To Receive Is To Give: Analyzing The UCLA Receiving Game

Aug 30, 2014; Charlottesville, VA, USA; UCLA Bruins wide receiver Eldridge Massington (82) runs with the ball as Virginia Cavaliers safety Anthony Harris (8) and Cavaliers linebacker Daquan Romero (13) make the tackle in the third quarter at Scott Stadium. The Bruins won 28-20. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

As pointed out by GJB writer Jake Merrifield, the UCLA offense got better as the game went on. When the offense figured out what the Virginia defense was doing, the offensive line reacted, giving quarterback Brett Hundley time to work, which includes giving the Bruin wide receivers enough time to operate. When it worked, it worked, when things were rushed, they were horrible.

In the first half, UCLA could not get anything going. Brett Hundley threw the ball 18 times for only 113 passing yards. Hundley started the game off beautifully with a 48-yard connection to freshman WR Eldridge Massington. After that, UCLA connected on passes that were 10 yards or more only three times. Here is the sequence of receptions for the first half (I=incomplete):

48, I, I, 7, 8, 16, -1, I, I, 10, I, I, I, 10, 9, I, 6, I

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Connecting 9 of 18 passes did not help. It also did not help that the Bruins looked for the long ball way too many times. What seemed to be the Bruins forcing the receiving game resulted in dropped passes, deflections and miscommunication.

BUT… the receiving game improved.

With UCLA slowly figuring out how to quell the Virginia defense, the Bruins started to make plays that were (finally) beneficial to moving the ball forward. In the second half, Hundley was a lot better at connecting passes, especially those that got the Bruins good yardage. Hundley was 11 for 16 in the second half for 129 yards as the sequence of receptions went like this:

18, 7, I, 17, 5, 2, I, 15, 25, I, -4, 8, I, I, 1, 35

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Not only were the Bruins more efficient in the passing game, but they also had five receptions of 10 yards or more. Part of that was UCLA having more time to do the work that they needed to do. In the first half, UCLA possessed the ball for only 11:17. In the second half, they had it for 14:18 seconds.

You could tell that everyone was on the same page in the second as reads were being made and routs were being executed. One Bruin in particular that showed up for UCLA was Jordan Payton who finished with eight receptions on 92 yards. Payton caught eight balls in the second half that totaled 67 yards.

The Virginia defense was still rambunctious in trying to get at Hundley in the second half (does a sack/fumble on fourth down ring a bell?) but for the most part, UCLA was able to give time to their offense. It was unfortunate that UCLA once again waited until the second half to figure things out, but the point is they did figure things out. Let us hope the Bruins take a good look at the game tape regarding their next opponent Memphis, who just beat Austin Peay 63-0.

The point is, UCLA has a stellar receiving unit, they just need to make sure they are zeroed in to what defenses will be sending at them game in and game out. They have the talent to go for excellent yardage every down, but if they force the issue, there will be a lot more incomplete passes and disgruntled fans.