As if the scene of Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate continually running through, around and away from UCLA defenders wasn’t enough, the Bruins will face yet another dangerous rusher this week.
Oregon running back Royce Freeman might not have quite the same top-end speed as Tate, but he’s a powerful back who moved into fourth place on the Pac-12’s all-time rushing list over the weekend against Stanford.
“Great running back,” said UCLA coach Jim Mora. “Can break tackles when he gets in the open field. Can make you miss or run away from people. He’s just really, in my opinion, one of the special backs, and he’ll play on Sundays and he’ll make a big impact.”
Freeman ranks ninth in the nation in rushing yards this year and has led an Oregon rushing attack that is averaging 244.6 yards per game. The Ducks have scored 26 touchdowns on the ground, second-most in the nation.
It’s not an appetizing matchup for a UCLA defense that allowed 457 rushing yards to Arizona, the most the Bruins have surrendered in at least 17 years. UCLA is allowing 6.57 yards per carry this year, the worst mark in the country, and opponents are averaging 313 yards on the ground per game.
“It’s always been one thing (wrong) on every play,” said defensive coordinator Tom Bradley. “It’s been like one guy out of a gap here, a missed tackle here.”
As a result, the UCLA defense has hemorrhaged big plays, allowing 19 runs of 20 or more yards this season. Only Tulsa has allowed more among Football Bowl Subdivision teams.
“Those big plays have occurred way too often obviously to play any kind of consistent defense,” Bradley said.
Freeman is the type of bruising runner who could cause problems by shedding tackles. Entering Saturday’s game against Stanford, he had broken 24 tackles on the season, per Pro Football Focus.
UCLA will likely benefit from the return of freshman defensive end Jaelan Phillips, the nation’s No. 3 recruit last spring, from an ankle injury that kept him out of the team’s recent three games.
Phillips racked up 13 total tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss, over the season’s first three weeks.
“He does give us a chance to do some different things than we’ve done before because of his skill level,” Bradley said. “(But) we’re being very cautious with how much he’s practicing because he’s been out for a month or so. … You have to be careful.”
Missed chances
The UCLA offense is averaging 39.5 points per game this season, but offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch is far from satisfied.
“We leave too many plays out there and we turn the ball over too much,” Fisch said. “If we can avoid those things, then we’d have a chance to have a special run – one of those runs you don’t get very often.”
The Bruins rank second in the nation in passing yards per game, but junior quarterback Josh Rosen has thrown eight interceptions in his past four games, including at least one in each contest.