UCLA v. Cal Report Card

Did you watch the game closely? Westgate looked average at best... I say it is time to put Love in. Talent and Athleticism should be utilized... I think we start playing for next year.

Looks accurate to me. U-G-L-Y

Curious comment on the O-line...wasn't that the same scheme and talent that played against Texas?

I think that's a big part of the frustration the past several years...we see glimpses of what might be and then disheartening losses against average teams where it doesn't even look like the same team.

So which is it...a good team (TX,Hou) that really underperforms at times (Stan, Cal) or a not very good team that played way over their heads a couple of times?

@ Mike, Not a very good team playing over their heads against teams that were more hype then actual talent. Texas was ranked based on being Texas, not performance(They've struggled all year). Houston is a non-bcs that stomped a couple very bad teams(which allowed them to sneak into the rankings) before playing UCLA.

I bet they stick with Prince even though I don't think they should

Quarterback; I think you have to look beyond the QB here. We don't have a passing game that exploits the middle of the field. Why, I have absolutely no idea. Harkey and Furia have to be targets down the seam and backs circling from the backfield would allow a more manageble sideline game. You can't continue to throw the same patterns every down and not expect offensive failure. We don't stretch the field which makes the QB's job almost impossible. Trying to manage the game in a shell makes it very difficult for any Quarterback to operate. Definately not all of Prince's fault, however he needs to elevate his game.

RB; can't continue to fumble the ball. Must utilize them in the passing game, they can't be one dimensional and expect weekly success.

Receivers; Very talented but you have to question their courage. Too many dropped balls when they know they are going to get smacked. Not many of our receivers have the courage to go across the middle and sell out. For the talent here this is a very disappointing group.

TE; Do we have a TE? If we aren't going to use the TE to run the seem why don't we just add another tackle to improve the run blocking? I have never seen a team that under utilizes its TE better then UCLA. It is ridiculous.

OL; They had a very bad day. They were over powered and over quicked. They got slapped in the face and were unable to get the job done. Maybe it would have been a good time to see what the other lineman could have done. Only position on the field that doesn't fear being removed from the game for poor play. Maybe a little fear of loosing their job may provide a bigt of motivation. They aren't good enough nor is there enough difference between the ones and the twos to allow them to remain in the game when they perform poorly.

Defense;

The defense has "NO" anchor in the middle. Without an anchor in the middle the defense can't consistently function at a high level. It appears that no one needs to be double teamed on a snap after snap basis which allows the o-line to get on the backers and then into the secondary. That makes it difficult for everyone behind the line. Look who made a high percentage of the tackles on Saturday, it was the DB's. When Db's are making a high number of tackles the pass defense suffers. We need to shore up the middle and that will make everyone else better.

The pistol does not use the TE, and Prince does not seem to be able to throw a long pass.

@anonymous 9:23 am

You're asking us to throw it to the tight ends MORE? Have you watched any of the games of this year? Harkey can't catch five yard passes and you want to get the ball to him more and down the seam?

Also, I'm not sure why anyone thinks Brehaut will do any better than Prince. His game against Washington State would have been a disaster against a decent team. He holds the ball WAY too long and had our receivers not been wide open all day long he would have loked terrible.

@Anon 1030am,

Well stated thoughts on the big picture beyond KP.

I got home from a weekend in The South Bay and watched the DVR recording of the game last night even though I had already seen the score. My humble thoughts:

1. The defense never looked like it got off the bus in the first half. The D-line was mauled off the ball and plenty of missed tackles by the LBs and DBs. 28-0 at halftime and giving up over 300 yards of rushing will get you a loss virtually every time out. They better use the bye to get this run D shored up quickly or else we will be pulverized in Eugene in front of a national ESPN audience a week from Thursday.

2. The Filthy Five got worked...KP got hammered virtually every play he dropped back and the running backs had no where to go. Offensive success is virtually always going to be predicated on having an outstanding, well-performing offensive line...it begins and ends in the trenches.

3. Franklin - I love this guy and how he goes about his business...he is a playmaker in open space and from all accounts, a great guy to his teammates, coaches, and all around him...BUT this was the 3rd lost fumble in 3 weeks. This puts the coaches in a dilemma...he is the legit home-run threat compared to Coleman and Jones but you just can't keep coughing up the ball.

4. The passing game and scheme is beyond dreadful. Yep, KP has been inaccurate...but the O-line pass protection has been an issue all year as rare is the time where KP (or RB for that matter) have been able to stand in the pocket and progress to a 3rd read. It has been 3 or 5 step drops or roll-outs to hit simple hitches and hooks. Our receivers rarely have great separation from coverage and let's not get started on the dropped ball syndrome. All in all, the passing attack has been brutal and it need only be competent this year to keep teams from jamming up the box against what is turning out to be a decent running tandem out of the pistol...but rest assured the passing woes go well beyond Kevin Prince.

5. Coaching - I figured we would get Cal's A game in Strawberry Canyon after they had a bye week following 2 losses...but I also expected UCLA to be much more competitive than this. I had UCLA pegged to be about 6-6 or 7-5 this year based on the schedule and injuries with 2011 looking like the breakout year based on a more favorable schedule and players progressing & maturing...but I do expect the Bruins to compete every time out. 35-0 and 35-7 in the same season is inexcusable. To state the obvious, I'm very concerned about going into Oregon a week from Thursday.