With new head coach Chip Kelly taking over and the amount of flux in the Pac-12 South, the UCLA football team has a good shot to win the division and here is why…
A lot of people are expecting new head UCLA football coach Chip Kelly to bring success back to Westwood, but they are seeing it as a long term deal. If the ball bounces the Bruins’ way in 2018, that success could come sooner than later.
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Let me write this with all seriousness… UCLA will win the Pac-12 South Division this fall and here is why…
There is a combination of several things could propel the Bruins to the top of the division standings by the end of next season. Let us first look at UCLA and how they will contribute to their own success.
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Many say that the “cupboard is bare” for Kelly, but that is only partially true. I would agree that several position groups are bare (have depth issues), but there are others that are overflowing with talent. The offensive line and the linebackers are two of these that need some patchwork, but with the coaches changing player positions and the addition of the incoming freshman class, help is coming in regards to depth.
So with that aside, UCLA has several solid weapons on both sides of the ball. There has not been a starting QB named, but of the five vying for the coveted spot in Kelly’s offense, the new coach has a lot of talent to choose from.
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In addition to that, the offense have talented vets like RB Bolu Olorunfunmi, RB Soso Jamabo, TE Caleb Wilson and WR Theo Howard at their disposal. On defense, DE Rock Wade, LB Jaelan Phillips, LB Keisean Lucier-South, CB Nate Meadors, CB Darnay Homes and S Adarius Pickett will all be major factors, just to name a few.
Now let’s look at the biggest reason, within the program, for why UCLA will in the division: coaching.
Kelly was a homerun hire and the staff he assembled is strengthening the foundation of his philosophy. On his side of the field, Kelly will lead his run-based tempo offense with several experienced coaches (three of which were retained from last season) while new defensive coordinator Jerry Azzinaro and his coaches have implemented an aggressive style of defense that compliments the schemes Kelly will be running. So that is UCLA.
Though the Bruins are on the up and up, there is still the calamity of the rest of the division. Almost every team in the Pac-12 South has some sort of major transition to accommodate, which, if handled correctly, could work in Kelly’s favor.
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USC’s issue is the loss of QB Sam Darnold. Though the Trojans had a talented squad in 2017, Darnold had to play hero in several of their games. That is going to be quite the task for one of their three very young QBs to replicate. Additionally, will Clay Helton continue to be successful without Darnold, or will he be exposed this season?
Utah is another team that underperformed last year, despite being the only Pac-12 team to win a bowl. Going 3-6 is very uncharacteristic of a Kyle Whittingham team and we should expect them to bounce back this fall, but their defensive line takes a hit with the loss of three studs: Kylie Fitts, Filipo Mokofisi and Lowell Lotulelei.
And what about the Arizona schools? Both made coaching changes, though it seems Arizona’s hiring of Kevin Sumlin was the bigger splash of the two. His spread offense seems like a perfect for dual-threat QB Khalil Tate, but he has other holes to patch up, primarily the defense.
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ASU’s new head man, Herm Edwards, seemed like an odd hire as he has been out of the coaching game for a considerable amount of time. Though he could be successful, we probably won’t start seeing results of that this year.
And as for Colorado, well they had a wide range of issues, and this one year after winning their first South Division in 2016. Though there is consistency with QB Steven Montez, they have a lot of defensive problems to solve.
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So with that, UCLA has a pretty decent chance of winning the South Division. Yes, it is a crazy idea, but considering the change in the division, it is quite likely to happen.