This week's key Stat of the Week in our opinion is BYU's loss of 25 players, 14 of which were starters, to graduation last year. This will lead to an easy Bruin victory and the obvious 2-0 start. We have addressed BYU's rebuilding year already a few times because we think it will be that important to the outcome of the game. The BYU offense in particular lost all its key players, including their outstanding 2nd most prolific QB in their QB rich history, their school record holding running back, and 3 receivers. In other words, all their game breakers. They have new additions to their OL, and despite their good size a couple are underclassman that we can exploit. Our experienced and sack-producing DL should rattle the new Sophomore QB Max Hall much like they did Booty last year. Get to Hall early and he will never get a rhythm going. We just can't see any way this young and inexperienced BYU team can come into the Rose Bowl and have any success against our talented and heavily experienced defense.
On the defensive side of the ball, BYU returns 7 starters including a very strong linebacking corps that helped produce the nations #31 best rushing defense. Their OL is young and includes a freshman and they play a 3-4-4 set. That will open up the running lanes a little bit for our backs and our OL can continue their push to become a run oriented line. We just don't see BYU with youth and inexperience getting to BO or hurrying him that much, unless they blitz often with their linebackers (and they probably will) … in which case Dorrell and Norvell better be prepared with some quick passes to beat them. Sure, we most likely won't get big runs like we did last week but we will be able to move the ball relatively easily. The BYU secondary was a weak spot of the team last year. They are relatively experienced but still not that great (#65 in the nation last year), and they are also small. Our tall group of receivers should be able to get some good looks like they did against the small Stanford secondary last week. They may not have as much time if blitzes are thrown at BO but again if Dorrell and Norvell plan accordingly our receivers should be getting a lot of catches Saturday.
Overall, as we said last year, BYU is in rebuilding mode and they are coming into the Rose Bowl with too many new faces to beat our experience and talent. They will be a tougher test than Stanford but we see the same result. Our prediction: UCLA 31, BYU 10.
So we renew our weekly feature, Stat of the Week, starting with of course Stanford. The stat we think is useful to key in on this game is actually the stats of last year's game. And they are the horrible offensive stats we put up at home against the absolute dead last worst defense in the country last year:
- 17 points scored by our offense against the dead last worst defense in the country that gave up 39 points a game
- 0 points scored by our offense at halftime, and only 7 points in 3 quarters, against the worst defense in the country
- 390 yards total offense against a defense offering up 470 yards a game
- 175 yards rushing against a defense offering up 300+ yards a game
- 5 turnovers, 7 sacks, and 7 punts for Stanford, and only 17 points scored by our offense
This type of pathetic offense will simply not cut it this year. It was not long after that Stanford win that we started our incredibly ugly 4 game losing streak last year. If we dont come out firing in this game, against this horrible team, then it could foreshadow troubles when we hit the meat of our schedule in October.
This week’s Stat Of The Week: what can we say, its the streak - 7 losses in a row. Southern Cal has never beaten us 8 times in a row. Everyone knows that we beat the Trojans 8 years in a row up to 1999 when this current losing streak started.  Our 8 game winning streak is the longest in our ‘rivalry.’Â
That we have the longest winning streak in the rivalry should be a surprise, and a call to arms, because read more
This week's Stat Of The Week is road victories. 0. Zero. None against teams with a winning record in Karl Dorrell's entire head coaching career. We also have not won on the road this season. But KD will get his first road victory this season Saturday. And here is the prize: ASU is a ripe 6-4! ASU is an average but inconsistent team just like Oregon State, and they are due for a bad game, just like Oregon State. They have an O line decimated by key injuries to senior lineman, opening up the game to our sackmasters Hickman and Davis who should have a great game, and ASU has an average defense. They have been sputtering with a young QB and a coach who has them playing well one week and badly the next. Sound familiar?
This week, however, ASU coach Dirk Koetter said he is ready for the blitz, and is planning a dink game around it. But before everyone gets excited read more
This week's Stat of the Week is simple: Both teams come into the Rose Bowl with similar streaks, and both teams will either continue or end them at the same time. OSU is riding high off of a 4 game winning streak, and is looking for a win to make them bowl eligible. UCLA has a 4 game losing streak, looking for a win to get closer to salvaging their season with a no-name bowl somewhere.
It used to be that teams would be embarrassed by a 6-6 season and reject any bowl invites. It wasn't long ago that our very own Bruins declined a bowl invitation after finishing the season 7-5 (Humanitarian Bowl, 2001). Not any more, not during the Dorrell era. We are now shooting for .500 to get to that magical juanita cheesey salsa bowl, or whatever. That burns us up. That is what we are reduced to: working for no name bowls in the middle of December after finishing 6th in our own conference. Representatives from the Sun Bowl (looking to invite the 3rd place Pac-10 team) will be at the game checking out … OSU.
But Saturday it should be the Bruins who end their streak. We should win this game. We have better talent and we are at home. No excuses KD.
