Go Joe Bruin
Fansided

UCLA Football: Don’t expect the blur offense, expect the obscure offense

By Mike Regalado

PASADENA, CA - SEPTEMBER 01: Head coach Chip Kelly of the UCLA Bruins during warm up before the home opening game against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Rose Bowl on September 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - SEPTEMBER 01: Head coach Chip Kelly of the UCLA Bruins during warm up before the home opening game against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Rose Bowl on September 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 3
Next
PASADENA, CA – OCTOBER 06: Running back Joshua Kelley #27 of the UCLA Bruins runs into the end zone for a touchdown in the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Huskies at the Rose Bowl on October 6, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA – OCTOBER 06: Running back Joshua Kelley #27 of the UCLA Bruins runs into the end zone for a touchdown in the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Huskies at the Rose Bowl on October 6, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /

Don’t expect the blur offense, expect the obscure offense (cont.)

The point in all of this is that Kelly is making it very difficult for the opposition to know what he is going to do on a weekly basis. He is not giving out signs of the inside zone read on almost every play (as was routine at Oregon). Instead, he is tinkering with his roster and formations to bring out the most with what he has and it is working.

More from Go Joe Bruin

What is also working is bringing in new formations (that have been slightly altered from standard formations). Early in the season, we saw two-back sets which we have not seen since. Against Colorado, we got to see a few different triple-option sets. Against Arizona, we saw tight formations which emulated bunch sets but was slightly looser groupings near the line. With Utah coming to town this Friday, expect Kelly to have another new look ready for the Utes.

As the title suggests, we should not expect the blur offense (in terms of what was done at Oregon) as this offense is so obscure from an outsider’s perspective. That does not mean that UCLA is going away from running at a certain tempo. In fact, that is still a cornerstone of his offense. In fact, they have been picking up the pace (pun intended) in the last few weeks. According to the S&P+ rankings, UCLA is 26th in the nation in adjusted tempo. Against Arizona, the Bruins ran 80 plays, the most in a game this season.

Kelly is not replicating what he did at Oregon, but he is using those tenets to build his offense at UCLA. This is just the beginning of his evolution. He needs to see what is working as well as who is working. That also leads to his recruiting style, which is an article for another day, so bringing in the pieces that fit his system is key to advancing his ever-changing philosophy.

Next. The 30 Greatest UCLA Football Players of All-Time. dark

It will take some time, but as we have said all season, “trust the process”. It seems to be working so far.