[lex24]

Rosen goes to the NFL. Mora gets canned. Love it that neither ever beat Stanford.

[lex24]

Rosen goes to the NFL. Mora gets canned. Love it that neither ever beat Stanford.

[BostonCard]

I would not want to be the moderators on the Bruin message board over the next week.

I sure hope the Bruins keep Mora.  But I imagine he will be raked over the coals for having “wasted” Rosen.  It would have been like having Luck and having the Sun bowl be the high water mark, or Dykes’ tenure with Goff.

BC

[BostonCard]

I would not want to be the moderators on the Bruin message board over the next week.

I sure hope the Bruins keep Mora.  But I imagine he will be raked over the coals for having “wasted” Rosen.  It would have been like having Luck and having the Sun bowl be the high water mark, or Dykes’ tenure with Goff.

BC

[Snorlax94]

The email from Stanford Athletics after the game was titled, "Bye-Bye Bruins" and it seemed to me they knew exactly whom they were saying bye-bye to, and they were trolling him.

I was also pleased to see them hyphenate bye-bye.

[Snorlax94]

The email from Stanford Athletics after the game was titled, "Bye-Bye Bruins" and it seemed to me they knew exactly whom they were saying bye-bye to, and they were trolling him.

I was also pleased to see them hyphenate bye-bye.

[winflop]

When Love ran 60+ to make it 51, there was a shot of Mora with his hands over his head. I gotta find it - caption "I just hope they don't do it on the tarmac"

[winflop]

When Love ran 60+ to make it 51, there was a shot of Mora with his hands over his head. I gotta find it - caption "I just hope they don't do it on the tarmac"

[washingtonismoney]

Mora's tenure is one of the stranger I can remember. His first couple years were good, above expectations. He recruited very well, at least by ratings. It basically all fell apart the moment Myles Jack got injured. I don't like the guy, so I don't feel particularly sorry for him, but it's a reminder that coaching careers are weird.

[washingtonismoney]

Mora's tenure is one of the stranger I can remember. His first couple years were good, above expectations. He recruited very well, at least by ratings. It basically all fell apart the moment Myles Jack got injured. I don't like the guy, so I don't feel particularly sorry for him, but it's a reminder that coaching careers are weird.

[OutsiderFan]

I think Mora will go 7-5 or 8-4 and keep his job. At least that's what I hope.

[OutsiderFan]

I think Mora will go 7-5 or 8-4 and keep his job. At least that's what I hope.

[Goose]

Mora's tenure is one of the stranger I can remember. His first couple years were good, above expectations. He recruited very well, at least by ratings. It basically all fell apart the moment Myles Jack got injured. I don't like the guy, so I don't feel particularly sorry for him, but it's a reminder that coaching careers are weird.

Coaching is a lot like being President. You get credit for things you didn't do and blamed for things you can't control. The number of long-term successful coaches is so small in some measure due to this. Actively bad coaches, like actively bad presidents, tend to be obvious, but beyond that, it is pretty much a mystery who will succeed.
The "new coach" halo effect is certainly real. UCLA has witnessed it three times in a row. It seems the cycle is "The new coach will lead us to the championship",
reality and circumstances step in and things don't go as well as expected, the team loses faith, the fans lose faith, there are a few real bad seasons, repeat. That is why I am not yet sold on Wilcox at C.al.

I think Mora will go 7-5 or 8-4 and keep his job. At least that's what I hope.

Me too. The UCLA administration also has to ask themselves at this point "Compared to what?". I don't know who they could get, assuming Chip Kelly doesn't want the job, that would be a credible upgrade. The need at least two 3 win seasons so they can say anybody would be better.

[Goose]

Mora's tenure is one of the stranger I can remember. His first couple years were good, above expectations. He recruited very well, at least by ratings. It basically all fell apart the moment Myles Jack got injured. I don't like the guy, so I don't feel particularly sorry for him, but it's a reminder that coaching careers are weird.

