Football season is FINALLY upon us, as next Thursday the Bearcats open up the season with the UCLA Bruins, only this time it will be under the familiar Nippert Stadium lights. Let’s take a quick look at what UC will be facing when they hit the field.
Last season UCLA was a team in transition, with new coach Chip Kelly making his return to the Pac-12. Last season UCLA did not get off to the great start people might have been expecting eventually finishing with a 3-9 record. What makes this year’s team a little more dangerous is the experience, UCLA returns 19 total starters from last year’s team and most importantly they have a true answer to the quarterback position.
When UC traveled west to open up at the Rose Bowl last season they had spent all of camp preparing for Wilton Speight, a grad transfer who was using his final year of eligibility at UCLA. Speight, because of injury, would be unseated as the starter by then Freshman Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Robinson and Speight would trade off the starting job throughout the year with neither player staying healthy enough, or playing well enough to cement themselves as QB1. This season however Speight is gone, Robinson has an extra camp under his belt and has positioned himself as the clear cut guy when they take the field at Nippert week 1.
So what can UC expect to see?
Robinson is a true dual threat QB, despite not getting to show those skills off very much in his freshman season. Robinson was a 4-star prospect out of Las Vegas who will now look to show off that running and passing ability with a full offseason of healthy workouts. The UC defense will have to remain disciplined from start to finish and not get caught looking in the backfield or Robinson and Chip Kelly’s offense could find wide open running lanes.
Robinson will look to backfield teammate, running back Joshua Kelley to help get the Bruins going on offense. Kelley is a senior now who last year rushed for over 1,200 yards and found the end zone 12 times. When going to the air attack look for senior WR Theo Howard to step up, Howard was the leader of the wide receiver group last year finishing with over 600 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Robinson and UCLA will hope to get that offense in gear this year after only averaging 24 points a game a season ago. The main concern for Bruins fans is that the defense was giving up an average of 34 points a game last year. The defense lost leading tackler Adarius Pickett, who now plays safety for the Chargers on Sundays. Looking to fill that lost production will be senior linebacker Krys Barnes.
UCLA looks to be much improved with Chip Kelly getting another full year to implement his style and system so this matchup should be one that comes down to the wire but I believe UC pulls out this victory.
The good news is that this game can serve as a real test for Fickell and the UC defense before they travel up to Columbus in Week 2 to face the number 1 ranked dual threat QB in the nation, Justin Fields.
