A lot can change in one week in college football.
Just over a week ago, UCLA was shrouded in doubt, with uncertainty about redshirt junior quarterback Brett Hundley’s health matching the uncertainty surrounding whether the team deserving its then-No. 11 ranking.
Meanwhile, Utah was coming off its third straight double-digit win, this time on the road against a talented but troubled Michigan team. The Utes looked poised to add to the list of legitimate challengers in the Pac-12 South.
Now, as the two teams meet Saturday in the Rose Bowl, they couldn’t be in more contrasting situations.
No. 8 UCLA (4-0, 1-0 Pac-12) finally earned its signature win of the season, trouncing Arizona State 62-27 last Thursday to move back into the top-10 and reasserting itself as a College Football Playoff contender.
Meanwhile, Utah (3-1, 0-1 Pac-12) blew a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter against perennial cellar-dweller Washington State and lost 28-27, losing all the momentum it built through its first three games.
So for UCLA, with No. 2 Oregon on the horizon and its own dominant performance against Arizona State still fresh in its players’ minds, half the challenge in facing Utah will be focusing on solely Utah.
“Like I told the kids, we can’t win today’s game on yesterday’s home run,” said offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone.
Despite Utah’s recent loss, the Utes are certainly no pushover. Utah junior quarterback Travis Wilson appears to have made the next step in his development, and the Bruins are expecting him to look vastly different from the player who threw six interceptions against UCLA in last year’s matchup.
(Daily Bruin file photo)
On this year’s film, the Bruins have instead seen Wilson making better decisions with the ball, as evidenced by his zero interceptions on the season.
“I’ve always had a lot of respect for him. (I) just think he’s a solid, smart quarterback,” said coach Jim Mora. “He looks like he’s making great decisions. He has confidence in the offense.”
For a UCLA team that needed six interceptions to escape Salt Lake City with just a seven-point win, putting pressure on Wilson and forcing him to hurry into bad decisions could prove key again this year.
While Wilson has played well, it’s on defense that the Utes have excelled so far. Utah is holding opponents to just 19.8 points per game using a scheme Mora described as disciplined and simple, but executed at a high level.
The defense is led by a defensive line that is always among the top groups in the conference. Through four games, Utah has registered 18 sacks, the second-highest mark in the Pac-12.
“They are a very physical group, so we just got to be physical back,” said redshirt junior center Jake Brendel about Utah’s front seven.
Fortunately for the Bruins, UCLA’s offensive line is playing the best it has all season.
After a disappointing start to the season against Virginia, the offensive line has gotten better every week, culminating in an impressive performance against ASU in which the unit allowed just one sack, despite the Sun Devils frequently trying to add pressure. Now over a month into the season, the UCLA offensive linemen are finally starting to gel and understand how to play cohesively with each other.
“It’s kinda like a girlfriend,” Mazzone said. “You date her long enough you get to know her good habits and her bad habits right. I think it’s just them playing together.”
As a team, the Bruins showed off all their good habits last week. Now it’s just a case of repeating them.
Injury Update
Junior outside linebacker Kenny Orjioke will miss the remainder of the season after a procedure Tuesday revealed he had a torn ACL.
Heading into the season, Orjioke was fighting for a starting outside linebacker spot along with sophomore Deon Hollins and redshirt junior Aaron Wallace. Hollins won the spot, limiting Orjioke’s time on the field.
Coach Jim Mora said UCLA would petition for a medical redshirt for Orjioke, which would give him an extra year of eligibility.