Stopping The Two-Headed Rushing Attack
In the season opener in week zero, the UCLA Bruins got off to a fast start with their top two running backs. Former Michigan Wolverine Zach Charbonnet was the lead dog on Saturday. He rushed for over 100 yards on limited carries. His yards per attempt come in with a blistering 17.7, Charbonnet added one reception for another 14 yards. His yards from scrimmage averaged out to 17.1 yards per touch.
The other back being former Duke Blue Devil, Brittain Brown. Against Hawaii, he added 99 yards from scrimmage. This is his second season with the Bruins after three seasons at Duke. He carried the ball 13 times for an average of 6.0 yards per carry with one touchdown. Brown also hauled in two passes for 21 yards.
The LSU defense needs to be ready to slow down this attack. Especially Charbonnet who was able to bounce off would-be tacklers with ease. The Tigers defense is a little more fundamentally sound than Hawaii showed in week one. If the front four can cause penetration at a consistent clip, they should be able to limit the big plays in the running game.
The defense needs to force UCLA to take to the air in this game. Dorian Thompson-Robinson complete 50% of his passes against the Rainbow Warriors secondary. The idea is to make DTR prove that last year’s season where he completed 65.2% of his attempts was a fluke.