UCLA Football: 3 takeaways after blowout victory over Stanford

3. The UCLA defense shut down Jack West in his first Stanford start

With K.J. Costello still nursing a thumb injury, and backup Davis Mills sidelined by a calf injury suffered in the win over Washington, Stanford was forced to turn to sophomore third-stringer Jack West. Getting his first career start against UCLA, he had an inauspicious beginning in his first significant playing time for the Cardinal.

The Bruins were unrelenting, holding West to 143 yards on 15-of-32 passing. While UCLA failed to pick off any of his passes, West was sacked seven times by UCLA, unable to find sufficient time to find his receivers downfield. When he was able to complete a pass, he threw several behind the line of scrimmage for losses. If not for a 30-yard gain to Connor Wedington on the opening drive of the game, his final yardage would have been even more meager.

It was an impressive showing by a UCLA defense that also held Stanford to just 55 rushing yards and a touchdown on 13 combined carries for the team. The Cardinal managed only 198 total yards of offense as things came together for the Bruins.

David Shaw and his staff will hope that either Mills or Costello return to health and get back on the field sooner or later. As UCLA exposed on Thursday night, Stanford is not in a good spot if they are forced to depend on West and continue to make mistakes through the final month of the season.