UCLA Football: Mique Juarez Returns as the Bruins Begin in San Bernardino

Observations From San Bernardino

I was able to head out to San Bernardino for the second part of UCLA Football’s first day at Cal State San Bernardino.

Related Story: UCLAs Secondary Looks To Stay Primary

-After about a half an hour of drills, the Bruins met on the north field for some short yardage plays. For the first few plays, the offensive line was opening holes for the running backs. Soso Jamabo and Bolu Olorunfunmi had a few runs where they broke the line of scrimmage. At one point, freshman RB Brandon Stephens was stopped up the middle but spun out to the left edge for a few extra yards.

UCLA Bruins

-The defensive line then picked up their progress after about eight plays. Against the 2s, DE Rick Wade was able to consistently push past OL Cristian Garcia. A few plays later, LB Jayon Brown had broken through on the left side to to tackle the ball carrier for about a five yard loss. At the completion of his play he did a little jig to celebrate.

-I was looking forward to checking out the quarterbacks and what surprised me was all the talent they had. In comparison to last season, there was more consistency with the backups. In 2015, it was very noticeable when Josh Rosen was not in there. Today we could see that Mike Fafaul, Devon Modster and Matt Lynch had closed the gap in that aspect. All four looked solid early on and were hitting most of their targets (though Fafaul struggled a bit with some in accurate passes later in practice).

-As for Rosen, he looked as accurate and as strong-armed as ever. What was impressive was the way he moved in and around the pocket. Whenever the defense would break through, Rosen was able to escape trouble.

-When the O and D-lines went at it in a line drill later in practice, a few players on both sides stood out. Kolton Miller, who stills looks like he can pack on a few pounds, was able to stop several defensive lineman, standing them up and disallowing them to swim past him. Transfer DL Nick Terry had a few good breaks through the line. If he can get past the initial block, he has the speed to get at a QB or RB in the backfield.

Next: Projecting the Secondary Depth Chart

Go Bruins!