Brehaut’s Bruins Pull Out A Heart-stopping Win Despite Chow’s Conservatism
by Nestor on Nov 6, 2010 7:14 PM PDT
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Well what can we say. When we started the game day we linked to a story from Jon Gold comparing today's matchup against Oregon State with the game we had against Washington last year at the Rose Bowl (following a gloomy October and a heart breaking loss). The result was yet another dramatic and heart-stopping win for the Bruins at the Rose Bowl. Bruins eke out a last second win thanks to a game ending FG from Kai Forbath. The final score was 17-14. Here is the box score.
Perhaps Forbath is arguably the player of the game. However, the guy who was the STAR OF THE NIGHT was none other than UCLA QB Richard Brehaut, who has been maligned and bad mouthed by our offensive coordinator all throughout his young career at UCLA. Richard Brehaut essentially led the Bruins to win with heart stopping and gutsy performance and taking total control of this team. Brehaut's final stats are not impressive. However, he left no doubt that he was in charge showing off both his wheels and his willpower, reminding us of Cade McNown. Brehaut ran the ball for 61 gutsy yards in 18 carries and was efficient with his throws completing 13 of 19 passes for 127 yards.
As thrilling as the game was, it didn't have to come down to the last minute. It was the conservative play calling of Norm Chow and some questionable wimpy decisions by Rick Neuheisel that kept the game so close and gave us unnecessary heart burns in the closing seconds. Bruins kept playing for FGs time after time, playing it safe, and in process kept Beavers in the game. The conservative play calls for Chow have reached beyond the boiling point and given how Brehaut has emerged as the heart and soul of this team, raises questions about his evaluation performance of offensive talent to date in Westwood.
Anyway, we won the game. Let's hope Richard Brehaut now gets to take full control and keep rallying this team to more inspiring performances. More after the jump.
On the defensive side, Chuck Bullough's unit did a good job against Oregon State, bringing pressure and playing physical football. The freshmen - Jordan Zumwalt, Cassius Marsh and Dietrich Riley - led the way. Zumwalt was awe inspiring blowing up the Quizz. Speaking of blowing Riley served his notice by perhaps leveling one of the most vicious hits of the season absolutely destroying Rodgers. Marsh was solid and stood out as the best linemen in today's game.
Freshmen didn't stand out just on defense. Malcolm Jones did his when he was called upon in second half, giving the Bruin offense a shot, rushing for 29 yards in 6 carries. I thought Randall Carroll also stood out with a solid game catching 6 passes for 46 yards with some clutch grabs in the closing mins. Bruins ended up rushing for 210 yards in 55 carries. The offensive line over all did a solid job and could have produced better numbers if they were helped out by more creative play calling by Chow.
Anyway, despite being hamstrung by Chow's conservatism we still won. We now have a shot to keep fighting for a bowl bid by following Brehaut's lead. Hope his confidence only builds and gets the team even more fired up for our next game. You can just sense the whole team is ready to run through the wall for number 12.
I am sure you guys have lot more takes and reflections on tonight's huge win. As always, if you have extended thoughts and reflections (more than 75 words), please share them in fanpost. Otherwise, enjoy the night and revel in a Bruin win.
GO BRUINS.
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I think the POY is D. Riley
That pop set the tone, and outside that one 3rd-Q drive, the D played out of their minds from that point onward.
A good win
We played within ourselves. OSU probably watched tape of last weeks game and set themselves up for long passes and Caroll running deep with Marvray in the first quarter helped if only done twice. We played the second half to be in a position to win which we did. Sure it was conservative but it worked. I would love to see us throw the ball all over the place but the thought of the beaver defense running back interceptions makes me want to rethink that idea. Opening it up last week – a bit – det the table for today.
Only Thing That Bothered Me Tonight (Besides Chow's Conservative Play Calling)
Was that Brehaut didn’t get a lot of time back there to throw. Can’t remember how many sacks the Beavers got on us but he was getting hurried most of the time.
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Nov 6, 2010 7:25 PM PDT reply actions
Bruin Football Program Finds It's identity
Someone referred to this earlier in the week….that our football program has no real "identity.
When we in fact do.
We are a program known for producing great “kickers”.
Honestly don't really care much about our kicking
The game winner was nice but depending on our kickers almost bit us in the rear end tonight.
Forbath talked about wanting a game winner
Was he setting himself up? :-)
(Joking. In case the smiley face didn’t give it away)
CHOW
There are football gods, as CNC said. They were with us! Notwithstanding that, our coaches and TEAM were rewarded for MONTHS of busting their butts!!! Go Bruins!
Class of ’55
Wow, nineteen-fifty-freaking-five
You were there for Red Sanders and the single wing? For the (I hate that the word is “the”) championship. You are, I say respectfully, a geezer among geezers.
I love that you are still living and dying with our Bruins. Sir or madame, i salute.
Me too. Although I was only 10. But my Dad was Class of '38 and he took me to the Coliseum for all of Red Sanders' games.
My Dad is still alive — 93 — and still rooting for the Bruins. He still drives and is dating a young chick of 80.
After Riley's emphatically introduced himself to Quizz
The OSU star RB ran for a total of NINE yards over the next 2+ quarters
Riley's gonna be a star
Glad he’s doing his number proud and ATV was there to witness.
H should be playing more though.
