What Grade Do Bruins Deserve This Year?

The UCLA Bruins finished their season on a high note but were unable to become bowl-eligible after a rough start to the season. What grade does this team deserve in Coach DeShaun Foster's first year at the helm?

Nov 23, 2024; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach DeShaun Foster yells at referees during the second quarter against the USC Trojans at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images / Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

The UCLA Bruins (5-7) wrapped up the 2024 season last Saturday night with a 7-point win over Fresno State at the Rose Bowl on senior night. With many ups and downs, there is a lot to extract from a season that ended much better than it started. What letter grade do they deserve?

Offense: C+

The Bruins were a bottom-five offensive team in the Big Ten this season but did show flashes in certain areas where they were able to put up enough points to take down some of the conference's more historic programs.

Struggling offensively for a majority of the season in the running game, the Bruins finished dead last in the conference and fourth worst nationally in rush yards per game (86.6). They were just one of two teams in the Big Ten to not average 100 rushing yards per game (Northwestern - 98.5 yards per game).

Throwing the ball was how the Bruins excelled, finishing eighth in the conference in average passing yards per game (242.2). Senior quarterback Ethan Garbers was sensational in the final six games of the season and earned multiple clutch wins with his arm and the talent of his pass catchers.

Defense: B-

The Bruins were much better defensively than they were on offense. Defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe led his group to being the 11th-best overall offense in the conference, but their run defense ranked third best in the Big Ten and fifth nationally, allowing an average of 96.2 rush yards per game.

The reason the Bruins do not receive a B+ or an A is due to the fact that their pass defense was horrid. They ranked next to last in the conference, giving up 244.7 yards per game through the air. The secondary had much more trouble than the front seven did all season long.

Multiple games were won this season because their defense was able to bow up and perform. Calling back to the Bruins' Homecoming win over Iowa, the run defense held the nation's second-best running back, Kaleb Johnson, to one of his worst performances of the year with 49 rush yards.

Special Teams: B+

The special teams unit may have been the strong piece to the team all season long for the Bruins. Transfer sophomore kicker Mateen Bhaghani led the conference in field goals made (20) and was ranked sixth in field goal percentage at 80%. His longest kick was 57 yards in a win over Iowa.

The punting unit was not as strong, ranking middle of the pack in the conference in average punt yards at 42.6 per game. Sophomore punter Brody Richter had a longest punt of 61 yards and was consistently in the low 40s for his season average.

The return game was much more successful on punts than kickoffs, even though they never returned either for a touchdown this season. The Bruins ranked sixth in the conference in average punt return yards at 11.2 per game and were sixth worst on kickoffs with 18.7 yards per return.

Overall: C+

The Bruins had a brutal start to the season, having to play four top-25 teams in their first six games, resulting in a 1-5 record. At the halfway point of the year, the Bruins made one heck of a run, winning four of their final six games to finish 5-7 and just one win away from bowl eligibility.

The fact that the Bruins even had a chance to play in a bowl game heading into their 11th game of the season is very impressive. They knocked off three straight Big Ten opponents as underdogs in each game and secured two of those wins on the road.

The ladder half of the year is extremely promising for what is to come in the future for the Bruin program as they seek to climb the ladder in their adolescent years of Big Ten competition. Maybe even next season, they may have a flipped record and be competing at the top of the Big Ten.

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