UCLA Football: 3 takeaways from blowout loss to Utah in Week 10

UCLA football traveled to Salt Lake City in Week 10 and came away with a blowout loss. Here’s what we learned.

Things went from bad (an unhealthy Josh Rosen) to worse (a blowout loss to Utah) for UCLA football on Friday night. There was no ‘Pac-12 After Dark’ craziness this time, unless you consider a 31-point win in favor of the Utes to fit that category.

However, Jim Mora’s Bruins weren’t much of a testifier Utah. They didn’t put up much of a fight, losing 48-17 in Salt Lake City. The defeat dropped the Bruins to 4-5 on the year and that makes postseason action look doubtful for UCLA for the second straight season.

Things were not pretty for the Bruins on Friday night but all is not lost for the future of this program. There’s hope despite the blowout, believe it or not.

What did we learn from UCLA’s Week 10 loss to Utah?

3. Defense has a lot of work to do

We already knew this, but UCLA’s defense took another step in the wrong direction after allowing 506 total yards to the Utes who aren’t exactly known for having a powerhouse offense. They were able to move the ball with ease against the Bruin defense and Tyler Huntley looked like a future Heisman candidate.

In fact, the secondary was tested early by Huntley who completed 15-of-22 passes for 234 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for 93 yards, totaling over 320 yards of offense.

The defensive front did record two sacks, but that’s not going to win you many games in the high-powered Pac-12. That was about all the good the defensive line and linebackers did on Friday, though. The front-seven allowed 272 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 5.4 yards per carry.

It was just an overall ugly performance by the Bruins’ defense and things need to be cleaned up in a hurry — it might be too late for that this year, though.