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 7:39 PM PDT up reply actions
Guy is a football assassin
Reminds me of a young Bob Sanders. He’s gonna be an intimidator
by Strathmore&Gayley on Nov 8, 2010 12:13 PM PST up reply actions
BRUUUUUUUUUIINNNNNSSSS
Great victory. I’m amazed that we shut down Quizz and the Beavers after giving up big points against pretty much every other high powered Pac-10 offense. 2 MORE WINS BOYS LETS GO
Just need 2 more to be bowl eligible
Of course we will take 3 but we must win that last game at the Rose Bowl.
how about a nice
win streak and a beating of the toejams to end our year!
"Success is never final, Failure is never fatal. It's Courage that count's" - John Wooden.
4 more wins
and I’ll be watching that Miami game reading douche petey’s book! Hope it happens!!!
"The entire world that bleeds blue and gold ... they have been dying for this." - Coach Rick Neuheisel
Kitchen mojo!
I made a special stop at the store yesterday to make my lucky lemon bread. After the game I told Mr. BB, “Aren’t you glad I made that stop yesterday to get one lemon?”
Be careful...
You may have to make lemon bread before every game now :)
I usually do
But I made a special stop yesterday just because I had this feeling that if I didn’t, they would lose for sure. And I have to drink coffee from one particular mug. Of course, I was in Chicago for the Texas game and didn’t do any of this, but that’s not important.
by bruinbabe2000 on Nov 6, 2010 7:44 PM PDT up reply actions
Yes I do
And KS, that reminds me of a Simpsons episode where Bart and Milhouse end up in the Flanders’ house and find that they are out of peanut butter. Milhouse says, “Don’t worry, I know how to make some,” and throws butter and peanuts in a blender.
by bruinbabe2000 on Nov 7, 2010 4:29 AM PDT up reply actions
RB has more pocket presence than KP
and with our poor pass protection, that means a whole lot
Troy is burning
Good point
exponentially better than when he got random minutes last season.
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 7:42 PM PDT up reply actions
Not to belabor the point..
but after several games now RB…
1. Looks like the top recruit we hoped for, like the large, relatively mobile confident QB that was seen in his HS films
2. Seems to have leadership potential
all of which makes it very, very troubling to remember how Chow was so unprofessional in bashing RB in public as he defended his pic of KP. Beyond (perhaps, perhaps) having made the wrong personnel choice in the first place, why would a college coach talk smack about a player who, now, has demonstrated good potential.
Carroll
Great to see him perform well. Track athlete becoming a receiver, and not justa deep threat.
Anybody wired into the Bowl situation....?
I know, I know, I’m getting WAY ahead of myself, but when it comes to flight- and hotel-booking, it is something to consider.
IF … we go 3-0, we’ll be 7-5 (5-4) likely T-4th in the PAC 10, where might we be bowling?
depends on a variety of things
including whether the Pac-10 sends 2 teams to BCS bowls (which may be unlikely given the bizarre Rose Bowl circumstance which will land TCU in the game against a Big-10 opponent if it’s an Oregon-Auburn title game)
I just hope we don't end up at the
most bizarrely named bowl ever…
The vaunted KRAFT FIGHT HUNGER BOWL Brought to you by the chemical companies that make up the ingredients of all KRAFT PRODUCTS
I have tickets to the Toyota Recall Bowl.
by peggysue69 on Nov 7, 2010 7:29 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Agreed that is it way too early to be thinking about such things
A couple of things to note regarding the conference’s situation: With $C’s ineligibility, there are only 9 conference teams that can go to a bowl game. Also, 2 of ASU’s wins came against FCS (1-AA) schools; therefore the Sun Devils must finish with 7 wins to become bowl eligible, rather than the usual 6 wins.
formerly bruinhoo
ASU Leads 'SC 7-0 Over At Coliseum
Trojans could still be in a letdown mode after getting Quack-attacked last week. Can’t think of a better team to have a major letdown.
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Nov 6, 2010 7:53 PM PDT reply actions
I thought there was some great play calling tonight on the offensive side
1) two very impressive drives to start halves
2) commitment to forcing Brehaut to run early and often and make OSU respect that aspect opened up the inside run
3) good smattering of F-Back and wide receiver run plays
4) a few noticeably surprising plays, like calling an inside-run-fake-QB-keeper right after Brehaut had been shaken up with a huge hit, which would have been a TD without a holding call
Brehaut also had a good game in his own right outside the playbook, improvising on broken plays. A few questionable decisions (INT was an unfortunate play but trying to force it; taking a sack to take us out of FG range late in the game not great), but overall his improvised good plays significantly outweighed his mistakes.
Overall, I thought this may have been our best combined OC/QB performance of the season. A combination of decent play calling with decent execution and some additional plays by Brehaut and his receivers to make something happen. It looked like calls were being made that put Brehaut in a position to make plays. I think we got less help from OSU than in some of our games earlier in the season. We went out and won the game with clutch offense and defense down the stretch. Definitely the sort of win that sets us up well going into the last 3 games of the season.
