It was a depressing loss for the UCLA Football team who was manhandled in Seattle at the hands of the Huskies. Here’s the post game wrap up and thoughts following the 44-23 loss.
The second half got off to the worst possible start for the UCLA Football team. Upon receiving the second half kickoff the Bruins proceeded to go three and out three consecutive times. This offense looks like they took a bunch sleeping pills instead of Gatorade during the half.
Couple that with UCLA going with their patented “saran wrap run defense” and it was clear to see why the game went downhill so quickly.
It didn’t help that UCLA QB Josh Rosen went to the locker room in the third quarter with what appeared to be a finger injury. It turned an already gloomy afternoon into a depression for Bruin fans. It wasn’t like Rosen was lighting it up before he left the game though. He was beaten and bloodied by this Washington defensive line and threw for only 93 yards and one score.
He could have had more through the air but the dreaded UCLA Football drops decided to show up and the Bruin receivers also struggled to create any separation to help their QB.
Related Story: UCLA Football vs. Washington 2017: 3 questions before the Bruins take on Huskies
The Bruin run game struggled mightily in the second half of the game not providing any relief from the Husky pass rush that was often just three players. RB Bolu Olorunfunmi had more yards on the ground last week (76) than the entire RB group did today (72).
Washington continued to pile it on behind their powerful offensive line and even when the Bruins penetrated into the backfield they were unable to slow runners at all. When they did force the runner to bounce it outside there was no backside contain and the runs went for chunks.
Basically the Huskies could move the ball at will which is no surprise but still given how the defense was more active against Oregon, I’m sure there was a measure of letdown. It wasn’t that the Bruins barely missed ball carriers or the running backs are the best in the country. No, they were just as physically dominant as Washington could hope for.
This UCLA Football defensive line has been engulfed all season with little to show for their efforts. They cannot anchor vs. the run causing them to get pushed back into the linebacker group that frankly has underwhelmed this year. Injuries to Matt Dickerson and Rick Wade don’t help but these issues existed long before they were hurt.
Giving up 333 yards on the ground isn’t just bad, it’s unacceptable. The problem is unacceptable seems to have ironically become the norm.
How does this team finally stop the run? You can do this with more men in the box which is what Tom Bradley did. Can they? Even with eight men in the box the Bruins were gashed with power runs. What changes need to be made to squeak out bowl eligibility? This team is going to have to find a way to get off blocks, penetrate into the backfield and make the tackle. Can this staff have success moving forward or will the offseason bring sweeping changes? Changes seem likely but are all purely speculation. Those are questions we can answer here in this article but there’s still a major one looming.
How will the Bruins move on from Rosen? If he’s lost for any length of time you have to shudder. Yes he was facing a very good Washington defense but it doesn’t get much easier going forward for Devon Modster. He did demonstrate a nice ability to operate the offense and his legs an option there are more wrinkles for Fisch to work with. Still, those are small silver linings in what has proven to be a season of dark clouds.
Next: UCLA Football vs. Washington 2017: Halftime Report
The Bruins will have a short week with a Friday match up against the Utah Utes next week. One less day means one less day of recovery which is vital to any chances of getting Rosen back on the field. No matter who starts at QB, it’s the defense that needs to start playing well.