Keys to Victory: UCLA at Oregon State

Protect the Injured Defense by Keeping the Offense on the Field

Lets see more of these guys on the field for the rest of the season. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

In a dominating win over Cal two weeks ago, the Bruin offense won the time of possession edge for one of the few times this season (31 minutes of possession). The Bruins are currently the worst team in the Pac-12 at possessing the ball (average of about 25.5 minutes per game), and have been out-possessed by more than 10 minutes in 4 games. Four of the five games in which the opponent held the ball significantly longer than the Bruins, UCLA had its worst days on offense (BYU, ASU, Stanford and Colorado). Maybe all of the recent attrition can be traced to how much more the defense has been on the field?During the first eight games of the season, the Bruin offense has been on the field approximately 275 total minutes compared to only 205 minutes for the offense. Assuming an offense and defense should both be on the field for 30 minutes a game, the Bruin defense has played a whole extra game worth of football (over 9 games worth of time on the field in only 8 actual games).