UCLA loses two quarterbacks to injury

LOS ANGELES, April 26 (UPI) -- Spring practice injuries have left the UCLA football team without its top two quarterbacks, Patrick Cowan and Ben Olson.

The Los Angeles News reported an MRI Friday revealed Cowan, the projected starter next fall, suffered a torn left knee ligament and could miss the 2008 season.

Cowan, a 6-foot-5 senior from Surrey, British Columbia, will see his college career end after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on the same knee last February.

Olson, a 6-foot-4 fifth-year senior from Missoula, Mont., was the Bruins' starting quarterback in 2007.

He missed six games because of a punctured lung and a right foot injury and will now miss 6-8 weeks.

The News reported Olson should be back in time for fall practice in August after surgery.

In 2007, Olson, who began his college career at BYU, completed 48.3 percent of his 147 passes for 1,040 yards with seven touchdowns and six interceptions.