Each week, Daily Bruin Sports takes a look at the game film for the UCLA football game and grades each position group on its performance.
This week, we grade UCLA’s 37-3 win over UNLV. There are a lot of high grades – just like last week – but two different position groups took home the top grade this time around.
Quarterbacks: C+
Freshman Josh Rosen had a lot to live up to after his record-breaking debut last week against Virginia. No matter what he did against UNLV, it would be hard for him to match the precision of that performance.
On his first drive of the game, Rosen actually lived up to his high-level precedent. He capped off a six-play, 58-yard drive with an impressive 29-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Payton, hitting the senior receiver in stride on the left hash.
But from that point forward, Rosen fizzled out a bit. Over his final 11 drives, he went 3-for-15 on throws of 10 yards or longer, and also threw his first career interception. Overall, Rosen looked a lot more like a true freshman than he did in week one against Virginia.
“I told you to temper your expectations (with Rosen),” Mora said. “It ain’t going to be as pretty every week as it was last week.”
By no means did Rosen put up a bad performance against UNLV. He still made a few standout throws, and reacted well to a bevy of cornerback blitzes from the Rebels.
The big difference between Rosen’s near-perfect first performance and his modest second game was his deep-ball accuracy. He was just missing the deep streaks and post routes that were there for him in the season opener. Also, Rosen wasn’t protected as well in the pocket as he was in the first game, which made matters a bit more difficult at times.
After Rosen left the game early in the fourth quarter, Jerry Neuheisel saw his first extended action of the season. It didn’t go very well for the redshirt junior, as he threw two interceptions – although the second one wasn’t entirely his fault.
By the end of the game, the UCLA quarterbacks accounted for all three of the team’s turnovers and just one touchdown. That doesn’t make for a very high grade.
Running backs: A
The running backs emerged as the team’s best offensive position group this week. Redshirt junior Paul Perkins took control of the game in the second half, rushing for for 82 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries. Meanwhile, sophomore Nate Starks put up a solid performance in his first game of the 2015 season, finishing with six carries for 35 yards.
As a whole, the running backs ended the game with an average of 5.8 yards per carry. Freshman Bolu Olorunfunmi continued to showcase the power-running skills that he displayed in fall training camp and against Virginia last week, finishing with 65 yards on nine bruising carries.
Let’s not forget about redshirt junior fullback Nate Iese, who had the most punishing run of the night. That play can be found below.
If that’s what happens when you cross Iese the wrong way, let’s just play it safe and give the running backs an A.
Wide receivers: B
There were a few more mistakes from the receivers this week than there were last week. Sophomore Mossi Johnson dropped a screen pass and a potential touchdown in the back of the end zone, redshirt sophomore Darren Andrews had a couple missed catches, and redshirt junior receiver Kenny Walker stopped running on a streak route. Sophomore Eldridge Massington also appeared to have a miscommunication with Rosen on an incompletion in the second quarter.
The receivers can’t receive too much flack this week, however, as Rosen struggled to find his groove the whole game. On several plays, UCLA wide receivers found separation in the secondary, only to see Rosen overthrow them.
At the end of the day, eight different wide receivers had catches for UCLA on Saturday – the exact same number as last week versus Virginia. That kind of depth is always impressive.
Offensive line: B+
The UCLA offensive line received some well-deserved praise last week. The unit didn’t allow one sack and it also helped the running backs sustain a solid 4.5 yards-per-carry average.
This week, the O-line wasn’t quite as dominant on the pass-rushing front. While the unit didn’t allow any sacks, it wasn’t nearly as consistent in providing a clean pocket for Rosen. The true freshman quarterback was hit in the backfield eight times, compared to the six backfield hits he sustained last week. Rosen was also forced to throw two passes away against UNLV – something he didn’t have to do once against Virginia.
On the play below, junior guard Alex Redmond whiffs on a block against a UNLV defensive end. Luckily for Redmond, the UNLV defensive end bit on the play-fake from Rosen.
What saved the offensive line’s grade this week was its standout run blocking. The Bruins blocked well – particularly on the perimeter. Junior right tackle Caleb Benenoch did a fantastic job playing right guard in the second half, paving the way for both of Perkins’ touchdown runs.
“I mean the offensive line was doing a great job out there,” Perkins said. “I knew one of us was gonna break and the offensive line was doing a great job so it was only a matter of time before one of us broke.”
Defensive line: A
The UCLA defensive line faced some adversity this past week, when it found out that junior starting defensive end Eddie Vanderdoes would be out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL.
“It’s going to be hard to replace Eddie,” said defensive line coach Angus McClure on Sept. 7. “We all know the type of player he is, the force he can be; and he showed it (against Virginia).”
With Vanderdoes out, sophomore defensive end Matt Dickerson and redshirt junior defensive lineman Eli Ankou were thrust into bigger roles. Both of them showed that they’re up for the challenge.
Ankou followed up his strong showing from week one by continuing to power through double teams and plug up running lanes. Just like Vanderdoes, Ankou used his imposing 6-foot-3-inch, 305-pound frame to his advantage. On the play below, Ankou splits a double team and raises his long arms in the air, forcing an overthrow from the UNLV quarterback.
Dickerson built off his two quarterback pressures from last week by picking up his first career tackle for loss on the play below. Dickerson compliments Ankou’s power well with his more speed-based pass rush repertoire.
Before UNLV picked up a couple big running plays in garbage time, the UCLA defensive line stifled the Rebels. UNLV averaged just 3.3 yards per carry on its first 12 drives in the game.
Linebackers: A-
Junior linebacker Myles Jack still needs to work on minimizing his penalties, but other than that, this position group performed well against UNLV. There were very few missed tackles until garbage time, and a lot of big, strong hits.
Junior weakside linebacker Deon Hollins was the de-facto defensive MVP in this game, stopping a fake field goal attempt and forcing a fumble in the backfield. He also had several quarterback pressures.
Junior inside linebacker Isaako Savaiinaea was the unheralded star in the linebacker group, finishing with five tackles. The second-stringer played his gaps well, and also had the hustle play of the game in the fourth quarter. Watch below how he’s blocked to the ground to start the play, but gets back up to run down the UNLV running back over 40 yards downfield.
Defensive backs: A-
The UCLA defensive backs had the benefit of facing UNLV’s backup quarterback for most of the game, but still showed some weaknesses. Specifically, the Bruins struggled to protect against slant routes in man coverage at times. Redshirt junior Marcus Rios was beat by UNLV standout receiver Devonte Boyd on a couple of slants, and also allowed Boyd to haul in a 37-yard reception on a wheel route.
All in all, there’s not too much to complain about with the defensive backs. UNLV only completed six passes in the game for a mere 56 yards.
Special teams: B+
This grade would undoubtedly be an A, or perhaps an A+, if not for the muffed punt in the first quarter. UCLA happened to recover that muffed punt – but still, those are the kind of mistakes the Bruins can’t afford to have in more closely contested Pac-12 games.
Aside from the punt return letdown in the first quarter, the Bruins were lights out on special teams. They snuffed out a fake field goal attempt, blocked a punt, made each of their three field goals and connected on all of their extra points. Jack even got in for a kick return, advancing the ball out to the UCLA 35 yard line.
The special teams play of the day goes to redshirt senior running back Roosevelt Davis. The former walk-on laid the boom on a UNLV kick returner in the fourth quarter, stopping him before he even reached his own 10-yard line.