The Coach and The Don will be recording Bleav In LA Football on Monday night with full analysis of the game, but first, an instant reaction of the Bruins surprising win over the Arizona State Sun Devils.
The Don
In back-to-back victories, this UCLA offense appears to finally be clicking on all cylinders, and this is thanks to a punishing run game behind Joshua Kelley. Before the season started, The Coach and I talked about how we liked Kelley as a potential PAC-12 player of the year. Well he is absolutely looking the part now.
In a 42-32 win over ASU on Saturday at The Rose Bowl, Kelley finished the game with 164 yards and FOUR touchdowns on 34 carries. Now talk about a bell-cow back! This is what we have wanted the offense to look like all along. Establish a dominant run-game, which then takes the pressure off the sophomore QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson, allowing him to let the plays come to him, instead of trying to force things. We have seen this on full display for the past two games.
I am actually really excited about the growth and future of this team and program. Yes, it’s only two wins, giving them three on the year. But it was two dominant wins in games that they were expected to lose. Chip Kelly has received plenty of criticism, and rightfully so, but it looks like he has settled down, simplified the playbook, and is letting his playmakers do the work for him.
While the final score was 42-32, the defense has looked much improved as well, only allowing 10 points through 3 quarters. ASU star running back, Eno Benjamin, was held in check, finishing with 13 rushes for 46 yards.
Great team win, and I am loving the direction of this team. Can they claw their way into a bowl game? They face a 3-5 Colorado team next week.
The Rose Bowl, Home Of The UCLA Bruins. Photo Credit: jcwpdx | Under Creative Commons License