While almost nothing has gone according to plan for the Bruins (3-6, 1-5 Pac-12) during his difficult fifth season, they could still salvage something out of it. But that surge would have to begin Saturday night against Oregon State (2-7, 1-5) in a meeting of two teams on four-game losing streaks.

UCLA was the preseason media favorite to win the Pac-12 South with quarterback Josh Rosen in a run-based offense. Instead, Rosen is out for the season, the running game is awful and the Bruins are on the verge of missing a bowl game for the first time since 2010.

”I think that sometimes progress is disguised in failure,” Mora said. ”Sometimes we learn our greatest lessons about each other in times of failure and adversity, when things aren’t going the way you want them to.”

Even after four straight losses, Mora made sure the Bruins are thinking about bowl eligibility as a goal: ”You put it out there, but you bring it right back to Saturday.”

Oregon State coach Gary Andersen has similar thoughts about his own team’s struggles. The Beavers have won just once since mid-September, but the second-year coach believes the foundation of future success is underneath his 4-17 record so far in Corvallis.

”We’re in a process, and it’s not a real fun process right now,” Andersen said. ”It is a grind. But what you’ll learn as you go through time is the people that deserve to have the process that’s rewarded at the end, they earn their stripes right now. … Those kids that dig in are the ones who are going to be rewarded.”

Andersen notes that it’s possible to make a bowl game at 5-7, but Oregon State also would need to run the table. To make the point to his players, he cites his slight variation on a classic line of modern cinema: ”So you’re saying there’s a chance.”

Here are more things to watch when Oregon State visits the Rose Bowl for the first time since 2012:

AT AN IMPASSE: Rosen underwent season-ending shoulder surgery Tuesday after missing the previous three-plus games. Capable senior backup Mike Fafaul has set single-game school records for passes attempted and completed during his brief starting tenure, but largely because UCLA’s running game has been utterly inept all season long. The Bruins have cracked 80 yards rushing just once in the past seven games, leaving them next-to-last in the FBS with 78.8 yards rushing per game and 2.6 per carry.

TWICE THE ARMS: Oregon State could have depth back at quarterback. Conor Blount appears to be ready to return from the knee injury that has kept him out for three games, although Marcus McMaryion is expected to remain the starter. The walk-on Blount won the job before his injury, and the Beavers – who haven’t won since – are willing to try just about anything to boost the nation’s second-worst passing offense. UCLA has one of the Pac-12’s best passing defenses, getting 12 interceptions and yielding just eight TD passes.

RIVALRY RIGORS: Rosen and the Bruins routed Oregon State 41-0 in rain-soaked Corvallis last season with 676 yards of total offense, the third-most in school history. The rivalry has been more even in Pasadena, where the schools have split their last six meetings. Oregon State has won two of its last three at the Rose Bowl.

WAIT `TIL NEXT YEAR: Mora spent time with the convalescing Rosen this week, eating cheesecake and talking about plans for next season. Rosen asked to be on the sideline for Saturday’s game to help Fafaul, but Mora hadn’t figured out whether it would be safe. ”I’m going to leave that up to the doctors,” Mora said. ”The worst thing that we could ever do is, just because he wants to be on the sideline helping, put him there and he gets hit. But I know he’s desperate to get out here and help where he can.”

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AP college football coverage: www.collegefootball.ap.org

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The Bruins were in the news for all the wrong reasons in recent months, from the suspension and reinstatement of offensive line coach Adrian Klemm to the arrest of incoming freshman Soso Jamabo in Texas.

But for sheer weirdness and the accompanying media spotlight, nothing compared to hip-hop mogul Sean ”Diddy” Combs’ arrest for an alleged fight with assistant strength coach Sal Alosi in the weight room last month. Diddy, the father of defensive back Justin Combs, is still waiting to hear whether he’ll face misdemeanor charges.

At the first day of the Pac-12’s football media summit Thursday at Warner Bros. Studios, Mora provided no revelations about the incident. While declining several invitations to discuss the dust-up, Mora confirmed Justin Combs is still on the team heading into his junior year, saying the Bruins ”have had no changes to our roster.”

”Well, really nothing has changed,” center Jake Brendel. ”It’s just been business as usual, really. We got a new lock on the weight room, but that’s it.”

With the new season just five weeks away, the Bruins insist they haven’t been distracted by those offseason occurrences. The focus is on football, not the media attention that can surround a school next door to Hollywood.

”Things are going to come up that might set the team back publicly, but you can’t let that affect your 3-foot world, your 3-foot space,” Brendel said. ”I feel like in these times, if you just focus on yourself and the team’s goals, then you shouldn’t have a problem.”

The Bruins are getting accustomed the potential pitfalls posed by TMZ, tabloids and paparazzi.

”I think it’s just a result of being where we are,” Brendel said. ”If we were in the middle of nowhere, that doesn’t always happen. The media is centralized around our city and around our campus, so there’s a lot more eyes on us than there is other places.”

UCLA’s on-field story lines this season include a quarterback competition and a new defensive coordinator.

With Brett Hundley now in the NFL, freshman quarterback Josh Rosen will compete with redshirt juniors Jerry Neuheisel and Mike Fafaul. Mora expects to make a decision following the team’s training camp, which will again be held in San Bernardino.

”With regards to the quarterback situation, I think the one thing that gives me comfort is the fact that we’ve got a pretty veteran group around (Rosen),” Mora said. ”It’s very unlike Brett’s situation from a few years ago when he had to step in and do a lot. Whoever is taking snaps from Jake can depend on those around him maybe a little bit more than Brett was able to do. So that gives me a little bit of comfort.”

Bradley brings a wealth of experience after spending more than 30 years on the sidelines at Penn State under late head coach Joe Paterno.

”It’s the emphasis on the small things and how wise he is,” linebacker Deon Hollins said. ”I wouldn’t even call him smart, because everyone in Division I is smart. All of the coaches are smart. But in terms of how he applies things, I think he’s one of the best in the business.”

The Bruins are no strangers to media scrutiny, but they’re ready for the attention to turn back to the field.

”I think we’re a team that has potential,” Mora said. ”I think we have a gigantic unanswered question at a prominent position, quarterback. I think we’ve got a group of men that are very dedicated to trying to be the best that they can be, and we have to maintain that focus.”

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