With the season in full swing, it’s easier to get a sense of what LSU’s opponents will look like when they compete. USC and Nicholls have been a mystery, while South Carolina has been difficult to gauge. At this point, however, most other teams are starting to show who they are. Each week, I’ll look at LSU’s next opponent and analyze a game they played over the past two weeks. The important questions are simple: How did this happen, and what does it mean for Saturday’s game?
If there’s one team where that feels appropriate, it’s UCLA. UCLA is coming off a 42-13 home loss to Indiana. That should never happen. It was Indiana’s biggest road win in the Big 10 since beating Wisconsin 63-32 in 2001. The Bruins weren’t expected to do well this year, with Chip Kelly’s last-minute departure and a lack of talent on the roster. Still, Indiana made them look much worse than anyone imagined.
Indiana was able to sweep the Bruins out of their stadium in four key areas and LSU must exploit each of those areas.
Unforced errors/bad luck:
This game could have been a little closer, but the two-play misfortune hurt tremendously. Indiana marched down the field with the ball to open the game. The first thing UCLA wanted to do was anything but what they actually did. I can’t find the clip of the play on my own, so I’ll describe it to you. Ethan Garbers lined up in shotgun position, with TJ Harden to his right. It’s an RPO intended for Harden, but Garbers saw a quick throw to the left and tried to do that. It hit Harden’s hand, the ball came loose, and Indiana recovered it at the 17. Three plays later, the Hoosiers scored a touchdown. The next drive ended with a 41-yard field goal miss by Mateen Bhaghani.
Those two drives broke UCLA’s neck. LSU may not have as much luck, but if the defense keeps them in check and the offense can score, UCLA will fall into some traps. One way LSU can exploit that is in the secondary.
Critically bad DB game:
UCLA’s defense is generally worse than last year. They lost their DC to USC and their top three sackers to the NFL. I’ll get to the linemen, but it’s important to note some plays by the DBs. Kanye Clark is a redshirt freshman, so he should be given some leeway, but his decisions were wrong in this game. Perhaps the most notable mistake by a DB was when he overran a short route from Elijah Sarratt. Sarratt took Clark down at the end of the play, setting him up for a 16-yard gain. Missing coverages and poor plays hurt UCLA all game long.
Overall, Indiana has used a good mix of movement and RPO to force already bad DBs into even worse positions. LSU is already taking advantage of that. Hopefully there will be more of that to come. However, LSU will have to impose its will in the trenches, and that will be a breeze compared to what they experienced at South Carolina.
Linemen are bullied:
That was the main takeaway from this game: UCLA was pressured in the trenches. The defensive line was neutralized. They never managed a sack, thanks in part to Kurtis Rourke making throws and avoiding pressure. Indiana ran 4.2 yards per carry, 123 yards on 29 carries thanks to the loss to UCLA. There were several runs where Indiana’s backs weren’t touched until at least three yards past the line of scrimmage, and the final touchdown was a 14-yard walk-in touchdown run.
On offense, UCLA’s line looked terrible. Garbers was under constant pressure and while he handled it well with his pocket mobility, he was sacked a few times, including ones taken back for a penalty, and was hit on about half of his throws. The run game didn’t progress due to poor blocks. Eric Bieniemy is UCLA’s OC and he’s again in a position where you can’t tell if he’s good at his job because of the talent they’ve given him. LSU has to enjoy that. They can create pressure, we saw that on Saturday morning, but they’ve had their troubles creating good pockets for Nussmeier. Even when UCLA gets their chances, they haven’t shown they can capitalize on them.
Playful advantages:
It was difficult to start this whole thing off with an “A,” but it works well enough. Indiana was penalized 14 times for 127 yards. Two of those were for overtargeting in the second half. The defensive penalties kept the offense alive, and miraculously, UCLA got 6 points from those two offenses. When it came to scoring opportunities, UCLA was weighed down by the three weaknesses mentioned above and crumbled under the pressure. LSU needs to play a clean game so they don’t give UCLA anything to exploit and make it a game.
UCLA is a bad football team and their 29-0 loss to Indiana showed that clearly. LSU should hope to put this game behind them before Game 4.th quarter begins.
