It wasn’t just an ugly loss last night to the Utah Utes. With that loss the UCLA Football team now must find a a way to win two of their last three but with as many injuries as they have now, can they?
Losing in that type of fashion doesn’t just beat you up physically. You take a pounding mentally as well. It doesn’t help when you still have three games remaining and your roster is thinning from injury to find the will to play at a high level. That’s the state the UCLA Football team finds themselves in right now. A banged up roster. A hard pressed road to bowl season and a coaching staff that finds itself on the hottest burner.
Take a look at the remaining schedule and you tell me where you’re finding the wins. The ASU Sun Devils are coming off a loss to the Trojans but before that had reeled off two straight wins including a major upset over then no. 5 Washington and a pounding of the Utah team that just destroyed the Bruins.
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USC has been up and down all season and has fallen mightily from the college football playoff lock the media was ready to anoint them as. They too have taken losses in a schedule that looked very manageable but despite it potentially being a battle of the walking wounded when these two teams meet, the Trojans have more all around talent and depth. Especially at positions outside of the quarterback. Their running back depth, receiver depth and most importantly the defense will likely be too much for the Bruins to contend with.
Finally the Cal Golden Bears have been the surprise of the PAC-12 this year. Not because they’re going to win it but because they’re not the doormat they were in 2016 behind first year head coach Justin Wilcox. They’ve become much more physical up front and found a gritty QB by the name of Ross Bowers. They’re sitting at 5-5 at the moment but a bowl game isn’t out of the question at all.
That’s just the remaining schedule.
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The coaching staff is another issue all together. The Bruins have lost nine of their last 21 games which is about 43% of the games since the 2016. That stat falls squarely on the shoulders of Jim Mora who has failed to build around his star QB. Without Josh Rosen the UCLA Football team is almost rudderless. Almost.
Devon Modster wasn’t inept in his first start but it seemed the offensive staff didn’t let him use his natural gifts to help move the offense. Instead he was mostly kept in the pocket and wasn’t able to use his legs on the read-option. He injured his thumb and was replaced by Matt Lynch who also demonstrated that he was capable of playing at this level but the decision to continually run the football on first down no matter the point differential really handicapped this offense.
To make matter worse the UCLA Football team lost their top receiver in Darren Andrews to a torn ACL during the game. They are already without Caleb Wilson who was lost to injury and Jordan Lasley who is serving a suspension although we aren’t sure when he could return. Andrews is a major loss for this offense. He had been the most sure handed receiver to this point besides Wilson and was one of the better coverage beaters the Bruins have on the team.
If Rosen has recovered by next week and is ready to play, and that’s a huge if, he will surely miss Andrews who was a favorite target.
Defensively the Bruins are dealing with a rash of injuries to the front seven and must find a way to get healthy. The depth is being tested to the breaking point and against the run heavy offense of ASU I’m not really sure if they have the bodies to stay fresh during the game. The linebacker group which was depleted during the last offseason is also dealing with the injury bug and they might have to get creative to survive ASU.
As a whole the linebacker group has been underwhelming. They’ve had difficulties in coverage and their run fits have been very hit or miss. Teams are finding out you can fool them with motion and misdirection. That’s hesitation as the linebacker group reacts or being fooled is leading to big runs and blown coverages.
The backend of this defense has been a disappointment this season given the expectations coming into the season. The corners have struggled in contested ball situations. In typical fashion the Bruins defensive backs don’t find the ball in the air well and instead look to be physical after the catch has been made often with no success. They aren’t getting much help from an overwhelmed front seven but their play alone has been underwhelming.
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So what’s left for this UCLA Football team? Injuries and questionable coaching have brought this team to the brink of bowl elimination. Their bodies and pride has been bruised and beaten but there is still the opportunity to fight the rest of the season. A strong finish shouldn’t prevent changes from happening where they need to on the roster and among the staff though. What can be salvaged though is the remaining pride, the remaining pride in themselves and in their school.