The two impressive drives to start the half were nice
It doesn’t make up for the fact how we clammed up rest of the way including blowing chances to be aggressive on second and short time and time. Chow showed nothing to show he is aggressive and can be dynamic in his playcalling. His days in Westwood are numbered at this point.
gawd, I hope so
The thinly veiled contempt that Chow has shown for Brehaut has been puzzling. But considering that Brehaut after 5 starts has progressed further than Prince did in a Season plus speaks volumes about Chow’s judgment. 3 years in and I haven’t seen Homer Simpson in the Coaching box, let alone Homer Smith – or even Al Borges for that matter. Save the $$, let Skippy call the plays, and hire a DC that’s dedicated and crazed, and the program can get to the next level. Buh bye Norm!
The Mad Bruin
Re: point #4
I’m sure this was mentioned in the game thread, but I’ll ask here anyway: How the hell was Zumwalt’s hit on a receiver making a catch a personal foul and the hit that Brehaut took on the play previous to the nullified touchdown wasn’t?
Actually, I know the answer: SPTRs.
by insomniacslounge on Nov 6, 2010 8:19 PM PDT up reply actions
Good call insomniacslounge....
I was thinking the same thing. The announcers on VS. tried to explain that the QB is moving and lowered his head to take the hit so you can’t expect the defensive player to make the adjustment to make the adjustment. Of course, it seemed that the WR was bracing for the hit and lowered his head to brace for the collision with Zumwalt. I didn’t see the difference either.
RB
Agree on your number 2 comment especially.
But CNC needs to keep it up. It also shows again why a hurt Prince should not have been playing. As Brehaut said in the post game interview, “In the Pistol the QB has to run.” Brehaut may not be as good a runner as Prince BUT he showed today he could run and certainly better than a hurt/hurting Prince.
And your non-numbered point of Brehaut is important. With the notable exception of the sack that cost us the FG, I think he did a very good improvising when he had to, the Harkery pass/flip was awesome. And wow, a 20 play drive to start the second half!
right
without a genuine QB run threat, the pistol cannot function; and a hobbled Prince wasn’t a genuine threat to run (whether that was playcalling or him refusing to take it when he had the option is moot).
The other thing that makes me think they tailored the game to Brehaut – rather than Brehaut overcoming incompetent playcalling – was that we didn’t see any of those dangerous floaty passes that he usually throws into coverage once or twice per game. In general, I think that forcing him to run helps him not force the ball so much in the passing game – if he knows he can help the team win with his legs, he doesn’t need to press so much when a passing play is called. The steady diet of run plays led to a string of manageable 3rd downs and also opened up some of those improvised plays; and his curious willingness to try to get an extra yard rather than sliding (medical staff on standby) indirectly led to the out-of-bounds hit that helped with another drive.
I still don’t think he does a good job of deception at the transfer, nor does he sell the playaction pass much (seemingly because he knows he might not have much time there before getting hit if our OL is under pressure), but if he can continue to manage CNC’s offense and make the occasional great broken play we will be fine on offense. I am as pleased by the cutting down of his occasional brain-fart plays as I am at his impressive running display and couple of great improv moments.
Deception
Yeah, still needs major work to sell it better. About 20% of the time does it look smooth while being a great fake. At least having the QB runs brought the balance back to offense quickly.
A. Barr getting carries early was funny, we were talking about that in a thread this week. Chow did show some variation in the good drives(2), but he needs to take a couple valium, relax more and grow a set along with CRN for the entire game.
Nicw to see $UC's kicker
doink a chip shot FG attempt.
I went back and watched the 4th qtr again. Did I see some blitzes by the defense?
Now 2
Missed under 35… God, I am really used to having good kickers, I can’t even imagine!
To be honest
I was pretty surprised to see a Brehaut run called on 3rd and long towards the end (right before Forbath missed his second FG). Oregon St. still had 3 timeouts left so if we had missed the pass, Oregon St. would have had 3 rather than 2 timeouts left after that play.
Riley’s hit on Rodgers was excellent. I was also impressed by the sack on 3 and 4 from the Oregon St 13. It looked like Oregon St. knew it was coming and there was nothing they could about it.
Brehaut continues to grow and develop his skills. Besides a few mistakes, he managed the game really well.
A few flash responses as I'm just now getting home
Unfortunately, it’s not the Rose Bowl I’m coming home from. I had some personal commitments to honor in orange county and ended up listening to half of the game on the radio, stopping off in bars to watch the 2nd half after I couldn’t take not having any visuals, and then listening to postgame on the radio. Anyway, a few thoughts:
-It was pretty obvious that after Brehaut took that sack on 3rd down late in the 4th that Coach Neuheisel and/or Chow didn’t trust their QB on the next drive when UCLA started in OSU territory after the catch interference call. As mentioned above, that almost came back to bite us. Hopefully the very last drive and watching game film will encourage the coaches to trust Brehaut a bit more. He’s definitely earning it.
-Love what Carroll and Smith bring to receiving corps. Just glad that we got that :01 sec back so Carroll didn’t look like a goat for stutter stepping on the last drive.
-Two interesting notes from the postgame interviews: Ayers hinted at the fact that he’s been hurting more than he let on and is only now starting to feel better. J. Franklin credited Milton Knox w/ teaching him how to be a better runner.
-I am really excited about the young talent on D. It’s unfortunate that those three freshmen were idiots in the summer and lost their chance to grow with this unit, because I think it’s going to be something special.
-Really happy for these players to finally get a win. To quote Herm Edwards: “We can build on this!” :)
by insomniacslounge on Nov 6, 2010 8:16 PM PDT reply actions
Doesn't Brehaut look basically as fast as Prince?
