LOS ANGELES — When Brigham Harwell arrived at UCLA in the fall of 2004, he was an undersized defensive end who was forced to play way too early. Weighing in at 240 pounds, Harwell had to rely on his speed to beat linemen off the ball, knowing he was not strong enough to power his way into the backfield.

Now a senior, Harwell shouldn't have that problem.

Thanks to a calorie-filled diet and an offseason weight training program that took him over the top, the defensive tackle from Chino Hills has managed to completely transform himself into a potentially dominating player.

Looking more like a tank or massive sports utility vehicle than a football player, Harwell has bulked up and shed his baby fat, weighing in at 297 pounds and boasting 12 percent body fat, with an upper body that may be the biggest and strongest on the Bruins.

"He looks great," said coach Karl Dorrell, who talks about how much he wishes he could have used a redshirt on Harwell that first season and had him for another year.

"He's like a V.' He's big, he's strong, he's confident in what he's done in his training. He's a beast."

Harwell, who has 21-inch biceps and a 56-inch chest, is benching 495 pounds — just 5 pounds shy of his goal. He's squatting 585 and power-cleaning 320, but more importantly, he has lost the gut he carried in his first three years in Westwood.

"We're in the weight room and he's got four plates — he's got 405 pounds on the bench press, and he's doing that like guys are repping 225," All-America defensive end Bruce Davis said, shaking his head in disbelief. "His baby fat is gone. He's not that chubby guy anymore. He is that guy in the weight room that everyone crowds around to watch lift."

Apparently the team crowds around to watch Harwell pack on the weight at the dining hall, too. Known for his affection for burritos, Harwell's added weight has not been the result of a diet of chicken, rice and potatoes. It's based more on sour-patch kids and marshmallows.

"He would eat two cheeseburgers, a piece of pizza, a bowl of pasta, a corn dog, and then he would get a big bowl of cereal — Captain Crunch or Lucky Charms — and put handfuls of marshmallows on it and eat it all, and that was one meal," said punter Aaron Perez, Harwell's best friend.

"If you ever go shopping with Brigham, he sees the things that say 10 for $10, and he'll buy 10 for $10 and he will get two sets. He doesn't know that you can buy five and only pay $5. A two-gallon thing of lemonade and Tina's Burritos is breakfast, lunch and dinner. And shrimp linguini. He loves that. But look at him now. Every time he eats something, a new muscle is popping out."

Harwell's slimmer, bulked-up physique has been one of the hot topics in training camp. But for Harwell, the added size was not just about helping the Bruins this season. It was about helping himself in the future.

Having always been blessed with exceptional speed, Harwell said he bulked up in part to give himself a better chance of being drafted by the NFL in April.

Harwell also has emerged as a team leader. Once quiet and shy, he has broken out of his shell in the past year. Before last season's upset of USC, Harwell stood and spoke to the team, and all ears were on him.

"He doesn't say a ton, but when he does, it really means something," linebacker Christian Taylor said.

Now, Harwell is hoping to let his play do the talking. Lining up next to defensive tackle Kevin "Bear" Brown, Harwell has the potential to be one of the better tackles in the Pacific-10 and add to his 20 career tackles for loss.

And if that becomes the case, Harwell will have his offseason workout to thank for it.

"He did a good job because he got bigger and stronger, but he didn't get big in a bad way," defensive end Nikola Dragovic said. "Brigham is as strong as an ox. I don't think he'll have any problems this year."