In the moment, the UCLA football team’s performance looked too good to be true.
Freshman quarterback Josh Rosen played like a redshirt senior. Junior nose tackle Kenny Clark caught a pass for a touchdown. The Bruins’ offensive line allowed just one sack. Their defense didn’t allow a single rush of over seven yards until midway through the third quarter.
“It was kind of fun,” said offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone afterward.
The performance was everything Bruin fans could have hoped for. Their team ran away with a 34-16 victory over Virginia in the season opener, nearly covering the 19.5-point spread. Everything was clicking. The excitement for the season was building.
Then came Sunday afternoon. The Bruins sustained their first real blow of the regular season – and it was a big one.
UCLA received word from doctors that starting defensive end Eddie Vanderdoes – one of the best front-line players in the Pac-12 – tore his ACL during the game on Saturday. The junior will miss the rest of the 2015 season.
Hardly anyone in the Rose Bowl knew of the injury on game day. Vanderdoes covered it up and played through it, according to one report, disguising the fans to the Bruins’ biggest dose of adversity all day.
The one time Vanderdoes showed signs of an injury was during a touchdown celebration at the end of the third quarter. He went over to lift up Clark – his fellow defensive lineman who had just scored – and fell to the ground as he did so, his left knee buckling under him.
The sequence was almost symbolic. Just as Vanderdoes leapt up to celebrate and ignore his knee pain, he came crashing back down on it. Just as the Bruins were seemingly on cloud nine, they returned to a harsh reality.
Vanderdoes didn’t return to the game after that touchdown celebration. UCLA still did fine without him, but the game’s outcome was already sealed, Vanderdoes’ fingerprints all over it. He led the Bruins with six tackles and two tackles for losses, plugging up running lanes all day. Virginia rushed for just a 2.9-yard average in the game.
The loss of Vanderdoes will likely weigh heavily on the Bruins going forward. He’s not as replaceable as a player like redshirt junior Ishmael Adams is at cornerback.
For one, UCLA has less depth on the defensive line than at corner. Also, UCLA’s 3-4 defense relies more on the defensive line than its defensive backs. If the UCLA defensive line doesn’t create a push, the cornerbacks have to be in coverage for a longer period, making their jobs much more difficult .
Vanderdoes’ replacement – redshirt junior defensive end Eli Ankou – is exactly the same size and weight, but with far less experience. Ankou has yet to start a game at UCLA; Vanderdoes has made 20 career starts.
The good news for UCLA is that Ankou and the other reserve defensive linemen looked strong in the season opener on Saturday. Ankou had a play where he grabbed Virginia’s running back and carried him back 10 yards almost single handedly.
“(Ankou) graded out as one of the highest D-lineman for that game,” said defensive line coach Angus McClure on Monday. “He’s really evolved in fall camp with his techniques.”
Sophomore defensive end Matt Dickerson also showed flashes in Vanderdoes’ absence. He had two quarterback pressures, one of which forced a turnover on downs. McClure said Dickerson will also play a role in replacing Vanderdoes, rotating in with Ankou.
“Matt, he’s a good player, that’s a young guy that needs to step up for us every game,” Clark said.
Now UCLA will find out if that promising play by Ankou and Dickerson will hold up, or if it was merely ephemeral.
Compiled by Matthew Joye, Bruin Sports senior staff.