This week’s Stat Of The Week is a bit of surprise. Even though Cal’s defense is one of the worst in the country, they are near tops in turnover margin (#5 in the nation with +1.25). Their pass defense, while being near dead last in yards per game, has 23 takeaways (18 pics) in just 8 games. They use those takeaways to score their 36+ points per game. The hidden side of these stats is the fact that Cal gives up the ball plenty. With 23 takeaways in 8 games and only a 1.25 turnover margin, they have to be coughing up the ball too, and they are. 13 times, 8 for pics. We have to be positive in the turnover department, probably by 3, to win this game. Our defense is going to have to come up big at Cal, and our offense is going to have to play flawless. Otherwise, it will be very hard to keep this game within range.
Other notes
- Cal’s defensive stats may be a little misleading. Their pass defense is ranked near last in the country most likely because Cal has jumped to big leads early in most games (save of course Tennessee) and teams have had to play catch up. Hence, the pass. Check out the insight Cal bloggers provide at Bruinsnation.
- We have not won at Cal since 1998. It’s been a long time coming.
- Look for freshman to get more playing time. That includes Chane “The Train” Moline, Verner, and Austin.
No UCLA team should ever be counted out of any game. Go Bruins!!!
Despite Wazzu's problems on defense, particularly with injuries coming into Saturday's game, they shut down a great Oregon offense at home last week and have the nations #3 ranked scoring defense. The key stat of the week though belongs to their offense. Wazzu's offense scores a respectable 3 TDs (+ a field goal) a game on 400+ yards per game. Compare that to UCLA's dull and dysfunctional #79 ranked offense: 2 TDs (+ 2 field goals) on 320 yards per game (much of that against pansies like Rice, Stanford, and Arizona).
If our offense performs to their ability, its our defense that is going to have to win this game. Not a surprise. Not only will our defense have to shut down Wazzu's offense, notably their air game, they might have to come up with some points of their own. Forcing turnovers on the opposing team's side of the field does not guarantee points with our offense, as we saw against ND. The defense has shown that it can play, even though losses at Oregon and Washington exposed some of their bravado, and an average ND offense exposed DC Walker's strategic shortcomings. We think the defense will come up big against Wazzu and the offense will do enough. We would like to be surprised and see the offense peform better but we have been waiting for that since Utah, and frankly don't see a reason to expect anything different than what we've been seeing.
We expect UCLA to win this game. The talent is there if the coaching isn't. And if proving that they aren't an average team, if getting back into the Pac-10 race with the slightest of chances, and if saving the season from an early end with no bowl game isn't motivation enough there is the 10 game home winning streak to keep alive, dating back to … Southern Cal 2004. Wazzu also have beaten us the last two games they played us at the Rose Bowl (02, 04) and we should put an end to that. Even we at DD had this game as a W in our 6-6 pre-season prediction. So, No excuses KD! Go Bruins!!
This week’s Stat Of The Week is now familiar to DD readers, as we are repeating it for the third straight day. That is a measure of it’s importance. KD has NO wins on the road against teams with winning records. That is a legacy KD does not want to be known for. This team still has a chance to “shock people” as KD said we would during Press Day in late July. We can beat an exposed Oregon on the road with KD’s “best team yet.” KD has said that he expects Pat Cowen to run this offense well, and that the team is rallying behind him. He has not reduced his expectations for this team and we should take him at his word. So we expect a win Saturday and to go into Notre Dame with some momentum. Let’s get it done KD! Go Bruins!
The Stat of the Week this week come to us courtesy of the Bruin offense: 8 touchdowns in 4 games. Given that we have played 3 of the worst defenses in the country and one average one, this stat almost offends us. How many more games will KD and Co get to “grow” and “learn” and still have a chance to win? We think this Saturday might be the last such game this year. By the time we reach another gimme in Oregon State in mid-November we could very well be on a 4 game losing streak and excuses such as those won’t work anymore. 8 touchdowns in 4 games will not cut it against the likes of Oregon, Notre Dame, Cal, and maybe even a resurging Washington State. It might not cut it against an awful Arizona this weekend. Jim Svoboda, Jim Colletto, Karl Dorrell have got this one last game to get this offense in gear. 17 points, all in the second half, against the awful Cardinal - that has to embarrass them, no matter how much happy talk and happy thoughts they offer afterwards.
After Arizona, we start playing real teams, with great coaching staffs, who have plenty of game film on us. They are going to exploit the stat of the week. Lets get it done now coach. Go Bruins!!!
There are many telling stats for this weeks matchup against Stanford that we could have focused on. The one that says it all is this one: Stanford gives up 39 points a game! Just above Rice for near dead last in the country. Those two points tell us what we need to know. UCLA should light up the worst defense in the country for easily the most points we will score all year.  Scoring should include those mythical things called touchdowns, and it should be over by the half at the latest. Then again, the same should have been said for our game against Rice, and we nearly didn’t get it done then. Still, we believe this will be a blowout. Let’s get it done KD!!
