UCLA vs. Arizona State: Game Grades for Bruins, Sun Devils

Led by an Arizona native in Brett Hundley, UCLA stormed into the desert Thursday night and smashed Arizona State by a score of 62-27.

UCLA's signal-caller didn't let his hyperextended left elbow deter him at all. He threw for 355 yards and four touchdowns on the night. Hundley also scrambled for 70 yards and a touchdown in the process. He looked confident, comfortable and clinical. 

Arizona State was absolutely crippled by the big play. The Bruins had five plays of at least 80 yards. Shoddy kick coverage and poor tackling were the culprits behind much of UCLA's success. 

Mike Bercovici did have a solid game, in which he went 42-of-68 for 488 yards and three touchdowns. However, his inexperience did rear its ugly head at times.

An ill-advised throw on the final drive of the first half led to an Ishmael Adams' interception return for a touchdown. This was arguably the biggest play in the game, firmly shooting momentum over to the Bruins. 

A full box score can be found here, courtesy of NCAA.com.

Check out first-half grades and final grades for both the Bruins and the Sun Devils. Additional analysis for different positional units will also be addressed. 

Position Unit	First-Half Grades	Final Grades
Passing Offense	A	A
Pass Defense	B-	C
Rushing Offense	B+	A
Run Defense	B+	A-
Special Teams	A	A+
Coaching	B	A

UCLA Bruins Game Grades Analysis

Passing Offense

Hundley was terrific. His vision on throws down the field was immensely impressive. Although he had five incompletions, two of those were egregious drops. He was constantly in control the entire evening. 

Despite wearing a bulky elbow brace, Hundley had his best game this season and perhaps ever as the UCLA quarterback.

Pass Defense

This wasn't a tremendous effort across the board. ASU's quarterback did throw for almost 500 yards. However, the Sun Devils were forced to throw on almost every play in the second half (due to the scoreline). As a result, these numbers are a bit skewed.

Adams' interception return for a touchdown was the biggest play of the game. It gave UCLA the momentum, which ultimately propelled the team to the victory. Anthony Jefferson's coverage of Jaelen Strong was particularly solid. His interception will go down as one of the more impressive plays Thursday night (in a night full of impressive plays). 

Rushing Offense

Although the team got off to a slow start early, offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone stuck with the ground game. Hundley's ability to evade the rush and scramble for first downs was demoralizing for the ASU defense. 

Perkins really picked up his effort in the second half. His ability to gash ASU's defense up the middle enabled UCLA to chew up time on the clock. His juke of ASU safety Jordan Simone in the fourth quarter was absolutely ridiculous.

The offensive line also deserves a good bit of credit. Not only did the unit keep Hundley protected but the running backs (and quarterback) rolled up 225 yards on the ground. 

Run Defense

It was apparent UCLA's defensive scheme was set on stopping D.J. Foster. The defensive line did a great job of stuffing plays between the tackles. As a result, ASU was forced to get Foster out on the perimeter, simply as a way to get him more production. 

UCLA held one of the nation's best to 30 yards on nine carries. ASU in total rushed for a paltry 3.7 yards per carry average. Credit especially goes to Eddie Vanderdoes and Eric Kendricks. Both were all over the place. Kendricks in particular was tremendous in shooting through gaps to make plays.

Special Teams

What more can Adams do? The electric returner displayed why he's one of the nation's best in this specific category. His ability to stop and start on a dime makes him truly special. 

Kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn was perfect on all of his field-goal attempts. Punters Matt Mengel and Adam Searl were also solid in pinning ASU deep in its own territory.

Coaching

Mazzone called a great game offensively. The play-calling was dynamic, especially in terms of throwing the ball down the field. Jeff Ulbrich didn't have a great start to the game schematically. ASU was picking up yards in big chunks. However, he made adjustments and held ASU to only 10 points after the first quarter. 

In short, UCLA outscored ASU 56-10 after the first quarter. This sort of domination could truly galvanize the Bruins going forward. UCLA is now 20-0 under Mora when leading at halftime. 

Position Unit	First-Half Grades	Final Grades
Passing Offense	B	B+
Pass Defense	C	D
Rushing Offense	C+	C+
Run Defense	B	C-
Special Teams	A	C
Coaching	D	D

Arizona State Sun Devils Game Grades Analysis

Passing Offense

A bright spot was the statistical output by the reserve signal-caller. Bercovici threw for 488 yards and three touchdowns. A few of his throws were beautiful, and much of his effectiveness came when he was afforded time to sit in the pocket and deliver the ball down the field. 

The poor throw at the end of the first half was a back-breaker. However, his play as a whole has to be encouraging. "Berco" is a solid option for ASU until (or if) Taylor Kelly can come back. In this game, Bercovici set school records for completions (42) and attempts (68). 

Pass Defense

In a word, abysmal. Blown coverages led to big plays by Thomas Duarte over the heart of the field. Three missed tackles turned a five-yard Eldridge Massington catch into an 80-yard touchdown. Jordan Payton started the second half with an 80-yard touchdown reception. 

It was a bad night for the secondary. Nothing else needs to be said. 

Rushing Offense

The rushing attack never was able to fully get its footing. UCLA did do a good job of winning the line of scrimmage with its defensive line. Foster, Kalen Ballage, Demario Richard and Deantre Lewis weren't having the luxury of running through gaping holes or lanes. 

By the time ASU got down by three touchdowns, offensive coordinator Mike Norvell was forced to effectively abandon the ground game. In totality, ASU rushed for only 134 yards on 36 carries. 

Run Defense

ASU's biggest problem was its inability to tackle well in space. On multiple occasions, Perkins was able to juke defenders for extra yardage. Hundley's scrambling also posed big time issues.

On the night, the young defense relinquished 225 yards rushing. UCLA ran to the tune of 6.4 yards per carry. 

Special Teams

Aside from its own kicking game, ASU had immense trouble all night. Adams' ability to slice the kick coverage was a constant problem. The 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown effectively ended the game early in the third quarter. 

Coaching

The last drive in the first half sticks out the most. Throughout the first half, Todd Graham's propensity to call timeouts at strange moments left ASU with none during this final stretch. Down three points with less than a minute left, a bizarre quarterback draw was called. 

The ill-advised decision to throw the ball on the next play led to an interception return for a touchdown. It was truly poor clock management and game management for that matter.

Defensively, ASU had no answer for UCLA's ability to throw the ball down the field. In terms of adjustments made at halftime, there were apparently none. 

I do consider Graham to be a very good coach. However, Thursday night wasn't his best showing.