The UCLA football program has yet to get their offense going, but with Pac-12 play beginning, will we see Chip Kelly pull out a few more plays and try to get that all important first “W”?
Let us get down to brass tacks, this is not a good start for the UCLA football team. But let’s be clear, if this was Chip Kelly’s third year, there would be legitimate cause for concern (and banners flying above Westwood, if you want to go there). Right now, there really is no need for concern (youth, new system, new coach – all the reasons you want to avoid and just be completely critical of the Bruns at this very early stage of Kelly’s tenure).
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But this is not Kelly’s third year. It is his first heading into the 4th game of the season. Though we might not like what we see, we have to be patient. We have no choice, really.
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And that is part of it. Kelly has just started his reign in Westwood, so not only have we not seen the extent of Kelly’s plan, but we have not seen the extent of his plays.
For example, in the first three games, Kelly used five different running backs and each had their own special package (if they went to the run). A few backs shared similar packages, which was to maximize their strengths. The point being, Kelly is trying to find the players and the packages that can move the ball consistently. He is tinkering. This is should be expected.
The tinkering will continue as the Bruins head into Pac-12 play (and into season 2, season 3, season 4, etc.). Kelly was not going to show all of his cards in the first three games, but with the important part of the season upon us, we could (should?) see a lot more of his master plan unfold.
Over the summer, Kelly hired former Navy offensive line coach Bryce McDonald (to an analyst role, not a coaching position). One of the things that made Navy such a powerful running team was their efficiency in running the triple-option. Though we have not seen that in the first three games, that could change heading into the conference portion of the schedule.
So far, we have been seeing a lot of zone read (mostly inside) and runs up the middle. This was to see what (and who) works and what (and who) does not.
You cannot run if you cannot walk and the non-conference schedule was used to learn to walk.
When the run game opens up, so will the passing game. Though the Bruins have to do a better job of executing (passing, receiving, blocking, etc.), an unpredictable run game should allow for improvements with the pass. Kelly’s offense is based on getting chunks of yards and once they can do that, it will help them have more successful drives which will lead to more scoring opportunities which will lead to more points which will lead to wins.
Once again, let us remember that this is Kelly’s first season and he needs to time for his offense to blossom (I feel I am going to repeat this until December). You cannot run if you cannot walk and the non-conference schedule was used to learn to walk.
I will not go as far as to say that Kelly used the non-conference as a “preseason” but instead used those games to figure out what is working and what is not (as I repeat myself once again). With that being said, there will be a lot more urgency as the Bruins take on the Pac-12.
Conference play is the important part of any team’s schedule. If UCLA wins enough games in Pac-12 play then they could win the division and head to the Pac-12 Championship Game. I do not think that will happen this year, but we should see Kelly and the Bruins put forth a stronger effort from here on out and have a game plan akin to what we were expecting (Oregon 2.0?)/
That includes bringing to the Colorado game a few different looks (motions, formations, running schemes, passing routes, personnel, etc.) that were not used in the first three games. Kelly stated that he wants to win now and if that is the case, we should see the Bruins’ coach develop a game plan with the goal of doing just that… getting a win now.