This post was updated Oct. 8 at 10:25 p.m.
No. 18 UCLA football (4-1, 1-1 Pac-12) bounced back from a road loss against then-No. 11 Utah in Week 4 and defeated No. 19 Washington State (4-1, 1-1) on Saturday 25-17 to move to .500 in conference play. Sports editor Joseph Crosby gives his five main takeaways from the Bruins’ first home Pac-12 win.
Pass prevention
UCLA’s defense was the story of the game.
The No. 2 passing offense in the country waltzed into Pasadena to face a secondary that had historically struggled in preventing big gains through the air.
This was the biggest test for the Bruins’ defensive backs thus far.
And they passed it with flying colors.
UCLA held Washington State quarterback Cameron Ward to just 197 yards and one touchdown, conceding his first two interceptions of the year along the way.
Redshirt senior defensive back Alex Johnson – who recorded his third interception of the year Saturday – has turned into an increasingly reliable and important member of the Bruins’ secondary.
After making his first two starts in 2022, the former walk-on has started in three of the Bruins’ five games this season and has been the team’s go-to nickelback.
Now, Johnson’s versatility in guarding the slot has been a major factor in UCLA’s success against the pass, culminating in him being the first person to intercept Ward in 2023.
Junior linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo picked off Ward for a second time, immediately setting the offense up for senior wide receiver Keegan Jones’ second touchdown.
The Bruins’ pass defense is getting contributions from all levels – including linebackers in coverage – and has quickly started to shine under defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn.
Clutch defense
The secondary wasn’t the only defensive unit that thrived Saturday.
The Bruins’ front worked in concert with its pass-preventing counterpart to force two turnovers of its own, both of which stopped what could have potentially been big drives.
On back-to-back series in the first half, UCLA forced and recovered a pair of Washington State fumbles. The turnovers cut short drives of 63 and 34 yards – the second- and third-longest series of the day, respectively, for the Cougars.
But clutch defensive plays didn’t stop in the second half.
After UCLA went up 25-17, Washington State had the ball with over four minutes left on the clock. The Cougars were set back to a second-and-19 from their own 42-yard line following a sack, but regained 18 yards across the next two plays.
A first down would keep their chances to score alive, but a failure to convert on a fourth-and-1 would all but assure a UCLA win.
Linebackers senior Kain Medrano and redshirt senior Darius Muasau stuffed Ward at the line of scrimmage on a QB keeper, turning the ball over to UCLA’s offense before a 13-yard run by junior running back Carson Steele locked up the game.
Muasau – who had the nine-yard sack earlier in that possession – assisted in a collective defensive effort that forced three fumbles, three sacks, six tackles for loss and six quarterback hurries.
The team held Washington State to just 12 rushing yards and 216 total yards, a continuation of the Bruins’ performance in Salt Lake City when they held the Utes to just 219 total yards.
UCLA’s defense has excelled through five games – and is showing no signs of slowing down.
Offensive woes
Even with the defensive successes, Saturday’s game wasn’t all positives.
Eleven of UCLA’s 16 drives ended without scoring, including a pair of first-half interceptions – one of which was returned for a touchdown.
It wasn’t until midway through the third quarter when UCLA consistently put points on the board, tallying a field goal and two touchdowns in the span of four drives, with the second series of that sequence ending in a blocked field goal.
The four-series stretch – which included a Cougar touchdown – swung the game from a 10-9 deficit to UCLA’s 25-17 victory.
That being said, it still took the Bruins a while to find that offensive consistency, and they needed to try something completely new on the season to score those touchdowns on back-to-back drives.
Jones’ touchdown runs both came on the same play, where he lined up in the right slot before motioning into the backfield and running to the left side.
Those two carries were Jones’ second and third of the 2023 season, with his first coming earlier in Saturday’s contest. It was a play UCLA had yet to run – at least with Jones – this season, but it worked exceptionally well.
The Bruins’ defense kept the game close against a high-powered Cougar offense.
But UCLA’s offense needs to find ways to get on the board early so it doesn’t continue leaning on the much-improved defense.
Special teams miscues
A blocked field goal wasn’t the only special teams mishap UCLA experienced against Washington State.
On the Cougars’ second drive of the game, Muasau was charged with a delay of game penalty for disconcerting signals when lining up to defend a field goal.
On the subsequent UCLA possession, senior kicker R.J. Lopez missed a 47-yard field goal – his first failed attempt of the season.
Lopez’ kicking troubles continued, as he sent an extra point wide left following senior wide receiver Logan Loya’s touchdown reception.
The final kicking mistake of the evening came in the third quarter when Lopez had a field goal try blocked by defensive back Jaden Hicks.
Those three kick attempts represented a seven-point swing – more than enough to impact a close game down the line. And the problems didn’t stop on place kicks.
The Bruins allowed three kick returns for a total of 71 yards, including a game-long return of 30 yards. And on one of the game’s touchbacks, redshirt sophomore defensive back D.J. Justice was called for an offsides penalty, giving the Cougars another five yards for free.
In a vacuum, each of these instances could be dismissed as a one-time occurrence.
But when they all happen during the course of a single game, the mistakes add up. Much like a seven-point swing, it could mean the difference between a win and a loss.
Deep tight end room
In 2022, seven UCLA players finished with more receiving yards than a tight end.
After Greg Dulcich’s 2021 campaign, where he was the Bruins’ second leading receiver – trailing wide receiver Kyle Philips by just 14 yards – Michael Ezeike’s 226-yard season in 2022 was the best by a Bruin tight end.
But just five games into 2023, the outlook from the tight end position is beginning to take a different shape.
The duo of sophomore Carsen Ryan and redshirt sophomore Moliki Matavao now sits as the Bruins’ third- and fourth-leading receivers, respectively, with the pair adding 41 and 76 yards each Saturday.
Against Washington State, they were joined by senior Hudson Habermehl, with the trio ending the day with six catches for 160 yards – 55.2% of the team’s total receiving yards.
Habermehl recorded his first catch of the year against the Cougars, a 43-yard reception to put the Bruins near the red zone, but he was ultimately spoiled by the pick-six at the end of the first half.
UCLA’s receiving corps has been led by redshirt sophomore wide receiver J.Michael Sturdivant and Loya thus far.
But with a trio of tight ends who frequently make big plays alongside talented wideouts, UCLA’s offense could have a new dimension that it lacked in the 2022 season.
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