While Hawai’i isn’t the pushover they once were since head coach Timmy Chang took over, UCLA Bruins should not be down 10 points at halftime. That statement is twofold. UCLA has a talent advantage, but also Hawai’i isn’t playing good, disciplined football.
The Rainbow Warriors are doing everything they can to give this game away. And not even because of turnovers or bad playcalling. They have accumulated eight penalties for 78 yards. While they are not even on pace to set any penalty records, UCLA’s inability to move the ball has stopped them from taking advantage of these mental errors by Hawai’i.
UCLA Bruins Offense: 94 Yards, Hawai’i Penalties: 78 yards
As of the first half, the Warriors have done better at moving the ball via yellow flags than the UCLA passing game or the rushing attack. Garbers has attempted 18 passes, connected on just six of them for 69 yards. Hawai’i penalties have 11 yards on Garbers.
Even more troubling, the once fierce Bruins rushing attack has been ground down to nearly nothing. The official stat sheet shows just 25 yards rushing on seven attempts. But 11 yards of that came on a designed QB run on the very first play of the game. The running backs are currently rushing for just 2.33 yards per carry.
Penalties very nearly allowed the Bruins to put points on the board. On their second offensive drive, the Warriors committed 25 yards worth of penalties including a 20-yard pass interference call. The ball ended up on the Hawai’i five. Rather than taking points that were essentially handed to them, Ethan Garbers rolled out to his right and attempted to throw a short pass across his body into heavy traffic. The result was an interception.
Much of the UCLA Bruins offense problems start with the play in the trenches. They will need to clean that up in the second half to have a chance at winning the first game in the DeShaun Foster era.
