PASADENA, Calif. >> In the Rose Bowl, the Hawaii football team met its thorn.
UCLA quarterback Josh “The Chosen” Rosen threw passes everywhere the Rainbow Warriors did not want them to be in a 56-23 rout.
Rosen was 22-for-25 — one pass was dropped, another struck the back of a leaping cornerback’s helmet — for 329 yards and five touchdowns. Rosen was hit only three times, never forced to scramble, and led the Bruins to touchdowns on all eight of the full possessions he was taking snaps.
“There’s a reason he’s an NFL Draft pick in the future,” UH coach Nick Rolovich said of Rosen, widely regarded as one of the top three quarterback prospects for the 2018 draft. “We knew that coming in. I’m impressed. He’s not just a pretty arm. He’s a quarterback. As a former quarterback, you can respect that.”
Rosen missed the final six games of the 2016 season because of an injury to his right (throwing) shoulder. During the offseason, the Bruins hired Jedd Fisch, who served as Michigan’s passing-game coordinator the past two years, as offensive coordinator. Fisch’s multiple-set offense was assembled using parts from innovative coaches Steve Spurrier, Mike Shanahan, Pete Carroll and Jim Harbaugh. The formations range from double tight ends to four-wide spreads. The key is allowing Rosen enough pocket protection to count to “four Mississippi.”
Rosen opened with four consecutive passes to the right side. He then lofted a 25-yard fade to slotback Darren Andrews on the left side for a 7-0 lead. It was the first of three scoring plays between Rosen and Andrews, who uses pre-snap motions and speed (4.5 seconds over 40 yards) to weave through defenses.
“It’s been enjoyable to watch him work,” Fisch said of Rosen, who has led 12 consecutive scoring drives over the past two games. “He’s really worked hard at it to be locked in.”
The Warriors tried several counterattacks. They blitzed safeties. They ran line stunts. Kalen Hicks, playing the newly created rover position, played bump-and-bump-some-more coverage on tight end Caleb Wilson, who had 15 catches for 208 yards in UCLA’s season-opening victory a week ago. On Saturday, Wilson’s first reception came with 14:44 to play.
“An offense like this and a quarterback like this, they don’t depend on one guy,” UH defensive coordinator Legi Suiaunoa said. “They’re a team filled with a lot of good players. It’s not a deal where you come in and try to take one guy away. You have to play sound defense and execute a game plan you practiced all week. At the end of the day, hopefully, you did more of that than they did.”
Although Rosen has displayed scrambling ability in the past, he is most comfortable on 3- or 5-step drops out of the shotgun. The Bruins gave Rosen time with a maximum protection utilizing 6-foot-2, 250-pound fullback Giovanni Gentosi as a flex blocker or spreading the formation with the intent of thinning the Warriors’ coverage.
“We gave (Rosen) too much time in the pocket,” UH linebacker Solomon Matautia said. “He was able to sit back. If we got home a little bit more, hit him more times, it would have been a little different.”
With time came options. Rosen also threw scoring passes to wideout Theo Howard and Wilson. Demetri Felton and Bo Olorunfunmi each had 1-yard touchdown runs.
“We didn’t get close enough to (Rosen) to get him off track,” Suiaunoa said. “He was comfortable all game. He was able to go through his progressions. He was efficient with the offense. … They did a better job protecting him than we did rushing him.”
The Warriors struggled to find an offensive rhythm. They out-gained the Bruins 515 yards to 505, but four of their drives ended in UCLA territory without points. Darnay Holmes, a freshman who was regarded as one of nation’s top cornerback recruits, scored on a 30-yard interception return.
“Our schemes are good,” UH quarterback Dru Brown said. “We executed. But little things caught up to us that didn’t necessarily catch up to us the first two weeks. Against a good team like this, things get magnified.”
The Warriors committed eight penalties, and now have 28 in three games.
“We can get drives going, cross the 50, and then a negative play or penalty — something sets us back,” offensive coordinator Brian Smith said. “We’re not good enough to overcome those things. We’ve got to learn to play a little more disciplined and eliminate those mistakes.”
Running back Diocemy Saint Juste rushed for 154 yards. He also caught his first pass of the season, a 4-yarder for a touchdown. The Warriors also gambled on special teams. But Ryan Meskell was wide left on a 50-yard attempt. Punter Stan Gaudion ran 19 yards on a fake punt, but was tackled 3 yards short of the first down.
After the game, Rolovich was in a hopeful mood. The Warriors return to Honolulu this morning. They have a bye this week, then open the Mountain West schedule with a road game against Wyoming on Sept. 23.
“I don’t need to kick the dog when he’s down,” Rolovich said. “These guys need to know that we love them. I told them the only thing I’d get pissed at them is if they quit on us, quit on each other. I don’t think we did. They kept going out there and battling. That’s what we need.”
More photos of the game between Hawaii and UCLA. Opens in a new tab
