UCLA’s offense took off in the third quarter of Saturday’s game against Nebraska, scoring four touchdowns in rapid succession to put the contest out of reach.
Las Vegas took note, and now the spread for the Bruins’ upcoming game against the New Mexico State Aggies has likewise taken flight. The Bruins are currently 42.5-point favorites for Saturday’s game at the Rose Bowl, and hold a +58 scoring differential through just two games this season.
The key to covering that spread and adding to that already hefty scoring margin will be wearing down the Aggies’ defense, keeping New Mexico State’s front seven on the field and allowing for very little recovery time with limited huddling.
The Huskers’ defense was able to play stout enough during the majority of the first half on Saturday, yielding just 53 rushing yards and not allowing the Bruins to establish any sort of rhythm. However, once the Bruins scored their first touchdown with 1:27 left to play in the first half, a snowball effect ensued.
Physical exhaustion and a visible lack of levelheadedness appeared in the faces and actions of the Nebraska defense, leading to a tide turned in UCLA’s favor Saturday, said some of the team’s offensive players.
“They started getting after each other and arguing a little bit, but most of all, their heads went down,” said freshman Y receiver Thomas Duarte. “Their shoulders kind of slumped so that’s when we knew.”
Once made aware of Nebraska’s negative body language, the Bruins realized it would only take a few more offensive blows to send the Huskers down for the count.
“Other than mentally, we just thought, ‘Let’s end this thing right here,’” Duarte said. “We were able to score a few more times, and that was that.”
From a conditioning standpoint, redshirt senior wide receiver Shaquelle Evans said he knew Nebraska had reached its maximum exertion level by halftime.
“We knew at halftime that they had given us their best shot and we just felt like they didn’t really have anything left,” Evans said. “It was just coming out there with that mindset just saying we’re going to keep that tempo going like we do in practice and they’re not going to be able to hang, and it just proved they couldn’t hang.”
Barr Brings Awards
In the days following his 11-tackle, three-forced fumble performance on Saturday, senior outside linebacker Anthony Barr raked in a handful of national awards.
After recording just five tackles in Week One against Nevada, Barr walked away with the Week Three Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week, CBSSports.com Player of the Week, Walter Camp Football Foundation Defensive Player of the Week and Lott IMPACT Player of the Week honors.
Barr said his improved in-game physical condition significantly helped secure his impactful performance in Lincoln.
“I felt good,” he said. “I had my legs under me, and I had my wind.”
Two games into the season, though, the Bruins’ 2012 sacks leader with 13.5 sacks has yet to record one. Instead, senior defensive linemen Seali’i Epenesa and Keenan Graham have combined to notch all of the team’s four sacks.
Barr said that while he has missed opportunities to get himself on the board in the sacks category, Saturday’s game provides him with the ideal chance to do so, especially against a team like New Mexico State that has very limited blocking success at the offensive line.
“I let a couple go last week,” Barr said. “The last week I was emphasizing keeping the quarterback in front of us. I’ll make sure to – hopefully – get a couple this time.”