UCLA Football: Back Up Quarterbacks and Running Back By Committee
The UCLA Football team got multiple looks at quarterback and running back to end the third week of Spring Practice.
Josh Rosen did not participate in practice on Saturday. Don’t freak out Bruin fans, it was only due to “hip soreness” according to UCLA Football Head Coach Jim Mora.
The injury is not serious and Rosen will return soon, but for last Saturday’s practice, the Bruin’s looked to back up QBs Mike Fafaul and Matt Lynch.
Through Spring Practice, Fafaul has been the essential backup to Rosen, though Lynch has had his fair share of work, mostly with the second team.
Lynch is looking good recently and has benefitted from enrolling early for Spring Practice. As David Woods of Bruin Report Online stated, “Lynch has looked extremely comfortable in the last week.”
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Though Fafaul has been in the system longer, it is evident that he will be surpassed by the emergence of the young talent around him. BRO also noted that the backup QB competition intensifies in the fall as UCLA will be bringing in Devon Modster and potential QB Dymond Lee.
As for practice, it wasn’t the sharpest, but it was good for both Fafaul and Lynch to get that experience if by chance Rosen is ever out for an extended period of time due to injury.
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As for the running backs, it seems as though there is no clear #1. Soso Jamabo, Bolu Olorunfunmi and Nate Starks have all gotten time on both the first and second teams, though all have looked good at different times. Starks has made some good individual improvements, but Jamabo and Olorunfunmi have really stood out this Spring.
Olorunfunmi looks a bit quicker getting to the edge and appears to have better vision running through the gaps. Jamabo, who had an overall good 2015 season, looks a lot more confident in Spring Practice and has a legitimate shot of landing the #1 spot at RB.
But that will the most interesting question… who will be the #1 running back? Honestly, that might not be as big of a deal to Offensive Coordinator Kennedy Polamalu as knowing which of these three running backs to use at any given time.
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Just because one player starts, does not mean they will be the most utilized. This just shows that this could be one of the deepest and most talented RB groups the Bruins have had in a long time.