UCLA football overcomes UNLV’s unfamiliar offensive tactics

Tom Bradley hadn’t seen anything like it in 30 years.

The UCLA defensive coordinator watched as University of Nevada, Las Vegas scored its first touchdown with a tactic the Bruins didn’t see on tape when preparing for the Rebels.

Redshirt senior defensive lineman Eli Ankou lined up as a nose guard, his right hand planted in the dirt across from the middle of UNLV center Will Kreitler’s frame. But Ankou was aligned slightly toward the Rebels’ right guard – a little bit “thick,” as Bradley called it – and UNLV turned to a midline option blocking scheme.

Kreitler moved to his left to shove UCLA junior lineman Jacob Tuioti-Mariner and then block sophomore linebacker Josh Woods, while right guard Justin Polu moved to the second level to block junior linebacker Kenny Young.

Ankou was left unblocked in the A-gap, but that was the Rebels’ plan.

Quarterback Johnny Stanton held the ball in running back Lexington Thomas’s chest and read Ankou’s movement.

When Ankou locked his head on Stanton, the quarterback handed off to Thomas, who had a huge crease in front of him.

Thomas made it seven yards without being touched, then broke away from Young and redshirt sophomore defensive back Adarius Pickett to prance into the end zone for the Rebels’ first touchdown.

Opening the season with a 63-13 drubbing of Football Champion Subdivision opponent Jackson State, UNLV had little need to show its full bag of tricks, so the Rebels were able to unveil some new play designs against the Bruins.

“We got quite a few unscouted looks today that they gave us,” Bradley said. “Midline versus a nose guard, I haven’t seen that since probably playing a true wishbone like Oklahoma in the ’85 season.”

Bradley noted that he had seen and prepared for an opponent to run midline against an unblocked three-technique defensive tackle, but he was surprised that the Rebels would use it with a lineman positioned as a nose guard.

“Usually, it’s hard to do it against a nose because the nose clamps onto the center,” Bradley said.

But with Ankou shaded towards the guard, Kreitler avoided engaging with him and was able to move freely to his left.

Woods also seemed to read the play as if Thomas would take the ball to the left side – a reasonable read, especially if the Bruins weren’t expecting the midline option – and crashed down, allowing Kreitler to easily block him out of the play.

Had Polu blocked Ankou, Woods’ steps toward the line wouldn’t have been as problematic because Young could fill the A-gap. But with Polu locking onto Young, the gap was wide open and Thomas took advantage.

Null and Boyd

In the first half of Saturday’s game, it looked like UNLV star receiver Devonte Boyd was on his way to a huge performance against UCLA. Boyd dropped a deep ball on the Rebels’ first pass of the game – a play that Bradley said made his breakfast start to come up – but then posted five catches for 85 yards in the first half.

“Boyd is definitely a great player – size and speed,” said redshirt senior defensive back Randall Goforth. “He makes plays. Hats off to him, he made some good catches out there tonight.”

The Bruins decided to have redshirt senior cornerback Fabian Moreau track Boyd throughout the game, and the Rebel star didn’t make a single catch on five targets in the second half.

“He’s a really good football player, we changed up how we covered him,” Bradley said. “I thought (defensive backs) coach (Demetrice) Martin did a really good job of getting us into that change of coverage.”

Typically, UCLA always lines up with Moreau on the left and sophomore Nate Meadors at right cornerback, so Moreau’s tracking of Boyd was a new element for the Bruins.

Bradley, who generally focuses on his own schematic mistakes postgame, said he was mad at himself for letting Boyd make a key third-down catch as the Rebels drove for a touchdown right before halftime.

Moreau started up on the line against Boyd, but it looks like the cornerback dropped into a zone in the deep-third while senior safety Tahaan Goodman covered the underneath zone.

With redshirt freshman defensive end Keisean Lucier-South standing up pre-snap and then performing a delayed blitz, the Bruins failed to pressure Stanton, and Boyd found a hole in the zone right near the sticks to get the first down.

“That’s on me,” Bradley said. “That’s a terrible call … As a coach, it’s always better to look at yourself first. That’s just kind of how it goes because the kids will lose respect for you if you don’t say, ‘Boy, this wasn’t a very good call here.'”

Where’s Wadood?

After safety Jaleel Wadood did not play against UNLV, coach Jim Mora responded to a question about the junior’s status by simply saying, “He didn’t play.”

Bradley said Wadood had some “bumps and bruises.”

Goforth, who’s known Wadood since the two were kids, said he didn’t know why the safety didn’t play, but said he thought the team adjusted well.

“You can’t replace a Jaleel Wadood, he’s definitely one of the best safeties in the conference,” Goforth said. “Not having him out there definitely takes a (toll) but at the end of the day, we have other great players that can come out there and respond.”