LOS ANGELES – If Eddie Vanderdoes finds himself in a third-and-short situation near the goal line in Kyle Field on Sept. 3 and he sees a big lineman run into the backfield, he’ll know exactly what’s going on. That big lineman used to be him.
“I’m just going to yell, Panda! Panda! Panda!” Vanderdoes said.
When he was two years younger and about 20 pounds lighter, Vanderdoes scored a 1-yard touchdown against Utah in a special package called “panda” in former UCLA offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone’s scheme. Vanderdoes and the rest of the UCLA defense will face that same scheme in the opener as Mazzone is now the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M.