No idea what their 40 times are, but their game speeds don’t look terribly different.
Please remember: it's not my fault your team sucks.
Twitter feed: @dexterfishmore
It seems like in all of the discussions about the two QBs, someone feels obliged to say, “Well, Brehaut’s not the runner that Prince is, but he throws a better ball.” Obviously the second part of that statement is true, but today made clear, to me at least – and I hadn’t seen Brehaut play that much – that if there is a difference in running ability, it’s certainly not a big one.
Please remember: it's not my fault your team sucks.
Twitter feed: @dexterfishmore
by DexterFishmore on Nov 6, 2010 8:27 PM PDT up reply actions
We have posted about Brehaut since the day he committed to us
And that includes embedding tons of videos showing off his mobility. Perhaps Prince is .1-.2 second faster than Brehaut, however, the difference was always negligible. Just because random commenters saying Brehaut is not mobile didn’t make them right. That is why we were lampooing those observations in the game thread.
Prince is faster on the 40 meter
But football isn’t a 40 meter dash. I think Brehaut is faster with pads on.
I felt up until today
That Prince is the better deceiver. His handoffs in the mesh are/were better. I saw some good exchanges today out of RB though, and if he can start doing that more consistently, then I see no reason why he should be behind Prince on the depth chart.
+1
Exactly how I felt. I always thought Prince was better at selling the option read than Brehaut and Brehaut threw a better ball.
I really think Brehaut is coming along in developing his ability to sell the option read, which will make him the more complete QB.
Vindication in process
I was definitely in the minority a couple of weeks ago, stating that I thought RB was the better qb, with a better total skill set, and given the chance he would pass KP. I mentioned that the running difference was moot and that his passing ability was the big difference. KP is only better at deception, etc at present, because he’s had nearly 2 years of game experience. Now if someone with guts can start calling the plays on 2nd and short…we might unleash the beast. From the start of this season when we have been playing medicore, I’ve been looking for our new young bloods. Well hello? Who in the hell were making all the plays yesterday: Riley, Barr, Marsh, Jones, Zumwalt. I believe if these guys had been playing earlier their learning curve would only be that much farther along. 2nd and short? How about a TE delayed short slant, he only 6’7" or a pump fake to the same TE then a quick out to Carroll for a one one one or heaven forbid a screen pass. Get CHOW an assistant to help him turn the page on the playbook.
Brehaut was a runner in High School
He had around 500 yards rushing each of his last two years. In terms of quickness there doesn’t seem to be a big difference, but Prince’s straight ahead speed when out in the open was surprisingly good. Of course that only really matters on plays that are already a sizable gain.
by SuperBruinMan on Nov 7, 2010 12:06 AM PDT up reply actions
Anybody who taped the game, needs to put that Riley hit on Quizz
on YouTube… show the world how “soft” UCLA actually is
It's a stupid argument anyway
Who gives a shit what other people call you as long as you deliver the goods?
Interesting to read complaints about UCLA coaching
after watching them out-coach Oregon St. before, during, and after the game.
UCLA came in with a well-conceived plan, taking full advantage of repeatedly demonstrated deficiencies in the Oregon St. defensive scheme, among other things, giving themselves an opportunity for an upset win.
The Bruins deserve credit for putting themselves in the better position tonight.
Andy Wooldridge, andy_wooldridge@yahoo.com
BuildingTheDam.Com
Go Beavs!
well coached game...
I say the coaches, especially Chow, called a great game by keeping plays within the execution boundaries of the players.
On another note, and as a former kicker, I guaranteed Forbath’s kick to my son as we watched the ending. I had absolutely no doubt what-so-ever. Did you notice that kick would have been good from 60? I was telling my son that who’s-it should have run out of bounds imediately and chance the clock running out. Distance is not the issue with Kai!
view from above
press box seats tonight – really fun. quick observations:
- Brehaut has pretty good pocket presence (when he’s allowed, to throw, that is). keeps his eyes downfield while sliding right or left, or stepping up
- Franklin delivers a lot of hits as he’s going down. man he’s tough
- zumwalt is FAST. great closing speed
- our receivers seem slow; they don’t create separation
- best game/scheme on D this season. they seemed to be in position all game
Great game. Are we seeing the future emerge in Brehaut?
My impression is that we have two WRs who are slow and two who need to work on route running
Tho Carroll seems to gradually be improving on his routes.
by insomniacslounge on Nov 6, 2010 8:29 PM PDT up reply actions
Wish we could be seeing
Jerry Johnson grow with Brehaut for the rest of the season.
Roses are red, violets are blue...f*** $C.
Offensive play calling.
Although there are times during any football game when you have to run the clock down & grind out a few yards, there are other times when you just got to have some balls & be gutsy or creative. I just wish that Chow would be a bit more aggresive.
agressive can lose games if ...
the players cannot execute. I think we have to remember, these guys are unpolished, though getting shiny-er each game. I hope they can stay injury free from here on out. Get that practice time don’t you know.
Looking forward to next week already!
We've been losing anyways
There’s been a huge issue with the Coaches trusting the younger guys. The recent complaints about Chow, which aren’t so recent, are mainly due to the fact that he doesn’t show a lot of trust. Brehaut gets credit for the win here in my eyes because she showed he could do what the coaches said he couldn’t, step up to the plate and run the team with confidence. So who else is ready to step up but is being held back?
