The UCLA football team might be 0-5, but they put up a fight against #10 Washington and showed progress on both offense and defense in loss to the Huskies.
The UCLA football team, statistically, has one of the worst offenses in the country. That did not stop them from throwing haymakers against one of the top defenses in the country.
Through their first four games, Washington only allowed 281.0 total yards and only 11.6 points per game. The Bruins shattered both of those as they gained the most total yards and points in a game this season.
The Bruins, who average 312.0 yards per game, gained 422 against UW. UCLA has only been able to score 17.0 points per game. The 24 they put on the Huskies, was the most in a contest this season.
Part of that had to do with the offense sustaining drives and not stalling as it had in the first four games. They were able to extend drives, rarely went three and out and used both the pass and the run to get around what was supposed to be one of the top defenses in the country.
The game still ends with an “L”, but like we have been saying all season, it is about progress and the Bruins showed a ton of it here.
Chip Kelly has wanted to establish the run but he also wants to utilize freshman QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s arm which has proven to do some damage with the passing game. In the first half, UCLA threw the ball 17 times while they ran it only eight. A stark contrast from what he has been trying to establish, but it worked.
Thompson-Robinson, who has had several shaky performances the last four games, had his most solid outing of the year. He finished the game with 27/38 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns. He also upped his average yards per attempt from 3.9 last week to 7.2 against UW, one of the top teams in the nation.
But it was not just the passing game that humbled the Husky defense. The Bruins nearly equaled their season-high in rushing yards against Colorado with 150 this week. Also, for the second week in a row, Joshua Kelley topped 100 yards with 125. It was the first time a Bruin ran for 100 yards in consecutive games since 2015.
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But let us not forget about the receiving game. Caleb Wilson was finally the go-to guy after being a ghost in the first four games. Wilson caught 8 passes for a 102 yards (12.8 yards per catch) and 1 touchdown. It seemed that whenever UCLA needed some yards, Wilson was open and available to deliver for the Bruins.
The defense also had a solid showing, despite giving 462 yards. In the first half, the Bruins did a fantastic job limiting the run as they only allowed Washington to gain 3.6 yards per carry. That is down from their season average of 4.2.
The pass defense was a different story. UCLA has been plagued with injuries, especially among the linebackers, which has really taken a beating from quarterbacks that have been making connections in the middle of the field. Washington’s all-time leading passer, Jake Browning, was able to pick apart the Bruins throughout the contest. Still, the Bruins put up a tremendous effort, especially on an individual basis.
Safety Adarius Pickett had a career-high 16 tackles (9 solo) as he made some timely stops throughout the game. Linebacker Krys Barnes was another Bruin that was all over the place as he finished with 9 tackles, 3 for a loss, 1 sack, 1 pass breakup, and 1 quarterback hurry.
The game still ends with an “L”, but like we have been saying all season, it is about progress and the Bruins showed a ton of it here.