Coaching is a lot like being President. You get credit for things you didn't do and blamed for things you can't control. The number of long-term successful coaches is so small in some measure due to this. Actively bad coaches, like actively bad presidents, tend to be obvious, but beyond that, it is pretty much a mystery who will succeed.
The "new coach" halo effect is certainly real. UCLA has witnessed it three times in a row. It seems the cycle is "The new coach will lead us to the championship",
reality and circumstances step in and things don't go as well as expected, the team loses faith, the fans lose faith, there are a few real bad seasons, repeat. That is why I am not yet sold on Wilcox at C.al.

I think Mora will go 7-5 or 8-4 and keep his job. At least that's what I hope.

Me too. The UCLA administration also has to ask themselves at this point "Compared to what?". I don't know who they could get, assuming Chip Kelly doesn't want the job, that would be a credible upgrade. The need at least two 3 win seasons so they can say anybody would be better.

[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

The need at least two 3 win seasons so they can say anybody would be better.

True dat.

[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

The need at least two 3 win seasons so they can say anybody would be better.

True dat.

[needle]

From LATimes columnist Dylan Hernandez:

This was the weakest Stanford team Mora has ever coached against.

and

Stanford is nothing like it was when it was nationally ranked in the top 10. It doesn’t have the dominant offensive lines of past seasons. It can’t stop the run, as USC demonstrated by rushing for more than 300 yards against it two weeks earlier.

If there was a time for Mora to win his first game against the Cardinal, this was it.

It didn’t happen. 

I think Stanford's O-line, as it showed Saturday, can be pretty dominant, and this team should accomplish more than 2014. But obviously some people still with very serious doubts.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/ucla/la-sp...story.html

[needle]

From LATimes columnist Dylan Hernandez:

This was the weakest Stanford team Mora has ever coached against.

and

Stanford is nothing like it was when it was nationally ranked in the top 10. It doesn’t have the dominant offensive lines of past seasons. It can’t stop the run, as USC demonstrated by rushing for more than 300 yards against it two weeks earlier.

If there was a time for Mora to win his first game against the Cardinal, this was it.

It didn’t happen. 

I think Stanford's O-line, as it showed Saturday, can be pretty dominant, and this team should accomplish more than 2014. But obviously some people still with very serious doubts.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/ucla/la-sp...story.html

[OutsiderFan]

To be fair to the LAT, Stanford is #2 in the country in Avg. YPC at 8.03.  And I would argue Stanford is really #1 because #1 Miami, has a 9.5 YPC against two middling Group of 5 and an FCS team.

The OL may not have been great at pass blocking, in part because the QB position was weak until Costello came in, but they have been getting in done in the run game.  Maybe this LAT writer didn't see UCLA play Texas A&M? 

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

[OutsiderFan]

To be fair to the LAT, Stanford is #2 in the country in Avg. YPC at 8.03.  And I would argue Stanford is really #1 because #1 Miami, has a 9.5 YPC against two middling Group of 5 and an FCS team.

The OL may not have been great at pass blocking, in part because the QB position was weak until Costello came in, but they have been getting in done in the run game.  Maybe this LAT writer didn't see UCLA play Texas A&M? 

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

[DC 86]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

1) as the Stanford run game got going the UCLA pass rush became a lot less aggressive, 2) Costello rolled out a lot and got rid of the ball faster while in the pocket, making the OL's job easier.

Setting that aside I think the line is improving as younger players gain experience and the unit as a whole develops cohesiveness, regardless of who is behind center.

[DC 86]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

1) as the Stanford run game got going the UCLA pass rush became a lot less aggressive, 2) Costello rolled out a lot and got rid of the ball faster while in the pocket, making the OL's job easier.

Setting that aside I think the line is improving as younger players gain experience and the unit as a whole develops cohesiveness, regardless of who is behind center.

[martyup]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

This is something that is difficult to judge in practice.  I good QB can make his OL look good by moving in the pocket to avoid pressure.  Chryst is not good at this and Burns is worse.  I think Costello showed much more finesse in avoiding pressure.  At this point, he's not Darnold.  But, IMO he's a step up from Chryst.

