The UCLA football team has backup at quarterback for Josh Rosen after the commitment of 4-star QB Devon Modster.
After over a decade of substandard quarterback play, the UCLA Football team continues to take their offense to a new level under Head Coach Jim Mora after they landed another big QB recruit.
UCLA got another QB commitment last week when 4-star Devon Modster chose Westwood for his collegiate home. This is a sigh of relief for the Bruins as things were looking a bit scary going into the 2016 season.
Current starting QB Josh Rosen had one of the best freshman seasons in the country. Not only did he lead the Bruins to eight wins in his first year, but the true frosh also claimed several postseason awards including the the CBS Sports Freshman of the Year.
Though he was good, it is not hard to fathom how much better he could have been. Despite what some would call “conservative” playcalling by former offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone, the Bruins could not risk Rosen doing more and getting injured, especially with the run game.
UCLA Bruins
Though the Bruins had several backups on the roster, including fan favorite Jerry Neuheisel, none of them were on the level with Rosen and the way the Bruin’s season was going, they could not afford to have the freshman phenom not playing.
All that has changed with two things happening in recruiting. The first is the aforementioned commitment of Modster.
Secondly, UCLA already has another commitment from 3-star Matt Lynch who has slowly been impressing UCLA coaches and prep scouts. Though he is not as highly rated as Modster (and for that matter, Rosen), many believed he would develop his skills enough to become the de facto backup to Rosen.
So the Bruins now have a backup QB battle, which will be interesting heading into next season, but for now the important thing is that this adds depth.
Essentially, Rosen now has back up.
The result of this could be a lot more action by Rosen, especially running the ball next season. In high school at St. John Bosco, Rosen was very proficient at utilizing the zone read. Aside from having a strong arm, Rosen also had power in his legs as he ran for 1,139 in three seasons, averaging 26.5 per game.
That is nothing compared to his Bruin predecessor Brett Hundley who averaged nearly 50 rushing yards a game in his final season, but it is a start, especially when Rosen averaged 0.4 yards per run in 2015.
So what does that mean in 2016? More options, more zone reads, and more deception, which could also lead to more activity in the passing game. Now do not expect UCLA to go out and take giant risks every play, but do expect a longer leash for Rosen to operate.
Next: UCLA Football Recruiting: A Quick Look at the Commits
It will be interesting see how UCLA evolves their offense into next season, especially with Kennedy Polamalu taking over the reins as offensive coordinator, but it should be explosive, especially with a seasoned Rosen being able to do more than he did as a freshman.