Dorian Thompson-Robinson set up in the shotgun with less than a minute left in the first half and a 14-point lead in his back pocket.
The sophomore quarterback took a four-step drop, surveyed the field and threaded the ball past Sun Devil defensive back Willie Harts for a touchdown.
On the other end of that pass was redshirt freshman receiver Kyle Philips, who ran a post route out of the slot and created enough space for his fifth score of the year.
“I just think (Philips is) very versatile,” Thompson-Robinson said. “Him being in the slot and stuff, you put him on a bunch of mismatches … on the inside with linebackers and stuff like that. … He’s getting in the best position to win, and he’s winning.”
Philips’ three receptions in UCLA football’s (3-5, 3-2 Pac-12) 42-32 victory over Arizona State on Saturday were tied for his fewest in a conference game this season, but he hauled in his fourth touchdown in five Pac-12 games. Coach Chip Kelly said he has noticed Thompson-Robinson make a deeper connection with Philips recently, something he said has helped their timing tremendously, especially on their first-half touchdown Saturday.
“(Thompson-Robinson) threw the ball before (Philips) made the move,” Kelly said. “You can draw lines on a paper and say, ‘Hey, this works versus this coverage and this works versus that coverage,’ but you have to go out and actually execute it, and the credit goes to the players – the players are the ones who execute it.”
Philips appeared in the first four games of UCLA’s 2018 season, but retained his redshirt after staying out of game action for the rest of the year. He picked up six catches for 31 yards in his true freshman season and returned to record eight grabs for 108 yards in his first four games of 2019.
Since the start of conference play, Philips is averaging 65.2 receiving yards per game off 5.8 catches per game. Kelly said the wideout has taken strides this year in multiple roles – something he said he values greatly.
“Kyle Philips is a kid that’s really kind of emerged as a really good option, route runner, and he’s done a really good job,” Kelly said. “It’s just kind of plugging and playing and finding out what your guys do well and try to play to their strengths.”
Thompson-Robinson – who has completed passes to Philips and 11 other Bruins this season – said his mental connection with all of his targets has improved over the past few weeks.
“They all have a feel for me and how I like to play and I also have a feel for them too and their style of play,” Thompson-Robinson said. “We’re gelling right now and everything’s clicking so far, so hopefully we can keep that going.”
The sophomore quarterback is averaging 50.2 rushing yards per game during conference play, but he said his receivers are the ones who do most of the playmaking for him.
“I have a hell of a receiver group,” Thompson-Robinson said. “I just present them with opportunities and then they go make plays for me.”
