UCLA Football vs. Stanford: 5 Things We Learned

2 of 5

Sep 24, 2016; Pasadena, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Christian McCaffrey (center) runs the ball during the second half against the UCLA Bruins at Rose Bowl. The Stanford Cardinal won 22-13. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /

2. The Defense Needs To Be Aggressive Late In The Game

For the second straight game, the Bruin defense let up on the reins, gave their opponent a cushion and were scored on because of it.

Last week, against BYU, the Bruins did a brilliant job of containing QB Taysom Hill. He had a career-low -7 rushing yards. UCLA had trouble with the run defense last season and it is starting to improve. But then they played prevent defense and a Cougar receiver was able to find his way into the end zone.

Against Stanford, the defense was good considering they went against the best player in the nation and one of the best teams in the nation. UCLA contained Stanford as much as they could, but in the end it was just too much and that is going to lead to problems down the line.

Stanford was only able to score on field goals until their final drive. That is when UCLa played conservative, lost their bite and allowed Stanford to Stanford the Bruins.

If UCLA plays aggressive all game long, only to ease up at the end of the game, then it voids everything good that they did to to that point, especially if it results in a loss.

UCLA Football vs. Stanford: 5 Things We Learned From the Stanford Game

By Mike Regalado | Sep 25, 2016

2. The Defense Needs To Be Aggressive Late In The Game