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 8:40 PM PDT up reply actions
crap
Brehaut is a he, not she. i apologize to Richard.
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 8:42 PM PDT up reply actions
RB Impressions
First time post, have followed BN for years.
Great arm. Still very much stares at his first option and lacks a feel for pressure (thinking in particular of the sack that took us out of field goal range). Only finds other receivers when scrambling. Did a much better job today, however, on the zone read. Is he getting better? Undoubtedly, but I can see what CNC and CRN saw as problems with him, particularly his honing in on the first option.
KP locks on too
No difference. RB at least has a better excuse since he hasn’t played as much. Give him time and he’ll develop. Saw some very, very encouraging things from RB tonight.
And KP didn't lock in on a receiver?
Not sure that RB’s “honing in on the first option” explains the choices coaches have made given that KP did that (IMHO) even more.
Neuheisel has always been on board with Brehaut
He was leaning towards going with Bre. for KSU and Cal. It was Chow making the call to go with Prince.
i don't agree about pocket presence -
i saw Brehaut keep his eyes downfield, and still move around in the pocket, feeling the pressure with a few exceptions, and avoiding it. maybe you saw it differently?
Feels Good to Lose ....
Some Weight.
Man, I feel at least 10 or 15 pounds lighter now that we finally won.
You're too hard on the coaches
Norm Chow and Rick Neuheisel woud go all out on offense if we had the horses to do so.
We don’t have the horses to do so. We have lousy receivers. Brehaut is young and inexperienced. We don’t have a good front line that can protect the quarterback effectively.
Believe it that Chow and Neuheisel want to throw bombs all day.
But you can’t throw bombs all day when you don’t have the talent or smarts to do so.
They, for example, had to install the Pistol offense because their players couldn’t not run. They would far favor a West-Coast offense or Pro-set. But when you have essentially high school and junior college quality players, you just can’t.
Who is asking for bombs all day?
Do you even read out posts closely before raising strawman arguments?
Oh another thing
This is your second comment on BN and second comment deriding the talent of our players, which is complete BS.
Don't forget to pass the pipe, dude
Nobody here has asked for, nor do I seriously believe that anyone (Al Davis aside) wants to see bombs all day, regardless of how good the QB/line/receivers are (that gameplan sounds like it would be about as effective as my creating a dating plan where I only become involved with Playboy Playmates, btw). And HS/JC quality players, really?
formerly bruinhoo
while I agree, in theory, that CNC/CRN want to go big, and can't just yet ...
the maturity and growth that I saw out on that field today suggests that things may be starting to click with our talented athletes. the trajectory of RB’s improvement from game to game has been amazing. i still can’t understand why he didn’t show this in practice during the spring/fall – but who cares. as long as he keeps developing the way he is, he’s gonna have no problem holding onto that starting spot. CNC pulled out some new plays/looks and tendencies this game. granted they were in the run game, but still – i think that with the passing game performance today (which IMO was great) CNC will work in some looks to add a new dimensions to this offense.
btw, CNC ran the ball up the middle time after time b/c our line had the push and OSU was playing coverage well. it may not have been exciting football, but it was completely logical.
Actually
If you read our posts from Aug-September Brehaut was indeed coming around by 3rd week of practice and had a great scrimmage. Yet Chow decided to go with an injured Price after only 2 days of practice.
Historically CNC has been a pass-oriented OC at USC and BYU
So its quite surprisingly CNC would choose an injured prone, less pass accurate Prince over Brehaut.
this is the point -
i posted last week, I believe Chow conceived of the entire pistol with Prince in mind, which led him to ignore Brehaut’s camp performance, and even to play Prince at Cal when (in hindsight) it seems clear he was not healthy enough to play. talked about being ‘locked in’…
That sounds like the sunken cost principle
And it’s a bitch to overcome. But it must be overcome, and not just at QB but at multiple positions where it appears that we don’t lose a great deal by going with youth over experience. We’re doing this by necessity now, but we would likely be in a better position in terms of personnel had we started rotating our younger players in at the beginning of the season.
I like your analogy.
Bottom line, why did it take injuries to play studs like Zumwalt and Riley. Whatvdifference makers. Therecare many others. Let the kids play. Let them compete. It’s a win-win right now.
I agree that RB was coming along ...
but I don’t recall the trajectory being nearly as steep as it is at the moment. to my recollection (based on the few practices/scrimmage attended) RB wasn’t getting, what CRN (i think) called “the intricacies”. he is grabbing hold of those now though – starting with the Oregon game (which I thought he played admirably in and showed real growth). It’s amazing – each week, he seems to fix a previous problem. this week it was when to pull the ball and kick it outside. his TD run was perfect! DE bit, RB pulled and the DE couldn’t reset before RB had the yards. It was great and it was something that he didn’t seem to understand a week ago (though he improved elsewhere then).
All right, 'fess up
You Photo-Shopped the helmet, dintcha? : )
The Mad Bruin
I don't even know how to use Photoshop
I just grabbed it from ESPN…. so whomever the photog was, it’s on him/her if this was photoshopped.
Love That!
