Quarterback Olson Is Headed for UCLA

LAS VEGAS — Coach Karl Dorrell received the commitment UCLA’s football program had been waiting for when highly recruited quarterback Ben Olson selected the Bruins over California and Arizona State on Monday.

Olson did not return calls from The Times, but sources close to the Bruins and the 6-foot-5 left-hander said that he would begin attending classes at UCLA in January.

Olson is a former All-American at Thousand Oaks High and a redshirt at Brigham Young who spent the last two years on a Mormon mission in Canada.

Although Dorrell and his staff are not allowed to comment about Olson’s oral commitment, it did not take long before word spread among the players Monday. Senior receiver Tab Perry said Olson is just another sign that the UCLA program is in an upswing.

“When I first came in, UCLA was already at a certain point in football,” Perry said. “They were ranked in the top 10 a couple of times and ranked in the top 25 every year.

“Now it’s like we were at the bottom working our way to the top. The last two years, the foundation was being put in place. It’s time to start building on the base, and we’re seeing a lot of good things going in the right direction.”

Olson, 21, has four years of eligibility remaining and is expected to start working out with the team during winter conditioning drills and participate in spring practice in February.

Other schools Olson considered included South Carolina (after Steve Spurrier was hired as coach), Oregon and Miami. But Olson decided to stay close to home and said he was impressed with UCLA’s character even after a home loss to Washington State.

“Nothing against teams from back when I first got here, but there’s definitely a change in attitude,” senior running back Manuel White said. “The program is definitely on a rise. I can’t wait to come back in a couple of years.”

Olson, considered the top high school recruit in 2002, adds to an already strong recruiting class for the Bruins, who reportedly have commitments from receivers Jeremy Childs of Los Alamitos (who also decided Monday), Gavin Ketchum of Oak Park and Jamil Turner of Bethel in Spanaway, Wash., offensive linemen Justin Brown of Long Beach Poly, Aleksey Lanis of Los Angeles Crenshaw and defensive backs Aaron Ware of Westlake Village Oaks Christian and Shawn Oatis of Chino.

Before Olson’s decision, UCLA’s 2005 class was ranked 22nd nationally by Scout.com.