This is a familiar feeling and a symptom that a lot of teams
suffer from. All the pieces are there, or at least a lot of them,
but it just doesn’t translate into good play on the field.
The rhythm and fire needed to dominate the other team just
don’t seem to be there.
At times this season the Bruin offense has looked like a
half-inflated beach ball. Left to sit in the sand or on the bench,
it appears fine and full of air. But when it is called upon for a
game of catch or a game-winning touchdown drive, it quickly becomes
apparent that something is the matter.
Something has been the matter with the Bruin offense, and I
think it’s the last chance to get a pump to inflate the
unit.
It is truly a shame that UCLA beat Stanford by a score of 31-0
because people outside of the locker room don’t realize how
much the offense did not show up in Pasadena for the first
half.
Stanford forced UCLA to punt on their first drive of the game.
It was Stanford’s fifth game of the year, including a game
against San Jose State, and it was the first time they’d
forced a punt.
One would hope a stat like that would be enough to inspire a
team to get mad and show up at the field the next week as if they
have serious things to prove.
After every home game this season (all of them wins), I left
feeling as if a superior Bruin team did just enough to beat a
significantly weaker opponent, as if they were a car running on a
quarter-tank of gas which managed to make it home but without
enough left in the tank to be sure about the drive to work in the
morning.
With the Bruins getting ready for a big road trip, heading to
Eugene and South Bend, I think the Bruin offense will gas up this
Saturday.
I hate to curb my cynicism about this team, but I think a couple
things are clearly true. Ben Olson is talented and could be an
incredibly good quarterback. He has quality targets to throw to,
and when they’re in sync, things have looked promising. Chris
Markey is a tough and talented back who can gain serious real
estate on the ground.
In no way am I trying to apologize for how this unit has played.
It’s been ugly. And that’s part of why I think things
will get better. A smarter man than myself said necessity is the
mother of invention, and the Bruins really need to invent a
functioning offense.
Putting myself in the offense’s shoes, I would be pissed
off. After losing to Washington the defense came out tough,
tackling hard, and made a statement with a shutout (granted it was
against an offense that was about as offensive as a Regis Philbin
joke). The offense, however, remained mostly silent and leaned
heavily on the defense and special teams to avoid what could have
been an embarrassingly close game.
It’s strange but it may have taken a win instead of a loss
to inspire the offense to change. It will come down to Saturday,
but I expect to see the offense looking to give a performance like
the defense did last week.
E-mail Gordon at bgordon@media.ucla.edu if you think the
offense will score at least one first-half touchdown on
Saturday.