The UCLA Football team just completed spring practice. We start reviewing spring by looking at the offense and search for any sign of hope for the 2017 season.
Let us work backwards in analyzing the UCLA Football offense. Instead of breaking down each position and coming to a conclusion, let us first just give you the conclusion and then breakdown the positions. So…
The offense looks very similar to last season. Yup, that’s about it.
So why does it look like last year? Because the Bruins are going through the same transition as they did a year ago. There is a new offensive coordinator with a new offense who brought a thicker playbook than the previous season.
This is both a good and bad thing. It is bad because starting over is never easy. The offense has to learn a new offensive philospohy for the second year in a row. That means there is no foundation for the offense to base their schemes off of, though new OC Jedd Fisch is trying.
The good coming out of all this is that the Bruins are building off of similar schemes from last season. The the Bruins were ill-suited to run a power-based offense under Kennedy Polamalu, but under Fisch, him and his new staff seem to be making sure that the players know the ins and outs of the offense.
Yes, it may be tedious from the perspective of the UCLA Football fan, but it is needed. Because of this the, offense looked out of sorts, but if it is an offense that can produce in the long run, it will be worth it.
But that is in the future. Now, even though it is hard to bear, the offense is slow going.
Offensive Line
The departure of several players from the offensive line in the last two years has left the cupboard a bit bare. Combining little depth with a complete change in the offensive philosophy threw the Bruins for a loop. One that had them as the fourth worst rushing team in Division I football.
New offensive lin coach Hank Fraley, just like Fisch, knows how important it isn’t to teach the details. If you went to spring practice you saw Fraley stopping drills for teachable moments or to make sure the line does what is expected of them.
Kolton Miller is the most talented player on the line and should pick up where Conor McDermott left off at right tackle in 2016. His leadership will be needed to help unify this group.
Andre James, Scott Quessenberry, Najee Toran and Mike Alves all showed marked improvements, but there is a lot to work on and develop with the overall product of the O-line.
With that being said, the running game seemed to improve in spring, but it has not been leaps and bounds.
Running Backs
The running game is slow going, but the Bruins have five exceptional RBs that will help try to improve off of 84.2 rushing yards per game.
The player that really stood out this Spring was junior Bolu Olorunfunmi. It did not matter if he was running to the side or up the middle, he would bulldoze through defenders. Prime example, in week 3 of practice, he put his head down and plowed down the middle on a short run into the endzone. He ran so hard he hit and injured CB DeChaun Holiday who was then out for the spring.
Nate Starks did well and showed that he still has talent to take on big minutes, but he did not separate himself from the other RBs. Jalen Starks and Brandon Stephens were also impressive throughout spring as they helped the running game push through a rocky (but able to learn) offensive line.
Soso Jamabo was not exactly disappointing, but he was another player that did not seperate himself from the group. Hopefully he ups his production in the fall as he tries to improve his draft stock as he will be eligible for 2018 NFL Draft after next season.
Receivers, Tight Ends
Dropped balls were still an issue in spring, but not as bad as what we saw last season. Still, there was not a lot of receivers that stepped up and took over on offense.
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With the spring being one long teachable moment, it seemed the coaches would rather the players know the intricacies of the offense rather than go out and try to make big plays. At least right now.
The passing game looked a bit conservative, but that is possibly due to the fact that Fisch wants each of his receivers to know every facet of every scheme, play and route.
Darren Andrews, Alex Van Dyke and Theo Howard were a few receivers that were consistent throughout spring and should get a lot of playing in the fall. There is work to be done with the WRs but what was very noticeable was how the tight ends looked in practice.
Mark my words, there will be a lot of tight end play under Fisch and so far he has a good crew. Caleb Wilson, Austin Roberts and especially Devin Asiasi (who has to sit out a year due to transfer rules) looked quite impressive.
Quarterbacks
Want new know about Josh Rosen’s shoulder? So far, so good. When he was making passes in individual or skeleton drills, he looked like the same old, strong-armed Rosen. Unfortunately, when he was in game situations, he would often run into a spot of trouble going against UCLA’s stout defense.
Overall, Rosen looked good, but you can tell that he was still learning the offense. But as stated above, what Fisch wants is for every player to know the ins and outs of their position. Give Rosen the summer and fall camp to try and make improvements, though we should still be weary of the rest of the offense. If they collectively do not get up to speed, it will be a long 2017.
As for the backups, Devon Modster and Matt Lynch did not seperate themslves as the clear #2, which is a good thing. Do not get me wrong, both made improvements, but not pulling away tells me that UCLA will have two reliable backups.
Next: ESPN's Pac-12 Post Spring Power Rankings
Even freshman Austin Burton got into the mix and surprised Mora. Though he will not see field time next season, he has the drive to push his QB counterparts, which the Bruins need going forward.