Throughout the week at practice, UCLA coach Karl Dorrell
stressed how the Bruin defense would have to stop Rice’s
option running attack, the top rushing team in the NCAA last season
and an offensive strategy the Bruins hadn’t seen in
years.
It turned out that Dorrell didn’t have to worry about the
Owls’ offensive production as the Bruins’ explosive
playmaking made the defensive struggle a moot point.
UCLA scored early and often in a 63-21 drubbing of Rice,
compiling 299 total yards and 21 points in the first quarter in
front of 44,808 fans at the Rose Bowl.
“This was a game we were supposed to win decisively, and
it’s nice to see the team come through,” Dorrell said.
“We had great command from start to finish.”
UCLA’s big play capabilities marked the first time in
Dorrell’s tenure his team had scored 40 points or more in
consecutive games.
Running back Chris Markey rushed the second play from scrimmage
for 51 yards, and quarterback Drew Olson followed up the
Bruins’ next play with a 39-yard touchdown pass to Junior
Taylor.
“We were given the opportunities to throw the ball in the
first half and we took advantage of them,” Dorrell said.
“I knew that they were going to try pack in the defense
against us, so we were prepared.”
Running back Maurice Drew also added to the onslaught, returning
a punt for 66 yards, the second consecutive week in which the
junior returned a punt for a touchdown. His 66-yard return was the
Bruins’ eighth play over 40 yards this season after only
having 25 all of last season.
With the victory, the Bruins start the season 2-0 for the first
time since 2002.
“We had a great performance on offense throughout,”
Dorrell said. “I am happy with the direction that the team is
heading.”
Still, the underlying story of Saturday’s game was Drew
Olson, who put to bed any doubts about his ability to find his
receivers for big gains down the field. Olson had 263 passing yards
and three touchdowns in the first half alone.
Olson completed 12 passes to his wide receivers, including five
to Junior Taylor. By comparison, he only made two completions to
his receivers against San Diego State last week while utilizing the
mismatches posed by tight end Marcedes Lewis.
“He played really well,” Dorrell said. “This
is the second consecutive week in a row that he has made good
decisions and I was happy with his effort.”
Olson led the Bruins to touchdowns on the Bruins’ first
six possessions and was 7 for 7 on third down completions before
finally forcing the Bruins to kick with little over nine minutes
left in the second quarter.
“We practically scored every time, that’s pretty
awesome,” Olson said. “We were kind of let down that we
didn’t score that last time before we got pulled.”
Olson’s primary target on Saturday was Taylor, who
finished with 93 receiving yards and two touchdowns after having no
receptions just last week.
“I knew it would be different this week,” Taylor
said. “We knew we were going to have a lot of opportunities
to make plays, because they were going to focus on Marcedes
(Lewis).”
With the Bruins’ prowess on offense, the defense was
relegated to playing second fiddle. But the defensive unit was not
to be outdone.
The Bruins held Rice to 255 total yards and only 226 yards on
the ground after the Owls had come in as one of the nation’s
most prolific running offenses last season.
Their time to shine came in the fourth quarter, when defensive
tackle Nathaniel Skaggs forced Owls’ quarterback Chase
Clement to fumble, which redshirt sophomore Christian Taylor
returned the fumble for a touchdown, the Bruins’ first
defensive touchdown this season.
“We made some big plays and got a key play from our second
string defense,” Dorrell said. “Considering their
option component, it was a pretty good challenge for our
team.”
If there was a negative aspect of Saturday’s game, it was
the Bruins’ 10 penalties for a total of 95 yards.
The penalties negated many large plays at important parts of the
game and will be a focus going into next week’s game
plan.
“I was not happy with our penalties tonight,”
Dorrell said. “But at the same time, it is something that we
can learn from and improve on in the future.”
UCLA now move on to face nationally ranked and perennial
powerhouse Oklahoma, which should provide a quality opponent after
two relatively easy victories have opened the season.
If Saturday night’s game was any indication, the Bruins
may be well up for the challenge.