RAW(K) STARS AND RAH(K) STARS

UCLA ROCKS — Young talent shows promise in the Bruin Spring Football Game, while proven stars rock the sidelines

Chip Kelly 2.0 Westwood is in full swing, as the UCLA Football team took the field at Drake Stadium today for the annual Spring Scrimmage. Some young stars flashed some brilliance, the Defense looked solid, the QB’s looked nimble and elusive, and the Offensive pace was faster, more like what was expected of a Chip Kelly Offense last season. But…

Was there hot lava in the end zones? Because in one hour of play, neither side ever stepped foot past the goal line. There were no Touchdowns at all, in a game that ended with a score of 3-0.

There was some good, efficient Offense, as Dorian Thompson-Robinson completed 12 of 16 passes for 110 yards. UCLA relied on quick short passes to counter the Defensive Line’s advantage in the trenches, and DTR was effective doing it. Backup QB Austin Burton also hit most of his targets, plus, Burton also connected on one deep route, to Jaylen Erwin.

Stud Running Back Joshua Kelley didn’t play much, as Martell Irby, Kazmeir Allen, Keegan Jones and Cole Kinder filled in that void. On Defense, Linebackers Tyree Thompson and Je’Vari Anderson got their names announced on multiple occasions. I believe Anderson snatched an Interception in the end zone, towards the end of the game.

So the lack of scoring is disturbing, but it’s not uncommon for the Defense to be ahead of the Offense this early in the cycle. The pace was faster, so possibly opposing defenses won’t be able to adjust as quickly as the Bruin D did, since the Bruins are so familiar with this Offense.

The bottom line is, as I say every Spring, you can’t draw too many conclusions from a Spring scrimmage. Let it all play out, trust the Football acumen of Chip Kelly, and see what he can engineer for the Fall.

Now here are 48 more game and Cheer photos from the event…