2022 Stats - UCLA Bruins

Record: 5-0 (2-0 in Pac-12)

Points per game: 41.4 (13th in nation, 4th in Pac-12)

Points allowed per game: 20.8

Passing yards per game: 293.2

Rushing yards per game: 213.2

Passing yards allowed per game: 237.6

Rushing yards allowed per game: 80.4

The University of Utah football team travels to Pasadena this weekend to take on #18 UCLA. The Bruins’ hot start of 5-0 has turned this matchup into a premium game for the Pac-12 and features two of the most efficient quarterbacks in the country with Utah’s Cam Rising and UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson. UCLA beat a good Washington team last week and is becoming a dark horse contender for the conference championship. Last season, Tavion Thomas ran for 160 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 44 - 24 Utah victory in Salt Lake. The Bruins will look to avenge the last time these teams played in LA in 2019, where Utah cruised to a 49 - 3 win. UCLA is on an 8-game win streak dating back to last season.

Strength: Offense

Head coach Chip Kelly has this offense firing on all cylinders right now as UCLA has scored 40 or more points in 4 of their 5 games in 2022. It looks a little different than his Oregon teams of the 2000s, but Thompson-Robinson is completing over 70% of his passes with only one interception on the year and they have playmakers to spread the ball to at the receiver and running back positions. The Bruins will look to make this game a track meet and Utah may need to score on every possession to keep up. UCLA is playing with a chip on their shoulder, looking for respect in the conference and national stage.

Question Mark: Red Zone Defense

UCLA’s defense has only allowed 13 trips into the red zone this season, but opponents have scored on 12 of those trips with 9 of them being touchdowns, ranking them in a tie for 115th in the country. By contrast, Utah has allowed opponents just 12 red zone visits with 9 total scores, 5 of which were touchdowns. While UCLA’s 12 of 13 versus Utah’s 9 of 12 might not be a big difference, UCLA’s 9 allowed touchdowns to Utah’s 5 touchdowns is a much bigger difference. In a game with two high scoring offenses, a field goal instead of a touchdown in the first half could be a huge factor late in the game. The Bruins are holding opponents to about 80 yards per game on the ground, and with Utah’s running back situation a little up in the air, UCLA’s ability to stop Utah drives could be crucial.

X-factor: Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson

If you did not watch the UCLA-Washington game, go search for DTR’s two-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, where he sidestepped two Washington defenders so hard that they fell onto each other. Unfortunately, the move will remind Utah fans of Florida’s Anthony RIchardson’s spinning pump fake in the season-opener. However, it is a good example “threat” in the “dual-threat” tag of quarterbacks who can run. DTR has been extremely accurate with the ball this season and he threw for 315 yards and 3 touchdowns against a good Washington defense while tacking on 53 rushing yards and the touchdown highlight. Utah’s defense will need to be extremely disciplined to keep Thompson-Robinson contained all game.

Prediction: Utah 34, UCLA 24