UCLA Football: Pundit Explores Bruins' Plan For Improving Cornerback Struggles

Something needs to change soon in the secondary...

Things are going well for the UCLA Bruins football team right now. Last Saturday against the SDSU Aztecs, they improved to a 2-0 record on the young season and have to be feeling pretty good about their chances to go 3-0 against North Carolina Central this weekend.

However, there have been some struggles within their secondary through the first two games. It has caused some issues that will need to be addressed soon. One player, in particular, has struggled a bit out of the gates, Devin Kirkwood.

“Cornerback Devin Kirkwood in particular has had a few shaky moments, losing his starting spot to Jaylin Davies for 1 hour 55 minutes Monday before UCLA sent out what it called a corrected depth chart showing that Kirkwood remained the starter. Kirkwood has been repeatedly targeted during the first two games, beaten for one touchdown against San Diego State and benefiting from a dropped pass that should have gone for a second touchdown.”

Per Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times

Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times explained an interesting option for the Bruins to help with their issues in the secondary, and it involves moving a wide receiver to the defensive side of the ball.

“Jadyn Marshall moved to cornerback in practice this week, a reflection of several factors. The speedy Marshall had been unable to crack the wide receiver rotation but eventually might be able to help on defense given the Bruins’ occasional struggles in the secondary.”

Per Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times

Head coach Chip Kelly spoke on the cornerback issues that his team has seen. Kelly knows that this is something that can’t continue to plague his team.

“The tough part about that position,” Kelly said, speaking generally about his cornerbacks, “is I think sometimes the only time you notice them is if the ball is completed on them.”

Per Ben Bolch, The Los Angeles Times

The team has been able to get away with these types of mistakes due to playing weaker competition. But the Bruins will need to improve on some things before they start their Pac-12 play.

After the matchup against North Carolina Central this weekend, the Bruins will next head to Rice-Eccles Stadium to take on the ranked Utah Utes. They won’t be able to get away with issues against teams like this, so it’s key that they figure things out sooner rather than later.