WATCH: UCLA DT Keanu Williams previews Washington run game
The UCLA defense has had its share of issues stopping the run this season, and another potent offense awaits when Washington visits the Rose Bowl on Saturday night.
Five teams have run for at least 199 yards against the Bruins this season. New Mexico was two yards shy of reaching 300 on Sept. 12, marking UCLA’s worst performance of the year that cost former head coach DeShaun Foster his job after just three games.
While the defense showed improvement in October under interim head coach Tim Skipper and defensive playcaller Kevin Coyle, stopping the run has become an issue, again, in recent weeks. Ohio State and Indiana, the nation’s top two teams, ran for 222 and 262 yards, respectively, during UCLA’s three-game losing streak heading into this weekend.
“I mean, some of it’s just they’re good players,” Bruins defensive tackle Keanu Williams said of the quality of opponents after Tuesday’s practice. “You know, they make good plays and they take advantage of mistakes that we make, you know? And when you play Indiana, Ohio State, these big-time teams, you can’t afford to make small mistakes because those small mistakes, they take it 60, they take it to a touchdown. So that’s been really the main thing is just we make a mistake, they take advantage of it. We gotta be on point at all times.”
Mobile QBs continue to cause issues
The Bruins have particularly struggled containing the legs of opposing quarterbacks since Utah’s Devon Dampier scampered for a game-high 87 yards and a touchdown in the season opener in late August.
During the three-game slide, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza and Nebraska’s TJ Lateef combined to run for 76 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Mendoza’s younger brother, Alberto, also ran for 39 yards and touchdown on four carries in mop-up duty.
Huskies quarterback Demond Williams Jr. is second on the team in rushing, collecting 512 yards and four touchdowns on 115 carries.
“You can’t completely stop a mobile quarterback, but you can minimize ’em, you know what I mean?” Williams said. “So, any ways we can slow him down and get him to think, I feel like that’s gonna be better off for us in the sense of stopping a mobile quarterback.”
DT Keanu Williams media availability (11/18)
Watch his full press conference below, including thoughts on his collegiate career nearing the end:
