UCLA Football: 5 reasons to be optimistic about 2019 season

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BERKELEY, CA – OCTOBER 13: Dorian Thompson-Robinson #7 of the UCLA Bruins celebrates after the Bruins scored a touchdown against the California Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium on October 13, 2018 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

4. Dorian Thompson-Robinson

“In Dorian We Trust” will be the motto that everyone involved with the UCLA Bruins’ program will be saying. All the fans, the coaches, and the players will be depending heavily on Dorian Thompson-Robinson, at least at the start of the season.

In 2018, he started seven games for the Bruins, highlighting his athletic ability and legitimacy as a dual-threat quarterback at the college level. This type of quarterback is exactly the kind of athlete that needs to handle the ball every play in a Chip Kelly offense.

Last season, former Michigan quarterback, Wilton Speight was under center often and, frankly, it was just awkward. Given an offseason to grow and develop, DTR will have had ample opportunity to prepare for the 2019 season.

Ideally, there will be a healthy balance of pressure, and confidence that will reside within Thompson-Robinson as spring ball begins. The pressure comes from the fact that because there isn’t much depth at quarterback for the Bruins, the teams’ success of failure will be resting upon his shoulders.

Conversely, since there is no one significant behind him on the depth chart, he should feel confident that this is his team and he will not be benched anytime soon.

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