UCLA Football: Backup QB Issues Are Symptom of Bigger Problem

The UCLA Football team lost to ASU after QB Josh Rosen left the game twice due to injuries. Backup QB Mike Fafaul entered the game, and his performance raised many questions to be answered.

Last night, the UCLA Football team faced Arizona State in Tempe. The Bruins were coming into this game after a convincing win against Arizona at home.

Although the Wildcats had a better overall record than the Bruins, many expected UCLA to come out with the win.

Unfortunately for the Bruins, QB Josh Rosen got injured in the first quarter. The sophomore got hit hard after his offensive line collapsed yet again shortly after the snap. After staying on the ground for a little while, the sophomore hobbled off the field wincing.

It was backup QB Mike Fafaul’s time. With Rosen visibly in pain, the redshirt senior from Maryland was getting his chance to show the world that, although a backup, he was still a quarterback for a Power 5 Conference team.

Unfortunately for everyone watching, that’s not what happened. Instead, Fafaul came off unable to connect passes, throwing when receivers weren’t ready, and showing a complete lack of field awareness.

Rosen would eventually come back during the second half to lift the Bruins and give them hope. However, another injury in the fourth quarter would finally keep Rosen off the rest of the game.

Oct 8, 2016; Tempe, AZ, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Mike Fafaul (12) throws a pass in the second quarter against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Sun Devil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

With only minutes to go in the game and down by 3 points, it was up to Fafaul to get the Bruins close enough for a field goal to force the game to overtime. All eyes were on Fafaul, and the backup QB fell apart. In his last drive and with no timeouts, Fafaul had two sacks and an interception—a less than ideal performance.

If people have been complaining about head coach Jim Mora’s coaching problems, Saturday night gave critics even more ammunition. Everything about Fafaul’s performance last night was questionable.

It was easy for some to excuse the backup QB’s lackluster performance. Among other things, the fact that he was coming off the field cold appeared to be the main justification.

But that alone wasn’t it. First, let’s be clear about something. Fafaul’s disastrous showing in Tempe wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t something that just happened, and we can all just forget about it now.

Instead, this was the symptom of a bigger problem. Any elite college football program knows that QB injuries can and do happen. Arizona State, our opponent last night, started a redshirt freshman after their starter was injured. Just two seasons ago, UCLA QB Brett Hundley was injured and then backup QB Jerry Neuheisel came into the game and bailed the Bruins with a win against Texas.

My point of course is that the possibility of Rosen’s injury shouldn’t have surprised anybody. This is something that coaches should have accounted for before the season even started. This is especially true given how terrible our offensive line has been this season at protecting Rosen. The clues were all there.

Yet, Mora and his staff seemed wholly unprepared for this situation. Honestly, Fafaul looked like a kid who walked into a theater to play a part he never got a script for. In his last drive, with the clock running, Fafaul didn’t even have the awareness to do anything to stop the clock.

Coaching quite obviously failed him. But that wasn’t the whole story. As much as I want to give Fafaul a pass for what happened last night, I just can’t. Here’s why: Fafaul is a redshirt senior.

Not showing a sense of urgency in the last drive was all on Fafaul. In one of the downs, he even waited for the defense to lineup properly before calling for the snap. It would be easy to excuse this as a freshman mistake, but he’s no freshman.

There’s no question though that Mora could have done better. There have been many games between this and last year’s season where Fafaul could have been given more action. Instead, Rosen was kept on the field for unknown reasons—perhaps to allow him to collect 300-passing-yard games.

We likely won’t hear anything about Rosen’s real status because this is how Mora likes to operate. But if Fafaul is the starter for the rest of the season, there’s a chance the Bruins might not win another game this season.

There’s also a chance true freshman Devon Modster could get the start instead of Fafaul. If this is the case and Modster performs, you got to wonder why he wasn’t given a chance in last night’s game after Fafaul was doing so poorly. And if he doesn’t do well, then, again, UCLA Football’s season is essentially over.

Of course the better option would be if Rosen returns healthy. But this still wouldn’t answer all the questions unanswered about Coach Mora and his staff when the Bruins continue to play like a team that doesn’t belong.