There’s a lot to learn from UCLA’s 17-15 win over Oregon, and a lot of credit to be distributed. It was not an easy game by any means, but the Bruins battled until the end and escaped with their first win against Oregon in Eugene since 2004.
In the contest, here are four players who had the most positive impact on their stock moving forward.
Ty Dieffenbach
The most obvious name is Ty Dieffenbach. If you didn’t watch this game and just checked the box score, you may be confused as to why his stock would be rising. After all, he only completed three passes for 43 yards on the day.
Dieffenbach was put in a very tough situation. He revealed in a postgame press conference that he had no prior knowledge that he would be the first quarterback to enter the game if Iamaleava were to get injured. When that came to reality, Dieffenbach had to spring into action in a loud road environment against a top-15 team in the country. Given the circumstances, I thought he looked solid in managing the second half of the game.
With uncertainty surrounding Iamaleava and the injury he sustained against Oregon, it’s unclear whether this team will be relying on Dieffenbach even more moving forward.
Scooter Jackson
One player I was continually impressed with was cornerback Scooter Jackson. While it may not show up a ton in the box score, he was continually involved in incompletions. I made several notes while watching Jackson, and he was a major part of the defense's ability to continually get off the field.
Ta’Shawn James
Another player in the secondary who continues to impress is Ta’Shawn James. For a player who didn’t initially have a starting role to begin the season, he has quickly become a crucial piece of this defense. His ability to take the ball away this season has been matched only by Sammy Omosigho’s ability to punch balls loose. James is second in the country in interceptions and grabbed another one against the Ducks on Saturday.
Semaj Morgan
We’ve been waiting to see whether any member of this wide receiver unit would reveal themselves as the clear-cut number one target. While it’s not exactly clear by any means, it seems like Morgan has the best chance moving forward.
UCLA's passing game was abysmal against the Ducks, but Morgan seemed to be the most reliable receiver on the field. With uncertainties at quarterback, it could shake things up, but I project Morgan to be WR1 moving forward.
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