It’s that time of year again where the UCLA Football Bruins take on their oldest and greatest rival, the USC Trojans to decide who owns Los Angeles and bragging rights until next season.
It’s easy to look at the win totals of both of these teams and say clearly the USC Trojans are having a better season than the UCLA Football Bruins. But that only tells a small part of the story that is 2017.
The Bruins have had their season well documented here at GJB but let’s give you an abbreviated version just to get back up to speed. After notching back to back wins over the Aggies and Hawaii the troubles began. Memphis was a defensive blunder and Stanford was a pure beat down. UCLA scored a big conference win over Colorado but following a bye week lost in depressing fashion to a hot Arizona team.
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A win over a down Oregon team helped ease the sting of an up and down season but two straight losses to Washington and Utah that weren’t particularly close only fanned the flames of UCLA Football head coach Jim Mora’s hot seat. The temperature on that seat may have been turned down with a win over ASU but they can go back to high heat if the Bruins lose in ugly fashion to the Trojans.
Across town the Trojans racked up nine wins but some of them were ugly (Western Michigan, Stanford, Texas, Cal and Utah) where USC and it’s embarrassment of riches in terms of talent didn’t play up to expectations but still managed to escape victorious. The losses weren’t good looks for the program either. They fell just short of beating Washington State in week five and then Notre Dame hammered them in South Bend three weeks later. Still they’ve reeled off three straight wins against PAC-12 South opponents, (ASU, Arizona, Colorado) and they’re looking to make it four straight as they’ve already sewn up the division.
Trojan QB Sam Darnold and UCLA Football QB Josh Rosen enter this game with more than the typical pressure associated with a rivalry game. They’re not just battling for Los Angeles but also to prove who is the best QB in the city and potentially who will be drafted first next year in the 2018 NFL Draft.
With pride, ranking and potentially jobs on the line in this game it’s important that the coaches aren’t the only ones with tons of knowledge about this UCLA Football opponent so strap in, get yourself a strong drink or two and let’s dive into the USC Trojans.
Trojan Offense
Darnold is probably the first name that comes to mind when you think of the Trojans and not just offensively. He is the face of the Trojans and has given them a multi-faceted offense with his ability to run the read-option to perfection. While not a huge threat to run away from defenders he does have sneaky athleticism that is more often on display avoiding pass rushers and making throws on the move.
He has a strong arm but it’s by no means a cannon. Still he can make every throw in the book despite the throwing motion looking anything but textbook. He’s felt the loss of top targets and the offensive line and it has shown up in terms of a much higher turnover rate this season (20 turnovers). Still, he is the leader of this offense even if he isn’t the most dangerous weapon on the team.
The Trojans boast a bevy of backs capable of breaking things wide open on a single handoff. Of course that’s a scary thought when you consider how poor the UCLA Football run defense has been. Ronald Jones is a legit NFL running back and a game-breaker for the Trojans. He has the speed to go the distance, power to break tackles and the hands to be a threat out of the backfield. If he has any less than 20 carries for the Trojans on Saturday then something went very wrong for USC. Stephen Carr is a well built true freshman and gives the Trojans a bulkier option but don’t be fooled, Carr can go the distance as well.
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Out wide the Trojans have a plethora of talented but youthful receivers. Deontay Burnett might be a smaller receiver but he’s the leader of this group. His strong hands and smooth route running ability have made him the favorite target of Darnold. Tyler Vaughns might be a true a freshman but he’s become a big play machine for USC. Capable of taking a short pass to the endzone and making guys look bad while doing it is one of his specialties and the Bruins will have to wrap him up to prevent being burned.
Steven Mitchell Jr. might not get as much attention as the two up top but that suits him just fine since he’s able to use his agility and speed to win one on one battles for big catches. The big body of this group is Michael Pittman who was once committed to the UCLA Football program but has instead come on strong as of late for the Trojans. He’s a dangerous redzone weapon because of his size but makes plenty of plays between the 20s.
At tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe has been banged up after a strong 2016 but his slack has been picked up junior TE Tyler Petite who at 250 pounds can move like he weighs 20 pounds less. Both are strong blockers and can be lined up as traditional TEs or flexed out as well.
The offensive line is the big story here. The Trojans can overcome questionable QB play with a very strong running game. What neither can deal with is poor line play. Injuries and inexperience have really hurt this group but as of late the protection and run blocking have been much improved. Can a UCLA Football defense not known for creating tons of pressure move Darnold off his spot? If they can it will have to come with power moves over speed which actually plays into the Bruins’ hands.
Trojan Defense
It seems the injuries that plagued the offensive line also found their way into the defensive line. The interior of the Trojan defense was particularly hit hard. Eternal Kenny Bigelow had to retire due to injury and promising young freshman Marlon Tuipulotu was also lost for the season. Rasheem Greene has also been dealing with a shoulder for a chunk of 2017 although it looks like he will be able to take the field for Saturday’s concert. The result has been a USC defense that has had some problems against the run. Not UCLA Football bad, not even close. Still teams have been able to move the ball on the ground against the Trojans.
Those pesky injuries. It wasn’t just both lines that were hit. Cameron Smith, Hunter Echols, Porter Gustin, Connor Murphy and Uchenna Nwosu have all been banged up this season with some of the injuries being far more severe than others. Nwosu came on this year in a big way with teams focused more on Gustin and Smith but when the three of them are out there and healthy they’re arguably one of the best LB corps in the country. Smith patrol the middle of this defense and is one of the major reasons this run defense wasn’t worse this season.
What a contest this could have been if the UCLA Football pass catchers were able to stay healthy. Josh Rosen with a full compliment of weapons against this secondary would have been potentially one of the best PAC-12 football games this year. But I digress. With Jack Jones, Chris Hawkins, Marvel Tell III and a probable Iman Marshall this defensive backfield has the ability to make throwing the ball a challenge against a banged up Bruin receiving corps.
Final Thoughts and Prediction
Offensively the Bruins must find a way to score on every possession. And they cannot abandon the run if there isn’t initial success. Getting one dimensional against a defense with athletes doesn’t bode well for this UCLA team. Yes the offensive line played well last week and was sound against the blitz but this is a different caliber of a defensive front. Rosen will have to make throws and he’s capable of it but the big question is who will be on the other side of those throws if the Trojans shut down Jordan Lasley after his big game last week.
There haven’t been many turnovers caused by this defense to get excited about this season. This game will need to be the exception to this year’s rule. If the Bruins are able to steal a couple of possessions they give their offense that many more opportunities to score. Should the Bruins go up by double digits the Trojans may have to start passing the ball more which is a much better option than being slashed and gashed on the ground.
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This UCLA Football team can win this game if they are able to check all the boxes I outlined above and have a nearly perfect game from everyone in the two-deep. That’s not likely. Which is why it pains me beyond compare to say that the Trojans win this game 45-24.
Hey, there’s always 2018.