UCLA QB Brett Hundley finished strong in the Bruins’ win over Nebraska (Photo: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
UCLA shook off a slow start and rattled off 38 unanswered points to beat Nebraska 41-21 on the road in Lincoln. The Bruins dominated both sides of the ball in the second half and looked practically unstoppable behind sophomore quarterback Brett Hundley. Here’s a look at how Hundley, and a few other draft-eligible players performed on Saturday.
UCLA
#17 QB Brett Hundley
- Keeps on a QB draw and fumbles
- Hits WR Shaquelle Evans on a hitch on third down that turns into a big catch and run
- Plenty of time and throws it short for Evans on third and ten
- Poor read to throw short for Evans and gets picked off
- Finds a WR wide open down the right sideline for a big gain
- Holds the ball way too long in the pocket and takes a sack
- Throws behind his WR on a crossing route
- Forced up into the pocket and sacked by Randy Gregory
- Throws a crossing route short of the sticks on a third down
- Completes a strong throw to the right sideline after going through his progressions
- Misses his WR on the deep ball
- Eludes pressure and reverses field to head back to the sideline for a big gain – extends the ball for a first down
- Puts the ball in a near-perfect spot between two defenders down field on a wheel route for a big gain
- Progresses right to left and dumps off to the RB in the flat for a solid gain
- Steps up and slides away from pressure and fires one down the seam for a big gain
- Shows athletic running ability on a QB keeper – nice open field moves
- Perfect ball placement on the deep ball to Evans for a TD
- Lots of time but holds the ball way too long and takes a sack
- Rolls right and hits his FB in the flat for a short TD
- Patient waiting for Evans to get open then fires it into his breadbasket
- Fires one up high to the FB from sort range for a wide open TD
- Puts too much heat on a lateral thrown behind the receiver – ball goes loose and is recovered by Evans
- Running some keepers late to run clock – effective when going north/south and following his blocks
Overview: It looked like it would be a long day for Hundley when he was intercepted on the second series of the game. But he finished with 294 yards and three TDs on 16 for 24 passing, dropping in a couple of perfectly thrown downfield passes along the way. Hundley also showed his athleticism sliding away from pressure and running the ball. He still tends to hold the ball too long at times, but he still has plenty of time left to work on the finer points of his game.
#1 Shaquelle Evans
- Makes a catch on a hitch on third down and picks up big yards after the catch
- Makes and over the shoulder TD catch on a deep ball from Hundley – perfectly placed
- Makes the catch on a hitch and turns inside to pick up big yards after the catch – 37-yard gain into the red zone
- Good hustle to recover a wildly throw lateral that gets loose in the backfield
Overview: Evans only made three catches on the game, but showed the ability to get open deep and to gain yards after the catch. The hustle play to recover the fumble demonstrated good awareness and kept a bad play from being worse.
#11 LB Anthony Barr
- Gets immediate pressure on an option and pokes the pitch out of mid air for a big loss
- Makes back to back stops on short gains early in the second half
- Covering the FB on a short pass out of the backfield
- Gets a hand on Martinez’s shirt but can’t drag him down
- Fights off a hold and chases Martinez down to get in on the tackle for loss on an option keeper
- Fights off two blocks and makes a hard tackle on the RB to force a fumble – third forced fumble of the game
- Spying Martinez, closes quickly on him but again gets a handful of jersey but can’t bring him down
Overview: Barr got going as the game progressed and seemed to be in on every play during the second half. He forced three fumbles, applied pressure on the quarterback, and even looked solid in pass coverage. Barr’s performance would have been even more impressive if he could have finished off a couple of missed sacks. He is expected to be one of the top five or ten players selected in the draft next May.
NEBRASKA
#3 Taylor Martinez
- Threw high twice on the first possession but his WRs had the passes go through their hands
- Hits an open WR Quincy Enunwa for an easy TD toss
- Fumble after a big hit from LB Jordan Zumwalt but Nebraska recovers
- Flushed out of the pocket and runs to the first down marker on third and five – shows good speed to the corner
- Lacking touch – throws down the field have been flat and uncatchable
- Lasers a pass in to Enunwa on a slant for a 14-yard TD
- Has his option pitch poked away by Barr for a big loss – Martinez recovers the fumble
- Chucks one up for WR Kenny Bell following the botched punt and gets a TD
- Sails a pass way high on a third and four play
- Connects with Abdullah on a deep ball down the sideline
- Gets a flare out to Abdullah batted away
- Dangerous play to run around in the backfield and fire it blindly downfield into coverage
Overview: Martinez has improved significantly over the years, and he is a terrific athlete, but he still has a long way to go as a quarterback. He struggles to find the balance between rifling the ball and putting touch on it, and some of his best pass plays came about due to excellent play by his receivers. Martinez did not have an interception, but he threw a couple of passes up for grabs, and he also fumbled a couple of times (though his teammates recovered).
#80 WR Kenny Bell
- Has a high throw go through his hands
- Snatches the ball near the sideline and stutter-steps, then jukes the DB to pick up yards after the catch – terrific move
- Takes a swing pass from Martinez and gets solid yards after the catch
- Short catch and again makes an outstanding move along the sideline
- Goes up and high points the jump ball from Martinez in the end zone
- Takes a WR screen for a nice gain – picks up a block from Enunwa
Overview: Bell’s first target went right through his hands, but he recovered to catch six passes for 68 yards and a touchdown. He made an outstanding play on the TD pass, climbing the ladder to make the catch, and he showed off nifty open field running moves on a few other plays.
#18 WR Quincy Enunwa
- Has a high throw go through his hands
- Gets open with a hard fake to the inside and makes a catch in the front corner of the end zone for an easy TD
- Makes the grab on a slant in traffic and gets in for a 14-yard TD
- Blocks out in front of a WR screen to Bell
Overview: Enunwa only caught three passes, but two went for touchdowns. The route he ran on his first TD catch was particularly impressive. He is a big and strong receiver who can make tough catches in traffic and block for his teammates.
#8 RB Ameer Abdullah
- Very tough running on an inside carry – keeps legs pumping and fights to get to the marker
- Bottled up at the line of scrimmage but bounces left for a gain of about five
- Terrific vision to cut back on an off tackle run – heads back up the middle for a first down run
- Finishing runs with power
- Running hard and getting his knees up for a five-yard gain
- Follows with another five-yard run and fights to the marker
- Excellent fingertip catch down the right sideline for a big gain
- Loses a fumble on an inside run after taking a hit from Barr
Overview: Abdullah is a tough inside runner despite his relatively small stature. He gained yards after contact and moved the pile on a number of occasions. He picked up 98 gritty yards on the ground, and added 50 on three receptions – 40 on that fingertip grab down the sideline. Unfortunately for Abdullah, he was victimized by Barr and lost a fumble late in the game.
Miscellanea:
- UCLA linebacker Jordan Zumwalt made a strong tackle on Martinez, wrapping up, driving through, and forcing a fumble.
- Bruins’ junior RB Jordan James started off the second half with a 38-yard run, and later fought his way through tackles in the red zone for a short TD run. He finished with over 100 rushing yards in the game.
- Redshirt sophomore defensive end Randy Gregory of Nebraska forced a fumble on Hundley on the first play of the game. He applied pressure, picking up a sack, and got his hands up high to try to bat passes when he couldn’t get to the quarterback.
- Nebraska cornerback Stanley Jean-Baptiste got position underneath and picked off a pass intended for Evans on an apparent miscommunication. It was Jean-Baptiste’s third straight game with an interception, and Hundley mostly stayed away from him in the second half.