Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1524108
8 8 A U G U S T 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M When Chip Kelly left his head coaching post at UCLA in February to become offensive coordinator at Ohio State, program insiders grumbled that the veteran college and NFL coach never had much of a passion for re- cruiting and wasn't interested in the alumni outreach and booster glad- handing that are part of the job. Whatever the validity of those com- plaints, one certainty is that Kelly's six-year tenure in Westwood was roughly on par with those of his three predecessors. Since winning their most recent conference title in 1998, the Bruins have had only three 10-win seasons and just one nine-win cam- paign. They were rarely bad under Karl Dorrell, Rick Neuheisel and Jim Mora, but they were rarely great. Then came Kelly in 2018, and while his return to the col- lege game garnered national headlines at the time of his hiring, his contribution ultimately was to maintain UCLA's repu- tation as a program with a relatively high floor and a relatively low ceiling. The question for Kelly's successor, De- Shaun Foster, is whether that perception is the result of a series of disappointing hires or is simply a byproduct of sharing a city with a traditional college football blue blood program and a pair of NFL teams. Foster, a former UCLA and NFL star, was promoted from his previous role as running backs coach after Kelly left in February. The timing meant that the first-time head coach had to work fast, so it was fortunate that he had a promis- ing quarterback ready to take the reins. Ethan Garbers threw for 1,136 yards, with 11 touchdowns and just 3 interceptions in six starts as a redshirt sophomore. He was the offensive MVP of the LA Bowl after relieving an injured Collin Schlee in the third quarter and throwing for 152 yards and 2 touchdowns in a 35-22 comeback victory over Boise State. The Bruins also bring back leading rusher T.J. Harden, who gained 827 yards and scored 8 touchdowns as a sophomore. The receiver corps figures to get a lift from Notre Dame transfer Rico Flores Jr., who had 27 catches for 392 yards as a freshman with the Irish. Also, senior Logan Loya is back after catching 59 passes for 655 yards and 5 touchdowns. The real wild card here involves the offensive line, which gave up 42 sacks last season. Three starters are back, and UCLA made a nice portal acquisi- tion by landing senior Reuben Unije from Houston. Unije, who allowed just 2 sacks in his final nine games with the Cougars, is expected to start at left tackle. UCLA welcomes back four start- ers from a defense that held up well last season against some high-scoring Pac-12 offenses. Its 43 sacks ranked sixth in the FBS, and although NFL- bound standout Laiatu Latu was re- sponsible for 13 of them, the Bruins do return senior defensive tackles Jay Toia and Keanu Williams, as well as sopho- more linebacker Kain Medrano. Behind the returnees in the front seven, the secondary will look different, with senior safeties Bryan Addison and Ramon Henderson having arrived from Oregon and Notre Dame, respectively. One other area in which UCLA used the transfer portal to upgrade was at placekicker. After hitting only 8 of 17 at- tempts last year, the Bruins brought in Mateen Bhaghani from Cal. As a fresh- man, Bhaghani hit 8 of 9 attempts last year, with a long kick of 43 yards. — Matt Herb O C T . 5 | T I M E T B A | T V T B A | B E A V E R S T A D I U M | S T A T E C O L L E G E , P A . Quarterback Ethan Garbers was the offensive MVP of the LA Bowl, lead- ing a second-half comeback in the Bruins' win over Boise State. PHOTO BY ROSS TURTELTAUB/UCLA ATHLETICS GAME 5 UCLA QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: UCLA leads 4-2 Last Meeting: Following a blocked punt, line- backer Jim Kates scooped up the loose ball and dashed 36 yards for the opening touchdown in Penn State's 21-6 win over the Bruins in Los An - geles on Oct. 12, 1968 Head Coach: DeShaun Foster (first season at UCLA; career coaching record: same) 2023 Record: 8-5, 4-5 Pac-12 Returning Starters: 10 (6 offense, 4 defense, 0 specialists) RETURNING LEADERS Rushing: RB T.J. Harden (827 yards, 8 TD) Passing: QB Ethan Garbers (1,136 yards, 11 TD) Receiving: WR Logan Loya (655 yards, 5 TD) Tackles: LB Kain Medrano (86) Sacks: DE Vol Tunuufi (2) Interceptions: S Kamren Fabiculanan (2) 2024 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2023 Result Aug. 31 at Hawai'i — Sept. 14 Indiana — Sept. 21 at LSU — Sept. 28 Oregon — Oct. 5 at Penn State — Oct. 12 Minnesota — Oct. 19 at Rutgers — Nov. 2 at Nebraska — Nov. 8 Iowa — Nov. 15 at Washington — Nov. 23 USC W, 38-20 Nov. 30 Fresno State — BEST-CASE SCENARIO A fourth consecutive bowl invitation cer- tainly isn't out of the question, provided that UCLA cleans up its issues on the of- fensive line and QB Ethan Garbers is able to build on his strong finish last year. WORST-CASE SCENARIO The Bruins could take a step back on defense after allowing only 18.4 points per game to rank 14th in the FBS last year. Against a schedule that includes long flights to Hawai'i, LSU, Penn State and Rutgers, any struggles on that side of the ball could keep UCLA out of bowl contention.