UCLA Football: 3 takeaways from blowout win over Hawaii in Week 0

The final result was never in question on Saturday afternoon as UCLA football hosted Hawaii at the Rose Bowl to open the 2021 season.

The Bruins struck first, scoring 3-0 almost in the blink of an eye before adding a couple of touchdowns, taking a 17-0 lead before Hawaii finally got on the board with a field goal. That’s as close as it would get from that point on, though, as the Bruins just piled on throughout the rest of the game as Chip Kelly starts the season 1-0 for the first time at UCLA.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson had a slow start to the game but came out firing in the second half, completing his first four passes which included a 44-yard touchdown pass to Kazmeir Allen.

Hawaii just didn’t stand a chance on Saturday as UCLA’s defense got after Chevan Cordeiro early and often.

What did we learn from this blowout win?

3. Dorian Thompson-Robinson still has some polishing to do

Hopes were high for Dorian Thompson-Robinson as the season approached and many expected a breakout performance again Hawaii in Week 0, but it was anything but.

The junior quarterback finished with 131 passing yards and a touchdown on 10-of-20 completions and he had a QBR of just over 40. He didn’t look like a polished passer which is what I was hoping to see to start the year against the Rainbow Warriors and while his receivers did drop some passes, he was just missing the mark quite a bit.

Thompson-Robinson added 16 yards on the ground and finished the day with 147 total yards but it ultimately didn’t matter because UCLA was up big throughout.

It’s pretty clear that DTR still has some work to do if he wants to take that next step as one of the top quarterbacks in the Pac-12.