UCLA football allows penalties, explosive plays to hurt again

UCLA indispensable regroup aft losing what was considered a pivotal crippled successful the Pac-12 South Division against Arizona State.

The Bruins (3-2, 1-1 Pac-12) person continued to let a bid of “self-inflicted wounds” get the champion of them, including penalties and giving up large walk plays.

“We played uphill shot successful the 2nd half,” UCLA manager Chip Kelly said. “That was a nonstop effect of what we did. That’s from self-inflicted wounds and we person to wide that up.”

Kelly understands that successful bid to vie with immoderate of the amended teams successful the conference, the “SIWs” cannot continue.

“The penalties enactment you back, and past each of a abrupt you are playing truly agelong down-and-distances,” Kelly said. “We made it a batch much hard connected ourselves. That’s the quality betwixt the 2 halves.”

The Bruins were called for holding connected 3 antithetic occasions, with near tackle Sean Rhyan being called for 2 of them. The Bruins besides had 2 idiosyncratic fouls and an unsportsmanlike behaviour punishment called connected them during the game.

Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson agreed that the penalties were costly, arsenic the Bruins went scoreless successful the 2nd fractional for the archetypal clip since the 2019 play against Utah.

“We changeable ourselves successful the ft a mates times,” Thompson-Robinson said. “I person to spell backmost and ticker movie and each that worldly to springiness maine a wide idea.”

The Sun Devils kept the crippled adjacent with the Bruins, matching them people for people successful the archetypal half. With the crippled tied astatine 17, UCLA kicked a tract extremity to instrumentality the 3-point lead.

Arizona State backmost Jayden Daniels would respond, completing a agelong walk to Ricky Pearsall for a 54-yard touchdown, beating UCLA antiaircraft backmost Elisha Guidry successful coverage, to instrumentality the 24-20 pb aft the PAT. ASU would not springiness up that pb the remainder of the game.

Daniels and Pearsall besides connected connected a surface walk that resulted successful a 65-yard touchdown connected the erstwhile violative drive.

“I deliberation that the explosive plays connected the antiaircraft broadside of the shot truly wounded america with those 2 large agelong passes,” Kelly said. “We had immoderate extent issues astatine safety. (Arizona State) did a bully occupation of exploiting that, of taking vantage of that. So you person to springiness them credit.”

Safety Kenny Churchwell III tried to play aboriginal successful the crippled but an undisclosed wounded kept him retired for astir of the game. Starting information Quentin Lake was credited for his effort successful Saturday’s crippled by Kelly, who told reporters during the postgame property league that Lake wasn’t 100% healthy.

Lake was injured against Fresno State and did not play connected the roadworthy astatine Stanford. Churchwell had filled successful during Lake’s absence.

Defensive backmost Mo Osling III besides missed the crippled against the Sun Devils with an undisclosed injury.

The Bruins person allowed 2 touchdown passes of 44 oregon much yards successful 3 of the past 4 games. Like ASU, Stanford scored a brace of agelong touchdowns (for 56-yard and 52-yard) connected back-to-back violative drives.

“We person to beryllium liable connected each level of the ball,” linebacker Jordan Genmark Heath said. “When we unit and nonstop 7 alternatively of eight, we person to get home.

“We enactment our antiaircraft backs successful compromised positions. As you know, it’s hard to screen particularly bully receivers similar that erstwhile they get successful the unfastened field. We conscionable person to bash our jobs successful each facets.”

Arizona State had 2 different agelong passes of 47-yards and 48-yards that resulted successful archetypal down.

The Bruins volition hole for different precocious kickoff clip this Saturday, traveling to play Arizona (7:30 p.m. PT, ESPN).