Fast Five: Keys For Buffs Vs. Bruins
September 29, 2017 | Football, Neill Woelk
PASADENA, Calif.— The UCLA Bruins are by no means a one-man team. It just seems that way at times.
The Bruins do have some quality defensive players, solid players on their offensive line, standout wide receivers and very capable running backs. The Colorado Buffaloes will see them all Saturday in an 8:30 p.m. game at the Rose Bowl (ESPN2).
But throughout the week, Buffs coaches and players heard questions about one player: Bruins quarterback Josh Rosen.
It's no surprise, of course. Rosen is regarded not only as one of the best quarterbacks in a conference laden with great players at the position, he's generally seen as one of the best in the nation. Bestowed with the nickname "The Chosen One" out of high school, he is seen as a player destined for the NFL's first round and a long career of playing on Sundays.
Rosen's numbers this year are outstanding. In four games, he has thrown for 1,763 yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 131 of his 200 attempts (65.5 percent). Broken down, that is 33-for-50 for 440.8 yards, four touchdowns and one interception per game.
One of the reasons for Rosen's big numbers is that the Bruins have been behind in most of their games, forcing UCLA to play catch-up. Sometimes he's been successful — he led UCLA back from a 44-10 deficit to a 45-44 win over Texas A&M — and sometimes not. UCLA has lost its last two, 48-45 at Memphis State and 58-24 at Stanford.
But the biggest reason for Rosen's numbers are that he is an ultra-talented player with the ability to put points on the board in a hurry. As CU head coach Mike MacIntyre said, "Every time I turn on the film, it seems like they're scoring another touchdown."
Thus, the Buffs spent their week watching plenty of film on Rosen and getting plenty of work in the secondary.
What do the 3-1 Buffs (0-1 Pac-12 play) need to do against the 2-2 Bruins (0-1) this week in order to come away with their first conference win of the year?
1. Run the ball successfully. Wait, you are saying, shouldn't this be about Rosen and the UCLA aerial attack?
It is — and the best defense against Rosen is to keep him off the field. The best quarterback in the world can't complete passes when he's on the sidelines, and the Buffs need to keep the UCLA offense there as much as possible. That means running the ball with consistency and authority, something CU has yet to do this season for an entire game.
To be perfectly frank, the Bruins offer the Buffs the opportunity to get their running game up and … well, running. UCLA has given up a near mind-boggling 307.5 yards per game on the ground this year, including 405 in last week's loss to Stanford, with Cardinal running back Bryce Love galloping for 263.
This year, the Bruins have held just one team — Memphis — to under 280 yards on the ground.
But that's no guarantee the Buffs will be running free in the Rose Bowl. While CU has managed to pop Phillip Lindsay loose for some nice gains and produce some nice drives this year, consistency hasn't been in the Colorado arsenal. If CU's offensive line can coalesce and pave the way for a consistent effort all night long, the Buffs can control the tempo and the clock — something they need to do to limit Rosen's effectiveness.
There's also one more plus to establishing the run game — it opens up the pass game. If the Buffs can run the ball consistently, the Bruins will have to take measures to slow the run game down — and that should give Buffs quarterback Steven Montez and his fleet wide receivers opportunity to get their game in rhythm.
2. Prevent the big play. OK, now we'll talk Rosen.
Already this year, the Bruins have 30 completions for at least 20 yards, with 11 of those going for at least 30. (In comparison, CU has 15 completions for at least 20 yards).
But Rosen doesn't have to have the long ball to be effective. He is quite content to take a 7-yard quick gain instead of a long incompletion — or interception — and has been outstanding in putting together long drives.
Still, the Buffs don't want to give up the long ball and provide the Bruins with a quick score. The more Rosen has to throw, the more chances of an incompletion or interception exist. Rosen threw two picks in each of his last two games, which leads us to ...
3. Turnovers. A year ago, the Buffs were solidly in the "plus" category of turnover ratio all year. This season, they're even. The CU defense has produced eight takeaways; the offense has turned it over eight times, including six interceptions by Montez.
Overall, Montez has been very accurate, completing more than 70 percent of his throws (90-for-128). But his three interceptions last week against Washington — one wasn't his fault — were drive killers. The Buffs can't afford to give away any possessions against the Bruins.
Defensively, Colorado has to attempt to force Rosen into mistakes. It won't be easy; he's a veteran who reads defenses extremely well. But if the Buffs can disguise some coverages or get Rosen off his "spot" and force him to put a few up for grabs, they could provide some much-needed momentum changes.
One other key here will be a pass rush. The Bruins don't give up many sacks — just eight this year — but even some consistent harassment of Rosen could be a game changer. If Colorado can bring pressure from some unexpected places, it will go a long way in forcing a mistake or two.
4. Don't let UCLA's run game be a factor. The Bruins haven't run the ball particularly well this year, but they are averaging a healthy 4.8 yards per carry. Big back Sosa Jamabo ran for 100 yards on just 12 carries against Stanford, including a 49-yard run.
The Buffs don't want to let UCLA get its run game going. That would force the Buffs into loading up the box to slow the rushing attack down, which would open up the passing lanes for Rosen. The Buffs need to stop Jamabo without any "extra" help and make sure they have all hands on deck for Rosen and his receivers.
5. Special teams. The Bruins haven't been outstanding in this area, but they haven't played poorly. The key here for the Buffs is to make sure they don't give up any big plays that dramatically switch momentum.
Up until last week, CU had been playing well in this area. This will be not only a good opportunity for Colorado to prove a costly mistake last week was an aberration, but to also provide a momentum switch of its own -- say, big punt return for a touchdown, which is exactly what Colorado had in last year's 20-10 win when Isaiah Oliver took a UCLA punt to the house..
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
