his footwork in an impromptu drill. He downplays his role as a leader to “just getting the job done”, but Brendel’s leadership skills are on display as he discusses hand position with a defensive lineman or when he gently chastises a teammate for taking tape off before practice is done. Brendel can’t fool us, he is a vital cog to the team both on the field and off, and its no wonder the offense struggled so much without him in Virginia to start the season (he sat out with a sprained knee).
screen cap from Pac 12 Net The Drive
After a brief introduction to the Texas Longhorns (we see a montage of practice, but no discussion of the turmoil that the current team is in), The Drive shifts to last Saturday’s game. There is a brief moment of foreshadowing as we see the Bruins on Spalding Field and the narrator proclaims “in order for the Bruins to succeed, everyone must be ready.”
After watching the game live from the stands, and then watching the replay, I was able to enjoy the terrific angles featured in The Drive that much more. The episode does a great job of taking us through the flow of the game with terrific highlights and sprinkling in some great sideline audio and commentary from the radio and TV broadcasts. We see a slow motion replay of Brett Hundley’s injury while hearing Mora say into his headset, “he got it [referring to making the first down] – He’s hurt! He’s Hurt! Jerry! Jerry!” As we saw in Episode 1, Jim Mora is a leader of men, and the way he handles both Neuheisel and Hundley after the injury further illustrates his strength as a leader. You have probably already heard the great “Hollywood Ending” speech he gave to Wayne Cook coming back from halftime, but the Drive shows a closer look at what was going down on the sideline immediately following the injury.
After Neuheisel takes over mid-drive and guides the team to a vital field goal (I knew you had it in you Fairbairn!), Mora walks up to him and says, “You may have been nervous, but I wasn’t. I promise you I wasn’t.” Jerry’s reply is as golden as his hair. “I thought the hit would hurt way more than it did …”, he says as Mora gives him a quick hug. We also see Mora talking to Hundley. He both consoles and urges Hundley in the same breath, “Nobody’s going to do anything to put you at harm or anybody else at harm. We got your best interests in mind and this team’s . . . you should be there for Jerry right now, and your team . . . ”
screen cap from Pac12Net The Drive
We see all the dramatic highs and lows of the game. Texas takes the lead, the Bruins storm back with a TD to open the half (no mention of Texas coin flip mistake), and then the Longhorn’s surge ahead one last time. The stage is set for the Bruins “Hollywood Ending”, and The Drive milks it for all its worth (let’s be honest, we could all watch it on a loop until Thanksgiving, right?).
We see the TD pass, we see Jerry carried off the field, we see the locker room celebration, we see the Jim Mora’s individual hugs and its all set to dramatic music for peak emotional output. The Drive shows us our “far from perfect” Bruins living to fight another day, and if you can watch this episode without welling up just a little bit, then you have a heart of stone.
“Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!”