UCLA's big training camp secret exposed by Utah in Bruins' blowout loss

Utah quarterback Devon Dampier fends off UCLA linebacker Isaiah Chisom during the third quarter of the Bruins' season-opening loss Saturday at the Rose Bowl.(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

From the first snap of training camp, DeShaun Foster tightly controlled any narratives about his team.

Reporters never knew how much - or little - of UCLA's practice sessions they would get to watch, one day being limited to eight minutes of stretching. Mostly they saw individual drills, field goals and - in recent weeks - one snap of the full offense going against the defense.

Photography and video were banned, even at a Rose Bowl practice open to spectators who faced no such restrictions. Foster preferred to let the team's social media posts and internally produced video series suffice as the story of his team.

As of late Saturday night, the story could no longer be kept secret.

Read more:His Tennessee turmoil behind him, Nico Iamaleava forges a happy UCLA homecoming

The Bruins don't appear to be any good.

In a clunker of a season opener, they couldn't tackle on defense or consistently move the ball on offense behind new quarterback Nico Iamaleava.

While it's important to throw in the caveat that it's just one game, UCLA's 43-10 loss to Utah at the Rose Bowl represented a giant step backward after the Bruins had closed their first season under Foster with four wins in their final six games.

We went out there and, you know, we got punched in the mouth, man," Iamaleava said.

Eleven NFL scouts, including representatives from the Rams and Chargers, probably won't be returning to watch anyone on a UCLA defense that missed a slew of tackles and failed to put any semblance of pressure on Utah quarterback Devon Dampier, whose fingerprints and footprints could be found all over this game.

Just a slippery guy," Foster said. You know, it was hard to get our hands on him and really get him down."

Dampier completed 21 of 25 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns while running for 87 yards. He basically put the game out of reach late in the third quarter when he ran untouched into the end zone on fourth and goal from the UCLA two-yard line to give the Utes a 30-10 cushion. Utah rolled up 492 yards of offense while converting 14 of 17 third downs.

Utah quarterback Devon Dampier scores a touchdown against the Bruins in the third quarter Saturday.(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Meanwhile, Iamaleava enjoyed only a few pockets of success during his first game running new offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri's scheme. Iamaleava completed 11 of 22 passes for 136 yards with one touchdown and an interception midway through the fourth quarter that sent large swaths of fans headed for home. He ran for 47 yards in 13 carries, proving to be his team's best option on the ground.

UCLA's running backs weren't nearly as productive. Tailbacks Jalen Berger, Jaivian Thomas and Anthony Woods combined for just 37 yards, averaging 2.5 yards per carry. Wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer compounded his team's inability to move the ball by dropping a pass while cutting across the field on third and four.

All self-inflicted," Iamaleava said of the mistakes that kept the Bruins from consistently moving the ball. You know, we didn't execute well tonight."

UCLA's preseason secrecy appeared warranted by halftime, when the Utes outclassed the Bruins on the way to a 23-7 advantage.

The Bruins' inability to get any pressure on Dampier was the big story. Dampier had all the time he needed to throw and run while accounting for 170 yards (including 78 on the ground) and completing 10 of 13 passes. The only way to stop him appeared to be having his helmet come off in the second quarter, which would have forced him to come out for a play had the Utes not smartly called a timeout so that he could return.

UCLA coach DeShaun Foster runs onto the field before Saturday's loss to Utah at the Rose Bowl.(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

After dragging down Dampier for a one-yard loss in the second quarter - one of his team's two tackles for loss in the game - UCLA linebacker Isaiah Chisom found himself outmaneuvered by the quarterback in the backfield in the third quarter. Chisom pinned the tackling issues on a lack of discipline.

With my play, it's really about eye position," Chisom said. If you try to reach around somebody's shoulders, you're - no matter how strong or how much you bench or squat - you're going to fall off."

Utah converted its first six third-down attempts, including a third and four in which Wayshawn Parker ran off tackle for a 13-yard touchdown and a third and three in which UCLA safety Key Lawrence missed a potential tackle for loss, allowing Smith Snowden to run for an eight-yard touchdown.

The Bruins did almost as little tackling in their opener as they did in the preseason.

We've just got to come back in, regroup and really just grade yourself and be hard on yourself," Foster said. This isn't going to be easy and you can't just go in there and point the finger at other people - you've really got to see, what did I do to help this team?"

Everything was tilting in the Utes' favor when Dampier found linebacker - you read that right - Lander Barton in the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown. Utah led 20-0 and it was fair to wonder if UCLA could mount a sustained drive.

Iamaleava answered emphatically, showing some slippery moves of his own on a 21-yard run and later completing a 21-yard touchdown pass to Woods on a wheel route that finally put the Bruins on the board midway through the second quarter.

There wouldn't be many positives for UCLA the rest of the way.

Read more:UCLA's training camp a real tearjerker as players, coaches open up to bond

Foster said his one promising takeaway was the resolve his players showed in the locker room afterward, indicating they were ready to get back to practice to fix the many things that went wrong.

They understand that we've got to stay together and we can't splinter," Foster said. We are a team, we've built this brotherhood over these last few months and I think that they're just disappointed in what happened, the outcome of this game, but they're ready to work and stay together and move forward."

UCLA was similarly beaten down by Indiana on its home field last season as part of a 1-5 start before sparking a late-season turnaround. The hope is that these Bruins can rebound much sooner, starting with Nevada Las Vegas next week.

The only way is up from here," Iamaleava said. We've got to continue to get better."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.