[martyup]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

This is something that is difficult to judge in practice.  I good QB can make his OL look good by moving in the pocket to avoid pressure.  Chryst is not good at this and Burns is worse.  I think Costello showed much more finesse in avoiding pressure.  At this point, he's not Darnold.  But, IMO he's a step up from Chryst.

[Goose]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

I think it is a good and bad combination. Lots of the time it seemed we were running simple patterns where a quick decision was possible and called for. Fortunately, UCLA didn't defend those passes well. Costello got lots of completions but relatively few yards. No real complex reading of the defense was required. The line doesn't have to hold off the rush very long. Costello also could move in the pocket, and that helped a lot. We had at least two plays (that I recall) where we moved the pocket by design, which I don't recall seeing with Chryst this year. Also, one must remember the UCLA DL isn't very good, and is pretty small. So I don't know how much better our OL actually pass blocked.
The bad news is that teams like U$C (hope it matters), Washington and WSU will press cover those short routes. They mostly won't be available. Then we will see if we can really pass protect.

[Goose]

BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

I think it is a good and bad combination. Lots of the time it seemed we were running simple patterns where a quick decision was possible and called for. Fortunately, UCLA didn't defend those passes well. Costello got lots of completions but relatively few yards. No real complex reading of the defense was required. The line doesn't have to hold off the rush very long. Costello also could move in the pocket, and that helped a lot. We had at least two plays (that I recall) where we moved the pocket by design, which I don't recall seeing with Chryst this year. Also, one must remember the UCLA DL isn't very good, and is pretty small. So I don't know how much better our OL actually pass blocked.
The bad news is that teams like U$C (hope it matters), Washington and WSU will press cover those short routes. They mostly won't be available. Then we will see if we can really pass protect.

[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

[quote author=OutsiderFan link=topic=17481.msg202541#msg202541 date=1506274284]
BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

This is something that is difficult to judge in practice.  I good QB can make his OL look good by moving in the pocket to avoid pressure.  Chryst is not good at this and Burns is worse.  I think Costello showed much more finesse in avoiding pressure.  At this point, he's not Darnold.  But, IMO he's a step up from Chryst.
[/quote]

Good point. A QB's agility and maneuverability is often underrated. Costello's running technique is beautiful to watch, including long, graceful strides.

[SF_Cardinal_Fan]

[quote author=OutsiderFan link=topic=17481.msg202541#msg202541 date=1506274284]
BTW, was it me, or did anyone else think the pass protection was better with Costello in the game than the previous two weeks? Pocket presence?  Sees things faster?  OL feeling more confident in guy behind them?

This is something that is difficult to judge in practice.  I good QB can make his OL look good by moving in the pocket to avoid pressure.  Chryst is not good at this and Burns is worse.  I think Costello showed much more finesse in avoiding pressure.  At this point, he's not Darnold.  But, IMO he's a step up from Chryst.
[/quote]

Good point. A QB's agility and maneuverability is often underrated. Costello's running technique is beautiful to watch, including long, graceful strides.

[gocard14]

Don't forget that the best defense against a pass rush is to 1. Have a running game 2. Keep yourself in manageable down and distance (see 1) 3. Sustain drives and wear down the DL.

Costello showed more mobility, better pocket presence, and a faster release then our other QBs. But IMO the biggest factors (in addition to a weak UCLA D-line) were the above.

[gocard14]

Don't forget that the best defense against a pass rush is to 1. Have a running game 2. Keep yourself in manageable down and distance (see 1) 3. Sustain drives and wear down the DL.

Costello showed more mobility, better pocket presence, and a faster release then our other QBs. But IMO the biggest factors (in addition to a weak UCLA D-line) were the above.

[washingtonismoney]

a counterpoint to the "weakest Stanford team" talk -- I remember the announcers relaying Shaw's assessment that the team was more talented than 2015. Which was surprising.

[washingtonismoney]

a counterpoint to the "weakest Stanford team" talk -- I remember the announcers relaying Shaw's assessment that the team was more talented than 2015. Which was surprising.