UCLA Football: Position Grades for win over Coastal Carolina

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Sep 2, 2023; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins defensive back John Humphrey (6) is congratulated by defensive back Jaylin Davies (24) after an interception in the second half against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

Defensive Line: A

The defensive front may have been the most reliable group on the field in the season opener. The unit helped hold the Chanticleers to just 56 rushing yards on 34 attempts, and they rushed the passer consistently.

The Bruins posted four sacks, and all four came from the defensive line. Gabriel Murphy registered one of them, and Laiatu Latu got to the quarterback a whopping three times. Latu also tallied three of the team’s ten tackles for loss.

Linebacker: B

Coastal Carolina was forced to punt and settle for field goals on numerous occasions throughout the game. Four drives ended with field goal attempts and two in punts.

This linebacking corps didn’t rack up a great deal of stats on Saturday night, but they held down their end of the bargain.

Defensive Backs: C+

It wasn’t a bad night for UCLA’s pass defense, but it wasn’t perfect.

The good? They held Grayson McCall and the Coastal Carolina passing offense to just 28-of-43 for 289 yards and intercepted him twice.

The concerning? They couldn’t really find a way to slow down wide receiver Sam Pinckney. He had nine catches for 139 yards and a score. While the Bruins’ schedule doesn’t feature a plethora of electric offenses, this isn’t the last time they’ll be forced to deal with a weapon like Pinckney.

It’s impossible not to have one eye toward that November 18th matchup at USC. This unit will have to perform at an extremely high level to slow down Caleb Williams and Co.