Los Angeles Rams and the UCLA Bruins!!!!!
by Minnesota Bruinfan on Nov 6, 2010 8:45 PM PDT up reply actions
Defense
Hey, our defense held OSU to 14 points. At last the defense I expect from UCLA. If our defense continues, we can start thinking about a bowl.
by Arturo del Mundo on Nov 6, 2010 8:42 PM PDT reply actions
the result was likely due to a poor offensive gameplan by Oregon st
I highly doubt that Bullough all of a sudden became a good DC
Troy is burning
by bruinbasketball on Nov 6, 2010 8:47 PM PDT up reply actions
We won despite NC and CRN terrible plays and stategy
I was at the game screaming for our team watching RB playing heroically only to be hamstring by truly asinine, beyond predictable running plays and desperation third down and long outs.
Yet RB made it work with grit and moxie. What a crying shame it took an injury to KP for our brilliant offensive coaches to give this buy a chance. And all the while they poor mouthed him and downgrade him.
He can be another Cade IMO if they unshackle him. If they do, we will win out. If they don’t I don’t want to hear the excuses we have no talent.
OMG our young talent was all over the field tonightbecause they finally let them play!
RB had to overcome the Beavers and his own coaches tonight. Shameful.
The team played a great game. CRN and NC have a lot of splainin to do IMO.
GO BRUINS!
i have to wonder ...
whether you are able to distinguish between run plays – besides the easy inside vs outside? just a question.
Doesn't matter.
running on 2nd and short multiple times is inexcusable.
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 9:28 PM PDT up reply actions
I don't find that inexcusable
What I don’t like is never considering the alternative. I’d like for our coaches to think in the moment and tailor their playcalling to the situation on the field. If we’re going for ball control, then a 2nd and short run isn’t so bad. Today, we were in a dogfight all afternoon long, and with the surprising success we were having on third down, we should have considered and called some less conservative plays on 2nd and short. But this notion that running on 2nd and short always is bad is just not right.
I agree that it's not always bad. "multiple times" was bolded and italicized in my head.
Just think, why not use the enhanced running game to play with the passing game. Try things out. When people call the play calling vanilla, this is what they are talking about. When you have the opportunity to run a play that has a low risk/reward ratio then why not go for it. I realize the defense is banking on that philosophy somewhat and a run plays against their expectations but there’s so much more we could do. Plus, with Chow, the complaint is exacerbated by the fact that we’ve seen stagnant playcalling last year, the first half of the Oregon game comes to mind.
by littlebrother on Nov 6, 2010 10:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Agreed
Plus when you think about how hitting on one of those riskier calls makes their D have to think about every play you run that much more. Getting them to think instead of react has gotta yield dividends for later.
so...
what you are looking for is for a play call that is exciting but could potentially put us in a 3rd and long if we screw up (where then everyone knows we’re passing) vs. a play call that even if we screw up, really only keeps us at third and short (where we can then run, pass, or play-action it)?
that to me sounds like you’re judging a coaches play-calling from a spectator perspective – i.e. wanting the game to be exciting – rather than from the perspective of giving us the best chance to win. i really don’t think the coaches care whether us fans think the play-calling is fun to watch, as long as they’re giving the team the best (on average) statistical chance for a new set of downs.
The hell are you talking about?
When you mess up 2nd and short, it generally results in 3rd and short, and your playbook is still wide open.
sorry 'bout the confusion ...
i actually intended to reply to littlebrother’s comment above yours. so yes, my comment makes no sense with respect to yours. but from your substantive response, i think you figured that out already.
anyways, you’re thinking best case scenario – i.e. incomplete or stopped at the line. a game planner has to think worst case scenario and how to win in that situation, i.e. we allow a sack or get hit 5 yards in the backfield on the swing/screen. worst case scenario (barring a turnover) on a low risk / 2-4 yd reward is that we lose 1-2 yards. and the way our line was playing on the other side of the LOS, the highly likely thing that was going to happen was that we would gain 4 yards. i don’t know about you, but i’ll take a boring but damn near guaranteed 4 yards every down if i could. and i think that’s what CNC was doing. boring and unimaginative, but logical and effective is fine with me.
And you're thinking worst case scenario
In that we lose 5+ yards.
I know I look stupid for arguing both sides of the coin in the same thread here, but I just think it’s always important to consider context. There were 2nd and short situations on our side of the field where I believe it may have been beneficial to go with a less conservative call. Whenever it became clear that we were going for ball control on a drive, then the run on 2nd and short isn’t so bad considering the success we had with it. Nuance is important and details matter.
Just Watched the Game on the DVR
What an exciting finish! Never saw that coming!!!
A few thoughts:
-The D was much improved but it begs the question: how can they tackle so well this week after doing it so poorly last week??
-We’ve got some pretty exciting kids that are going to be in the program for awhile in Carroll, Zumwalt, Riley and yes, RB.
-On the subject of RB, it really is amazing how much growth we’ve seen in him since last year when he just couldn’t get the ball out on time. His pocket presence is much improved – he had one pretty bad sack today but that’s going to happen. I don’t know what the future holds for him after KP gets healthy and Hundley gets into the program, but it’s fun to watch a kid mature when given the opportunity.
Improvement every game
That’s what I want to see from him and thus far he has delivered. I was especially encouraged by his improved play with the mesh, which, while still not as good as KP, is much better than what he’s shown in the past. If he gets that down, KP’s only major advantage over him is essentially negated.
