On Thursday, UCLA football lost its eighth straight game to Stanford, falling 56-35 in Stanford Stadium. The loss will likely knock the No. 18 Bruins (4-2, 1-2 Pac-12) out of the AP Top 25. Below are the four key factors that led to the Cardinal pulling off yet another huge win over the Bruins.
No. 1: Stanford played smart football and UCLA didn’t – at all
Over the past few years, Stanford football has developed a reputation of being a disciplined football team, while UCLA has consistently finished near the bottom in penalties. And over the past few years, the Cardinal have consistently dominated UCLA.
That same narrative held true on Thursday night, almost to a tee.
In the first half alone, the Bruins tallied six penalties for 57 yards, while the Cardinal had just two for 10 yards. Of those six UCLA penalties, one led to an interception, another nullified a 13-yard touchdown run, and a third got a player ejected from the game.
In addition to the penalties, UCLA hurt itself with dropped passes. In the third quarter, freshman running back Soso Jamabo and junior Y receiver Thomas Duarte each dropped potential touchdown passes. Meanwhile, Stanford had players catching touchdown passes without looking.
To put it bluntly, UCLA held itself back in a game where it was already struggling to keep pace. That’s not a good formula for success.
No. 2: Stanford dominated the line of scrimmage
Over the years, Stanford has developed the reputation of not only being smart, but also being physically strong on the interior. The Cardinal have consistently troubled the Bruins between the tackles on both sides of the ball, and did so again on Thursday.
On the offensive end, Stanford’s power-running attack set records. Lead running back Christian McCaffrey set a school record with 243 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries. On seemingly every carry, McCaffrey would push forward and add on yards after contact. As a whole, the Cardinal averaged 6.5 yards per carry on 45 attempts.
On the defensive side, the Cardinal weren’t quite as potent up front – allowing 5.8 yards per carry to the Bruins – but they were good enough when it counted. Stanford held UCLA to only three third-down conversions on 16 attempts. The Cardinal also won the turnover battle, 2-1.
No. 3: UCLA was destroyed in field position, once again
In UCLA’s last game – a 38-23 loss to Arizona State – one of the biggest factors was field position. The Bruins’ average starting field position in that game was their own 26-yard line, and their average drive lasted just 19 yards. Meanwhile, the Sun Devils’ average starting point was at their own 32-yard line, and their average drive lasted 29 yards.
The disparity in field position was even greater on Thursday night, as was the disparity on the scoreboard. Through three quarters, UCLA’s average starting field position was its own 25-yard line, while Stanford’s was at its own 41-yard line. The fourth-quarter stats were pretty much a wash because Stanford already held a 56-20 lead by that point.
The blame for the field-position troubles can be put on the UCLA special teams. The Bruins allowed a 96-yard kick return in the first quarter and also averaged only 37.8 yards per punt on six attempts.
No. 4: Stanford was just better
After the game, coach Jim Mora didn’t say the Bruins lost because of lack of effort or focus. They gave it their all, it just wasn’t enough.
“I assure you this: that everyone in that locker room – player and coach – is giving everything they have, every day,” Mora said. “They’re giving it everything they’ve got, I mean they’re giving everything they’ve got every single day. … So that’s what you have to ask for.”
That quote pretty much said it all. There wasn’t much to analyze or break down, Stanford simply took it to UCLA on Thursday.
Compiled by Matthew Joye, Bruin Sports senior staff.