Will Bruin QB Josh Rosen Be Bitten By The Dreaded Sophomore Jinx??

No Comments September 13, 2016 UCLA Football By John Stellman

Coming out of St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, California, Josh Rosen had enough accolades to fill …whatever!

As a 6’4, 218 pound quarterback, Rosen had his football future in the palm of his hands.

He had just completed the 2014-2015 prep football season. leaving behind memories that will last a lifetime.

Glowing Resume

Discounting his freshmen year (1 completion, 2 attempts, 5 yards) Rosen threw for 8,468 yards and 90 touchdowns.

He averaged 197 passing yards per game and had a career quarterback rating of 122.0.

Rivals.com and Scout.com, two prominent recruiting websites, both recognized him as a 5-Star prospect and the best quarterback in the class. Rivals went a step further. They classified him as the top high school recruit, PERIOD!

In March, 2014 Rosen verbally committed to UCLA. His September signing made it official.

Rosen was a Bruin!

Early Enrollee

He enrolled and started taking classes in January, 2015 and with three year starter Brett Hundley on his way to the National Football League it was clear sailing.

The son of a Jewish father and a Quaker Christian mother did not disappoint.

In his freshmen season Rosen distinguished himself admirably. He completed 292 of 487 passes (60.0%) for 3,670 yards, 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His QB rating? 134.3

He led the Bruins to an 8-5 record and a 5-4 mark in the PAC-12 South Division. That was good enough for a respectable third place finish behind USC and Utah.

Just Getting Started

With Rosen firmly implanted as the UCLA signal caller for the next three years, there is plenty of reason for optimism on the Westwood campus.

Even though they stubbed their toes in the 2016 opener at College Station, Texas, the Bruin future looks bright.

And despite being on the short end of a 31-24 overtime defeat at the hands of Texas A&M, Rosen had an encouraging, workman like performance.

Not A Happy Camper

But he wasn’t pleased.

Overall, the second year starter completed 26 of 46 passes for 343 yards and did throw for one touchdown.

Still, he got off to a shaky start and was not happy about it.

In three trips to the red zone in the first half, the Bruins came up empty. Passes were dropped, Rosen overthrew receivers and the offensive line was overpowered.

“I wasn’t in the right frame of mind in the first half,” Rosen told Thuc Nhi Nguyen of The Southern California News Group.

“It took too long to get going, and that can’t happen if we’re going to be the team we want to be,” the QB suggested.

Rosen was operating under heavy pressure in the first 30 minutes. He was sacked twice and hit another four times by an aggressive Aggie defensive front.

“I played a pretty abysmal first half,” Rosen admitted.

Comforting Coach

“Coach (Jim Mora) is going to try and be Coach and try to console me and say it wasn’t all you, but I think I missed some incredibly key opportunities to take advantage of.

I can’t try to compete to be the best quarterback in the country and throw three picks. It just doesn’t happen like that,” Rosen realizes.

The three picks equaled a career high he established last season in a victory over BYU.

Sub Standard Performance

“I just wasn’t playing the way I should and not playing up to my standard, not even damn close to my standard,” Rosen continued.

“I don’t care what the stats say,” the sophomore confessed. “If I would have connected on some of those balls, we absolutely, I think, would have been on the positive side of the scoreboard.”

“Josh hasn’t taken a snap (this season) from center before (today). I thought he did a good job with his foot work, made some great throws.

Too Critical

He’s going to be over analyzed, but maybe he’s brought that on himself,” said offensive coordinator Kennedy Polamalu.

“He can get better and he knows that.

…I wouldn’t trade Josh Rosen for any quarterback in the country.

It’s hard to remember that he’s only a sophomore,” Polamalu concluded.

The JINX?

Forget about it.

IT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!

image: ucla.rivals.com

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John Stellman

I was born with sports in my blood. I began coaching little league baseball at 15. I was the sports editor of my high school newspaper. I did football play by play for the college radio station. I broadcast high school basketball for a local commercial station. But baseball was always my passion. During the 1970's I covered the Angels for the Orange County Register. And now I am back where I belong...