Definitely
He still has to sell those fakes better but he looked much more comfortable keeping the ball on the zone read play.
tackling was 1000x better than last week
The D played hard, and they played with great fundamentals. Was beautiful to watch!
by stuckInBayAreaHell on Nov 6, 2010 10:02 PM PDT up reply actions
best tackling effort in conference play this Season
for the Bruin D.
The Mad Bruin
Quick thoughts
Defense was energized for the third time this year… somehow… and Bullough, before Chow IMO, is done after this year. I would have taken his headset after he had Rahim Moore in a 35 yard presnap zone. That’s where I gave up; not to mention 3 straight Cover 4(Quarters calls) . The Freshmen inspired the D to fly around, pretty damn simple. Zumwalt was electric, all game long.
On offense, I was shocked at Chow’s conservatism. I really don’t understand it. I’ll talk about it later this week. But all in all, I’m happy that we dug deep this week and got the W. Still banking on that 3-5 mark I predicted in the podcast.
by Josh Schlichter on Nov 6, 2010 10:23 PM PDT reply actions
Glad you mentioned those 35yd presnap drops for Moore
When people ask why #3 hasn’t done as much this season as last, that’s a HUGE reason.
by insomniacslounge on Nov 6, 2010 10:28 PM PDT up reply actions
I've never seen that
Ever. It’s disgusting to watch. And Mike Riley got out-coached in a bad way by not sending people across the field to combat the super super super deep safeties
by Josh Schlichter on Nov 6, 2010 10:41 PM PDT up reply actions
Wow
I hadn’t even noticed that they were dropping Rahim back so far. How often did they do that??
It was pretty vivid
On a crucial 3rd down (Oregon State’s last possession I believe) Katz got sacked though. I’m not sure that it was all the time, but it was pretty obvious then
by Josh Schlichter on Nov 6, 2010 10:48 PM PDT up reply actions
I noticed it a few times last week vs Arizona
and it usually meant that UCLA was blitzing. Not sure if the tendency was the same today.
by insomniacslounge on Nov 6, 2010 10:53 PM PDT up reply actions
I guess I just wasn't paying attention
That’s pretty awful. Nothing like taking one of your best play-makers out of the play . . . sheesh.
03rdn9 - agree with you on Moore, but am curious ...
to know your perspective on Zumwalt.
to me he looked great (though i could be giving him too much of a handicap b/c he’s a frosh). physical ability AND understanding of the field. think this guy will be a beast at mike.
I knew it when he was in high school
Jordan is a great athlete with damn near perfect fundamentals that he learned in High School playing for a big time program. He has the physical tools to be something very special, but I have always liked him coming from an angle. As we saw with Reggie Carter, something changes when you hit that mike spot- remember guys like Justin London and Spencer Havener who were sound fundamentally and just athletic freaks; I say keep him at the outside linebacker spot and let Larimore develop into a true Middle Linebacker
by Josh Schlichter on Nov 7, 2010 2:06 PM PST up reply actions
now 34-31 trogans...
Bizarrely, I think it benefits us more if the trogans hold on to win this.
First of all, we are behind ASU in the conference standings and need to pass them.
Second, if they just tank the rest of the season, our domination of them later will just be considered ‘ho hum’ and, of course, a meltdown losing streak by them may mean “Victory Lane” will lose his job. And we can’t have that.
Not necessarally
No matter what happens in conference play and resulting bowl implications, ASU must finish no worse than 7-5 to become bowl eligible (7 wins, not 6, due to having 2 wins against FCS opponents). With their loss in south central, ASU has 5 losses and cannot lose any of their remaining games (Stanford, UCLA and Arizona) and become bowl eligible. Had ASU won tonight, they still would have needed to win 2 of those 3 games (and if we lose our game to ASU, the entire discussion becomes pointless on our end).
formerly bruinhoo
Chow
I don’t know if Chow just doesn’t trust the pass protection from the offensive line, but only 19 passing attempts by Brehaut is a lot less than I would have expected with the game he was playing tonight where his only mistake was a tipped interception. Now that the coaches have seen some success from a QB on the run, will Chow finally call a rollout pass so that Brehaut doesn’t have to resort to scrambling so many times? And speaking of passes, why don’t we see enough screen passes?
The sideline one?
You mean the one where Roberson almost got it in front of Harkey? I thought even if he caught it he would be out of bounds.
On the bright side, Brehaut knows how to scramble, which is an improvement.
The last QB that did well scrambling was Patrick Cowan.
OMG
the play calling had me pulling my hair out! whats left of it at least. lol
Jordan Zumwalt looks like a star! Truly enjoyed the drive home from the bowl back to the desert – Go Bruins!
"Success is never final, Failure is never fatal. It's Courage that count's" - John Wooden.
A couple of thoughts
To be fair to Chow, the inability of the oline to pass protect does limit chows playcalling considerably. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t call more passing plays out of a roll out which Brehaut is quite good at. That also makes slants, screens and quick outs a necessary part of your repetoire, we don’t really have those.
I also think the sack that put us out of field goal range is more on the offensive line than it is on Brehaut as he had very little time to do anything with the pressure. The call itself was strange
I also want to point out I think the
by silverlakebruin on Nov 7, 2010 1:36 AM PDT via mobile reply actions
I totally agree with this
I don’t trust the o-line to protect Brehaut in the pocket, given what I have seen. The pistol is certainly better equipped towards blocking for the run game.
We could also add some underneath routes. I think those would be effective as well.
The thing is, it happened.
