Pass Offense: B
If Arizona had any strengths, it would have been its pass
defense. You couldn’t tell on Saturday; Pat Cowan did an
admirable job filling in for the injured Ben Olson, throwing for a
respectable 201 yards and two TDs. The play-calling seemed to be
better than in past weeks as a nice mix of screens and intermediate
routes gave the offense some more continuity. Still, a couple of
Cowan’s throws should have been picked off and the passing
still lacks the ability to stretch the field vertically.
Run Offense: D+
The running game was downright miserable against Arizona,
mustering only 65 yards on 22 carries ““ and 16 of those yards
came from Cowan on broken plays. The run game must come to life if
UCLA is to succeed on offense against any of its upcoming
opponents. The offensive line seems to do a fine job of pass
protecting but does not blow teams off the line often enough to
create consistent running lanes for the backs. Teams will simply
key on the passing game if UCLA can’t run, and the Bruins
will find passing lanes filled with waves of defenders.
Pass Defense: B+
Arizona actually outgained UCLA by four yards through the air,
but that’s mostly a product of the Wildcats’ having to
throw 42 times. Trey Brown, Chris Horton and the rest of the
secondary were bringing the wood to the Arizona receivers. Rodney
Van seemed to be the designated target to throw at, and he must
continue to improve his
tackling. Alterraun Verner flashed his potential once again by
picking off a pass and returning it 89 yards for a TD. The key to
the pass defense was the constant pressure applied by the defensive
linemen; the Arizona quarterbacks had hardly any time to throw all
day.
Run Defense: A+
Anytime a team averages -0.5 yards per run, you’re doing
something right. The defensive line got a consistent push all day,
freeing the linebackers and safeties to make plays in the
backfield. It helped that Arizona has zero talent at running back,
but credit the defense for stuffing pretty much every run play,
forcing the Wildcats to throw much more than they probably wanted
to.
Special Teams: C-
Justin Medlock pulled a kickoff out of bounds. The kickoff
coverage team gave up a huge 43-yard return. Terrence Austin had
trouble fielding punts cleanly before getting injured and giving
way to Ryan Graves in the fourth quarter. Aaron Perez’s punts
were short and lacked hang time ““ not a particularly good day
for the Bruins’ special teams, though Medlock was 2-2 on
field goals.
Coaching: B
If I could give split grades, the defensive coaching would get
an A+, the offense a B and special teams a C-, so that averages out
to a B. The defense was flying all over the field making plays, and
its transformation from last season has been startling. The
offensive play-calling was better this week and more consistent,
but the Bruins have yet to play a complete game where the pass and
run games are clicking. They did well enough considering the
situation with Olson’s injury. The special teams were just a
mess all day and are an area that definitely needs improvement.