UCLA vs BYU Recap: 3 Things We Learned

In Provo, Utah, the UCLA Bruins held on to beat the BYU Cougars 17-14 in a battle between defenses.

The UCLA Bruins and the BYU Cougars both entered Week 3 without any outside chances of a CFB Playoff bid on the line. Both teams feature quarterbacks who, despite their raw talents, have more interceptions than touchdown passes over their first two games. To add to their similarities, both the Bruins and the Cougars have strong, physical running backs and solid, savvy defenses.

Meeting in LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah, UCLA and BYU traded blows defensively early on, as neither offense could find much success. The first quarter was a special teams affair, a display of punting that pitted UCLA’s Austin Kent against BYU’s Jonny Linehan. Even after quarterback Josh Rosen was intercepted on UCLA’s own 33-yard line by BYU’s Fred Warner in the opening quarter, the Cougar offense failed to score points.

UCLA’s offense missed star running back Soso Jamabo, who did not play. Even though the Bruin running game looked unsteady, UCLA finally broke through in the second quarter when Rosen found Cameron Griffin for the first touchdown of the game, and two drives later, kicker JJ Molson hit a 24-yard field goal to extend the lead.

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UCLA has struggled in the third quarter so far this season, and with the return of BYU safety and captain Kai Nacua in the second half (Nacua was suspended for the first half due to a targeting penalty last week), the Cougars hoped to spring upon the Bruins quickly. BYU’s hopes were dashed when Rosen hit Darren Andrews on a crossing pattern that went 33 yards for a touchdown.

BYU responded, scoring their first points of the game on a Jamaal Williams 1-yard touchdown run. And that wouldn’t be it for the Cougars. Rosen, who threw for just over 300 yards, and the Bruins nearly controlled the rest of the game. In the fourth quarter, however, BYU scored a late touchdown to cut the lead to 3. A failed onside attempt brought a close to this defensive struggle.

Here are 3 things we learned:

BYU QB Taysom Hill continues to struggle with accuracy

Taysom Hill completed only 6 of his first 16 passes and finished the day averaging a 5.2 yards per completion. Despite his considerable arm strength, Hill missed open receivers. His arms strength may even have been part of his undoing when he threw a bullet in the first half that bounced off his receiver and into the arms of UCLA’s Adarius Pickett. His passing woes had some BYU faithful calling for backup Tanner Mangum. In fairness, he was frustrated by UCLA’s pass rush all night long. Still, if the Cougars are going to succeed in the coming weeks, they’ll need Hill to put more footballs in places where his receivers can make plays.

UCLA’s defensive linemen are powerful and their linebackers are fast

Throughout the game, UCLA’s defensive linemen were in BYU’s backfield, hassling Hill and standout running back Jamaal Williams. The defense held Williams to 12 rushing yards on his first 8 carries while Hill, who relies on his legs to help move the Cougar offense, was dropped for -23 yards in the first half. By the end of the game Williams had just 28 yards and Hill had -7. Playing through injury, defensive lineman Takkarist McKinley demolished BYU’s offensive line. Behind him, linebacker Jayon Brown flew from sideline to sideline, bottling up both Hill and Williams. Brown was arguably the player of the game in this one, but the gritty McKinley wasn’t far behind.

UCLA needs RB Soso Jamabo in the backfield

Without running back Soso Jamabo, UCLA had trouble moving the ball on the ground. The Bruins used four different backs. Together, they combined for 50 yards rushing over the entire game. Lacking the run, UCLA had to commit to the pass and were fortunate to find space in the Cougar secondary. Credit BYU linebacker Butch Pau’u, who added to his collection of highlight reel big hits, not to mention the strength of the Cougar D-Line. Even so, Jamabo’s absence was felt, and none of the other Bruin backs filled the void.

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Highlights

It was a sad home opener for the Cougars and a welcomed road victory for the Bruins. Next week, UCLA returns to the Rose Bowl to face Stanford while BYU will play another game at home against West Virginia.