Malcom Jones played!...Malcom Jones played!...
finally the coaches are using ALL their bench…and that makes us a stronger team…our highly recruited incoming freshman class is playing and doing ok…this can only set us up for the coming years…and i can stop yelling at the tv and computer about this…:)…chow was conservative, but he finally allowed the inexperienced freshman a chance to show off what that were recruited for…this is a major step in the right direction…that and the put-back one second!…:)
Live by the sword.......
… die by the Sword. The recent post discussing the issue of reliance on the 3 pointer too much got it right. We relie too much on Kai’s foot to bail us out. Twice we played for the field goal only to come up wide.
I guess we played the percentages that Kai wouldn’t miss three in a row but what a nail biter!
RB 13-19 with only adequate pass protection is impressive
But RB still has a long way to go. Two plays stand out. (1) He threw a pass on the roll out to a receiver who was near the sideline and completely covered. The db had at least an equal chance at the interception. That ball should have been thrown away. (2) Third from last drive, we have the ball on the 25, well within field goal range, and he holds the ball way too long and gets sacked for a loss of 12. . That ball should have been thrown away. He should have been told before the play that if its not open, throw it away. He’s got a good arm and he throws the ball accurately. With time to throw he will do very well.
Carroll had a very good game, but almost cost us a chance to win. He catches the ball with about 2 seconds, and then fakes, just long enough for the clock to (almost) run out. That fake was a complete brain fart.
The defense forced four consecutive punts on the last four drives. No matter how you slice it, that is impressive.
As I also imply above
even if RB has some way to go, he seems to have come a long way and is playing within the offense better, and not attempting so many completely “WTF?” plays. The first play you mention was nothing like as bad as some of the passes he has thrown into coverage earlier in the season, and the sack that took us out of FG range was mostly on him but also on his protection.
As usual we agree
Note that I started off with 13-19 is impressive. As the Bruins margin of victory was razor thin, the two plays I mentioned were maginfied. It is interesting that Bruins Nation essentially promoted “no quarterback controversy” and "RB not ready, per CNC through half the season, and now criticize for not playing RB sooner. I like both quarterbacks, believing that KP is better in the Pistol, which opens of the running game for Jetski and DC, and Brehaut the superior passer in the more traditional shotgun. I think both would do well with better pass protection, as RB did this week with a little bit better protection. The thing I don’t like about the Pistol, is that it subjects the quarterback to many more hits, as he is turned into a running back. It is really hard to change Qbs midseason. RB did have a good game, and his decision making has improved, but the two plays I mentioned could have been the difference between winning and losing. I was at the game, and it was great to win, especially in the last session. An all day tailgate and a Bruin win made for a great day!
OT and borderline political, but
Was at the game on the press box (OSU) side down low, and saw that there were two “Smokey-the-bear” hat-wearing guys whose shirts said “STATE TROOPER” on the back. California does not have such an animal – heck even the CHP handles the chores of guarding the Governor’s office. So, did the State of Oregon send two of “its finest” down to guard Riley? Does that happen for every road game? And does the State of Oregon pay for that? Does the University? Is this an overtime/travel time/per-diem situation for the officers involved? And how in the *%@! can anyone justify that kind of extravagance in these fiscal times? Just some random thoughts.
The Mad Bruin
I would guess
their time for such trips is paid for by the OSU athletic department. Just a guess, mind you. The football program brings in a lot of money. (Whether or not that enables their entire athletic department to break even, I don’t know.)
Roses are red, violets are blue...f*** $C.
Glad we won,
but we need a new Offensive Coordinator. No creativity on offense, I’m not sure how many times they ran it, but it seems like we ran almost every single down. I just don’t understand why Coach Chow cant call some screens, or play action once it becomes so obvious that we are going to run.
Agreed
Teams know our OL has difficulty with pass protection and bring pressure often, a few well timed screen passes would soften up the rush. But I’m not an Offensive Guru or anything.
by Strathmore&Gayley on Nov 8, 2010 12:22 PM PST up reply actions
Gosh, I thought we won
until I started reading all this clear-eyed analysis of our shortcomiongs. As one who counseled a ball-control approach to this game, with the thought that we needed to keep Quizz off the field, I was delighted with our opening drive and really enjoyed the 9- minute, 20-second beauty that we put together later. We could have used one more, no doubt, and we did cut it a little close. Brehaut was excellent in the clutch and throughout, for that matter. And the defense was the one thing I didn’t anticipate. They were smart and tough. Nothing wrong with the “scheme” either. I am not against more passing. In fact, we are going to need it. Excuse all this positive stuff, but I really enjoyed that game, and I don’t mind saying so. Now for that Thursday night thing against Washington.
The #18 comparisons
Might not be so far off. Brehaut has gotten significantly better with every passing week; by the SUC game he could be good for 500 total yards and six TDs. Cade 2.0!
Quizz's tough 63 yd. night
Kudos to the UCLA D. Did we ever pass the ball once on 2nd and short? The Bruin possession late in the 1st half without Franklin or Jones was a waste. Any cartoonist have a RB CNC emancipation illustration in the works?
actually graduated in 85, the olympics and h.locklear were distracting...
So proud of our boys in blue!
I am not sure if I sat down for that entire 4th quarter and looking at the 4 OSU fans sitting next to me in disbelief was priceless hahaha GO BRUINS!!!
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