There wasn’t a lot for UCLA coach DeShaun Foster to elaborate on after his Bruins lost 43-10 to Utah late Saturday night at the Rose Bowl.
The season opener for both squads turned into a one-sided affair as the Utes rolled up nearly 500 yards of total offense behind the leadership of quarterback Devon Dampier.
UCLA, meanwhile, struggled to get things going either offensively or defensively to start off Foster’s second season as the Bruins’ head coach.
With Tennessee transfer quarterback Nico Iamaleava making his debut, UCLA managed just 220 yards of total offense and never found a rhythm.
The coach, who said his team has “a lot to learn from,” gave credit to Utah for the way the Utes took care of business.
“We played a good team. They came out and played their style of play, and don’t want to take anything away from them,” he told reporters, according to postgame video from UCLA.
“They were able to execute and do what they wanted to do out there on the field.”
Utah’s offense was able to execute behind the dual-threat quarterback Dampier. The Utes converted 14 of 16 third-down attempts, often finding themselves in third and manageable situations, and scored on seven of their first eight possessions, including six touchdowns.
Foster attributed those third-down defensive struggles to the dynamic that Dampier, who threw for 206 yards and ran for 87 more while accounting for three touchdowns, brings to the field.
Foster also gave credit to Utah’s offensive line that returns five starters and two first-round caliber starting tackles.
“(Dampier is) just a slippery guy. You know, it was hard to get our hands on him and really get him down,” Foster said. “You see why he was able to come up to this level and play now.
“He was being successful, can make the first defender miss, maybe the first two, and extend plays. They did a good job playing off schedule and just were able to continue to move to chains the whole game.”
Utah fans got a chance to see a former Ute have a successful night. Running back Anthony Woods, who never played at Utah last season due to an ACL injury after transferring from Idaho during the 2024 offseason, had one of the better nights for the Bruins offense.
While Woods had three carries for 13 yards, he also caught three passes for a team-high 48 yards and a 19-yard touchdown for the only Bruins TD of the night.
“He did a great job,” Foster said of Woods. “That’s something that he’s been doing since he’s been here. Really took off in training camp, and you can see that he’s far removed from his ACL and ready to continue to play play ball.”
