I had a bit of a weird feeling after the conclusion of UCLA’s 36-34 win over Cal Saturday, an uncertainty over how to feel about the game.
I was left wondering if I should be impressed UCLA held on to win, despite its three costly turnovers, bailed out by a late interception by redshirt sophomore cornerback Marcus Rios.
Or did this game just give more fodder to the naysayers since UCLA barely escaped with a two-point win over Cal, a team that is widely accepted as UCLA’s inferior.
Coach Jim Mora took the former stance, unsurprisingly.
“We are far from perfect, but there’s a grit that’s building. I think we can get that. That’s the culture we want,” Mora said. “Never quit, never say die, never give in, never give up. … This is a long term deal.”
To Mora, winning close games such as Saturday’s is a good thing; it shows the resiliency his team has.
At the same time, the fact that so many of UCLA’s games this season have been so close when, on paper, the Bruins should have comfortable victories, should be worrisome. Five of UCLA’s seven games this season have been decided by just one score against opponents with a combined record of 24-14.
Perhaps at this point of the season for the Bruins, who already have two losses and have proven that early expectations for them were too high, the impressiveness of a win is irrelevant.
But take a look at these close games, and the UCLA team we thought we knew at the beginning of the season isn’t that far off.
Against Virginia, UCLA was without starting center – redshirt junior Jake Brendel. Without him, the offensive line lacked cohesion, which in turn threw the offense out of rhythm.
Against Memphis, redshirt junior quarterback Brett Hundley threw a pick-six. Take that throw back and it’s a 14-point win for the Bruins.
Missing Hundley against Texas, the Bruins still managed to outplay the Longhorns. Were he healthy, UCLA would have a larger offensive arsenal beyond short passes and surely would have scored more than 20 points.
In the Utah loss, yes the 10 sacks were a major issue, but had the ball not slipped from Hundley’s hand on his interception that was returned for a touchdown, junior kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn’s two missed chances at the game-winning field goal would have been irrelevant.
And versus Cal, UCLA’s three turnovers gave Cal great field position and essentially gifted the Golden Bears 20 points.
The common theme of these close games is abundantly clear: The Bruins have been their own biggest threat thus far, their own miscues allowing opponents to stay in the game.
If the Bruins can figure out how to stop hurting themselves so much, the perception of this team will be drastically different.
UCLA is a few ill-timed turnovers, some dumb penalties and some offensive line growing pains away from having five reasonably comfortable wins under its belt and a completely different outlook on the rest of its season.
It’s easy to get down on the Bruins – I certainly was in my last two columns – given the high hopes everyone had coming into the year. But in reality, if UCLA can stop its self-inflicted damage, there’s still plenty of time to salvage this season.