UCLA’s struggles with penalties and run defense have been well documented over the past year. Flying under the radar has been the team’s inability to hold on to the football. At the end of last season, UCLA finished dead last in the Pac-12 in just two statistical categories. One of them was penalties. The other? […]
Tag Archives: football 2016
UCLA football plays out individual matchups in San Bernardino
SAN BERNARDINO — It was a matchup that had the entire UCLA football team watching. Coach Jim Mora called for it. He wanted his most highly touted freshman wide receiver – Theo Howard – to face off against the team’s most experienced cornerback, redshirt senior Fabian Moreau. “I thought that would be a good matchup […]
Coaches turn up heat on players, underscore importance of composure
It’s getting to that point in training camp where the coaches are starting to test the will of their players. On Wednesday morning, in a padless practice, multiple UCLA coaches shouted louder than they have thus far in camp. During positional drills, offensive coordinator and running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu pulled the tailbacks aside and […]
Five-star football recruit Mique Juarez misses fourth consecutive practice
Where is Mique Juarez? The biggest question – and the most compelling storyline – surrounding UCLA football right now has very little to do with football. Juarez didn’t show up for the Bruins’ opening practice in San Bernardino Monday morning, marking his fourth straight missed session and only intensifying speculation that the highly touted freshman […]
Armed with seasoned secondary, Bruins to work on closing out in 2016
A reporter asked defensive backs coach Demetrice Martin if this year’s secondary is the most experienced one he’s coached during his four-plus years at UCLA. Martin didn’t even hesitate when he heard the question. “By far,” he said. “These guys have been playing together, they know each other’s shortcomings, they know each other’s strengths.” UCLA’s […]
First fully padded practice helps develop UCLA offensive line
Physicality escalated Friday at UCLA football’s fall camp as the Bruins wore full pads for the first time this week. After two days of players wearing shoulder pads, UCLA graduated to a fully padded session on the fifth day of camp, a development that was particularly beneficial for the Bruins’ offensive line. Line coach Adrian […]
UCLA football brings in mental conditioning coach, referees at fall camp
Thursday marked the first time in fall camp that referees were on hand to make sure that everything was done in a fair and orderly manner. Fittingly, Thursday also marked the first time in fall that a player was thrown out of practice. The player was freshman middle linebacker Lokeni Toailoa. He got into a […]