Last-minute Halloween costume idea: dress as the UCLA running game.
Even amongst the most grotesque of the ghouls and goblins, the Bruins’ rushing attack would be a contender for the most unsightly costume of all.
As ghastly as the ground game has been, the Bruins aren’t trying to change the aesthetic with four games left. They’re just trying to scrape some yards out of all the ugliness.
“Not every hole is going to be right there,” said sophomore running back Bolu Olorunfunmi. “Sometimes you’ve just got to hit it and just got to run – run and get the ugly three or four yards.”
Those “ugly yards” are what offensive coordinator Kennedy Polamalu has emphasized when working with the backs recently, Olorunfunmi said.
“If there’s a little crease, hit it,” Olorunfunmi said. “Get what you can. Don’t sit there and get zero (yards) when you can get one, two or three.”
Short gains might be all the Bruins can ask for. They’ve had no success at breaking big runs.
Only Texas State – which has played one less game – has fewer runs of 10 or more yards than UCLA, and the Bruins are one of just two teams without a run over 32 yards.
Moving forward, the hope is that the running game, ranked dead last in the Football Bowl Subdivision in yards per game, can provide at least a semblance of support for a passing attack on which the Bruins relied at record levels Oct. 22 against Utah.
After calling for just 10 designed runs out of 86 offensive plays against the Utes, Polamalu said this weekend he’d like to roll out a more balanced attack going forward.
“I really want balance to help our quarterback,” Polamalu said. “That’s what we’re always trying to go for.”
A more dependable running game could also help the defense, which was forced to spend over 36 minutes on the field against Utah. Polamalu pointed out that UCLA’s upcoming opponent, Colorado, has won the time-of-possession battle in all but one game this season.
“You’ve got to make sure you get first downs and be efficient and move the chains, not allow them to dictate,” Polamalu said.
So Olorunfunmi could see his ball-carrying duties increase against the Buffaloes.
For his part, the sophomore said he didn’t necessarily feel less involved when the Bruins threw the ball over and over against Utah. Olorunfunmi has focused heavily on his pass protection lately, working to train his eyes to focus on the inside shoulder of the blitzer he’s picking up.
“It’s been a grind for me ever since I got here because I didn’t think I would pass-protect that much,” Olorunfunmi said.
Playing keepaway
Among all the gaudy statistics – 70 attempts, 40 completions, 446 yards – produced by Mike Fafaul in last Saturday’s loss to Utah, the most important number might have been five.
No, not five as in the number of touchdowns Fafaul threw. Five, as in the number of turnovers the redshirt senior committed.
As impressive a performance as it was for a former walk-on thrust into the starting role in place of injured sophomore quarterback phenomenon Josh Rosen, the major takeaway, if you will, is that Fafaul must limit his giveaways.
“Our focus is to hold onto the ball and he knows that,” quarterbacks coach Marques Tuiasosopo said of Fafaul after Saturday’s practice. “That’s the thing that bothers him the most. He doesn’t care about the records, he cares about taking care of the ball. That’s the role of the quarterback.”