Sep 6, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins running back Paul Perkins (24) is stopped by Memphis Tigers linebacker Jackson Dillon (34) after a short gain in the second half at the Rose Bowl. UCLA won 42-35. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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The Bruins had another up-and-down game as UCLA beats Memphis 42-35 in their home opener in the Rose Bowl. Last week the Bruin offense was seemingly absent and the defense dominated. The opposite occurred today as Brett Hundley lead a stellar offense while the defense struggled mightily. To make matters more awkward, as good as the Bruin offense was, they had several bad miscues while the defense made some incredible plays of their own. And should we get into what a mess the Pac-12 referees made of this game at times?
The entire game was incredibly inconsistent.
GETTING THE OFFENSE GOING
UCLA had started things off with a touchdown from Paul Perkins who finished with 2 and 98 yards on the ground. The Bruins had established more of a running game, though they did not exactly blow the doors off. Despite only getting 144 yards, they had 3 total in the game. The third one was by none other than the Renaissance Man himself, Myles Jack.
Sep 6, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins wide receiver Thomas Duarte (18) dives into the end zone for a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Memphis Tigers at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
One very important thing we found out about Hundley is that he is able to have Heisman-like games. The Bruin QB had two great bombs that the Bruins scored on when he connected with Kenneth Walker at the end of the first period for a 62-yard touchdown and added a beautiful 33-yard strike to Thomas Duarte, who we will get to in a minute, for the game winner.
Hundley finished with 396 passing yards, 3 TDs and a UCLA record-tying 33 completions. Very nice.
As for Duarte, he came up big every time his number was called. He finished with two touchdown receptions and 110 yards. His WR counterpart Jordan Payton had also come up big for the Bruins with a game-high seven receptions and 104 yards of his own. In all, five Bruins caught for over 50 yards. A lot of that had to do with the return of center Jake Brendel from injury. The line was a lot more solidified and the Bruins were able to hold off the rush a lot better than last week.
Over all, the Bruin offense looked pretty damn good. Except for that pick six Hundley threw which tied the game with the extra point at 35, but other than that, yeah, stellar.
WHAT DEFENSE?
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Now the defense, which was incredible last week against Virginia, seemed to take the game off against the Tigers. Either that or they had no idea what was going on, which is troubling. UCLA’s offense was good enough to put up a two score lead when they made it 28-14 with 4:39 left in the first half, but that proved to be enough time as a minute and a half later, Memphis needed only 4 plays to go 85 yards for a TD on some horrible coverages.
The Bruin defense allowed Memphis QB Paxton Lynch to throw for 305 yards. UCLA also allowed three rushing touchdowns, one in particular that “went to the house” as they say, when Doroland Dorceus ran the ball in 40 yards for the score. Memphis finished with a total of 469 total yards. Plainly, that is not good.
If this was a horror movie, it would be called Dr. Jeykel and Mr. Bruin.
The most most worrisome aspect of this football team is that they are in consistent. It is quite the head trip to do really well one week and have wretched performance the next… and vice versa.
A TEXAS-SIZED WAKE UP CALL?
Still, a win is a win, no matter how dirty to feels. The Bruins face Texas at At&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas next week and word on the street is they have not been very good (they lost 41-7 to BYU), but imagine what another inconsistent game could do for the Bruins. Things, once again, need to be improved on.