UCLA Football: 5 Weakest Positions to Worry About

The UCLA Bruins have some holes on their roster that may hinder their prospective results this upcoming season.

A majority of the "problem areas" stem from the offensive side of the ball, while one exists in the special teams category.

Marked improvement has to take place in these specific areas if UCLA is to have a successful year.

Let's take a look at five worrisome positions for the Bruins...

Quarterback

The biggest question mark heading into the spring was the quarterback position. Appointing a starter would be one of the biggest goals to accomplish in this spring period.

The question has yet to be answered.

Based on recent practice reports, the competition seemingly has whittled down to senior Richard Brehaut and redshirt freshman Brett Hundley.

Brehaut has a leg up in the experience category, but Hundley—a former 5-star prospect—has immense upside.

Regardless of who's named the starter, consistent play from the selected signal caller is a must.

Subpar quarterback play has arguably been the biggest predicament plaguing UCLA for the past decade.

A bit of speculation here, but one would assume that head coach Jim Mora would opt for the younger option in the event of a continual deadlock between Hundley and Brehaut.

Here are Brehaut's thoughts on the current competition. Also, offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone is quite cryptic when discussing the quarterback derby.

Right Tackle

While the quarterback position is the most worrisome on the roster, the right tackle slot comes in a close second.

If the season started today, UCLA would more than likely employ senior walk-on Brett Downey as a starter. His backup, Torian White, has absolutely no game experience.

Yikes.

As a whole, the offensive line is likely the weakest unit on the entire team. Stalwarts Jeff Baca, Greg Capella and Xavier Su'a-Filo are undoubtedly the most talented and reliable trio of offensive linemen.

After that, there's a big drop in talent and experience.

White does have the most pure talent and upside of any offensive lineman on the roster not named Su'a-Filo. His length and overall athleticism is quite impressive, and his physique just screams "future NFL tackle."

His biggest problem is a lack of experience and physical development. White has made strides and progressed in both areas thus far in the spring.

The coaching staff hopes that White takes the reigns of the right tackle position by the time the season commences.

Another possible option for the position is highly touted incoming freshman Simon Goines.

However, it wouldn't necessarily be feasible for a true freshman to start—especially on the offensive line.

Kicker

The Bruins have one of the best punters in the nation in senior Jeff Locke.

The lefty from Arizona has been an All Pac-12 selection dating back to his freshman year. In addition, he's projected as the top punter in the class of 2013 for NFL prospects.

Last season, he was forced into field goal duty due to the ineffectiveness of Kip Smith. Smith has since transferred out of the program.

By becoming the placekicker, Locke held the responsibilities of kicking field goals, punting and kickoffs. That's simply too much of a burden for the Bruins' best special teams weapon.

To remedy the problem, UCLA signed Hawaiian prospect Ka'imi Fairbairn.

With the absence of another scholarship placekicker on the roster, it looks as if Fairbairn will step in immediately in a starting role.

It's quite risky to rely on a freshman kicker. There's no telling how the freshman will respond to the pressures that come with the position.

The other possible challenger to the spot will be walk-on Joe Roberts. If either falter, at least UCLA knows it can rely on Locke.

However, that isn't an ideal situation. Here is new special teams coach Jeff Ulbrich speaking about Fairbairn.

Right Guard

The right guard position is another possible problematic area for the roster.

Currently, junior Alberto Cid is slotted in as the starter. Of course, signifying a starter at the position is a fluid situation up until the first game of the season against Rice on August 30th.

By the looks of spring practice, it most certainly will be a question mark as to who concretely becomes a starter.

Cid was a junior college transfer last season. He played a decent amount of time, but was often plagued by a lack of conditioning.

With the newly implemented spread offense, Cid will have to get into better shape in order to keep up with the high octane tempo.

The other competitor at the guard spot is Wade Yandall. The Carson, California native has suffered four concussions the past two seasons—effectively keeping him out of action.

He just recently returned to action, looking to secure a starting position ahead of Cid.

Yandall has a much higher ceiling than Cid does, but it's a matter of Yandall staying healthy and learning the intricacies and nuances of the position. He's still a relatively raw football player with a lack of game experience.

Slot Receiver

Playmakers, anyone?

An unwillingness to throw the football was a big reason why UCLA's offense was so anemic during the "pistol years" under former head man Rick Neuheisel.

The skill position players simply weren't utilized to the best of their abilities.

Enter Noel Mazzone.

With the spread being brought over from Tempe, expect the Bruins to trot out four and even five wide receiver sets.

This offense is predicated upon getting athletes in space and allowing themselves to be creative in the open field.

A problem existing is that there's an overall lack of depth at the position, namely at the "F" and "Z" spot.

It's not that UCLA lacks in the talent department—it's just that none of the participants have much game experience.

Little used senior Jerry Johnson has been a revelation this spring with his strong play. In addition, the Bruins expect a lot out of redshirt freshman Devin Lucien.

At the "F" position, look for jitterbug Jordon James to be used often. He possesses great quickness and agility, and is seemingly tailor-made for this offense.

The Bruins signed a talented crop of receivers this past recruiting season. Look for Jordan Payton and Kenny Walker to be possible early contributors.