In Reply to: Re: O-line - it did improve last year and we have exp posted by Pyperkub on August 14, 2024 at 17:12:09
They got a lot of hits on him. But he was able to dodge a lot of them and scrambled for 6 or 7 1st downs in that game. As well as shred them with the pass. It was a really clutch performance.
The ol got marginally better, but out of 45 or so pass attempts a game, there are going to be 2 to 4 sacks per game. The qb is going to get flushed and throw the ball away 3 or 4 times. 10% of the time, the pass rush is going to "win".
But what the qb can do is turn a 20 yard loss into a 4 yard loss by climbing the pocket instead of running backwards, a la dtr and Dante delicto. Turn a late throw pick six into an on time completion.
I don't think people have noticed this, but Ucla has been in really good physical shape in the post covid seasons (the last 3).
Ucla ol have missed minimal starts. Sam marazzo in 2021 (eventually replaced by Duke Clemens). Alec Anderson v Utah and CU in 2021. Nobody in 2022. And nobody in 2023 (though Garrett DiGiorgio was sick as a dog before the cal game and got Garbers hurt on 1st drive)
Granted, those guys were REALLY experienced at chip Kelly's zone blocking rules. They were all stepping in the correct direction on the snap. They weren't tripping over each other and rolling up on each other's lower legs. Most injuries are from friendly fire. So with a new s&c guy and new blocking rules, our good luck might run out. But the recent trend is our friend. Just sayin'. Keep hope alive.