Goliath doesn’t appear as big as it once was for the Bruins.
Three weeks into its at-once incomprehensible three-game winning streak — defeating Maryland, Michigan State and then-No. 7 Penn State — UCLA is back on the road, looking to play upset again. Defeating No. 2 Indiana, however, may actually require a David-like performance on the road in Bloomington.
“It is crazy how disciplined they are – Coach (Curt) Cignetti does a great job with those guys,” Skipper said of the undefeated Hoosiers earlier this week. “They are very, very disciplined in all three phases.”
Skipper’s not wrong. Indiana (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) brought in a familiar face from the Pac-12’s past to lead its offense in 2025. In a potential Heisman Trophy-candidate season so far, former Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza caller has tossed 21 touchdowns for 1,755 passing yards. Mendoza has thrown only two interceptions, as Indiana is ranked first in passing efficiency nationally, which helps lead the fourth-ranked scoring offense (43.9 points per game).
The Hoosiers have averaged 497.3 yards per game while defeating their opponents by an average of 32.2 points per game. To put it mildly, UCLA (3-4, 3-1) has its hands full despite the Bruins’ hot streak that saw it picked for Fox’s Big Noon on Saturday.
Kevin Coyle, UCLA’s defensive play-caller whom defensive backs coach Demetrice Martin coined a “mad scientist” earlier this week, is up to the challenge of slowing down Indiana. The senior defensive analyst, who arrived in Westwood from Syracuse after three games, recognizes the difficulty of facing the Hoosiers but looks forward to the battle.
“This is a really impressive, well-coached football team,” Coyle said. “They’re old-school, which I like because that’s kind of what I am. But they play the game the way it’s supposed to be played. They don’t make mistakes.”
He continued: “We’re gonna have to play – clearly – better than we have played up to this point to be able to slow them down. … We’ll give it our best swing.”
Under Coyle, the Bruins have successfully slowed their foes.
Northwestern has scored more than 17 against its last three opponents after defeating UCLA 17-14. UCLA stalled the high-powered Maryland offense to just one offensive touchdown last week. And against Michigan State, on the Spartans’ homecoming, the Bruins stymied their opponents to their lowest points total at home since getting shut out by Michigan in 2023.
Stopping Mendoza, however, is going to require a full team effort.
“He knows where he needs to go with the ball; he gets it there,” Martin said. “He very rarely makes mistakes. … They’re a great outfit. (Mendoza is) a reason why they’re unscathed right now.”
What does Demetrice Martin’s son, redshirt sophomore defensive back Cole Martin, see from the players’ side? He credited the rest of the Hoosiers’ offense – running backs Kaelon Black and Roman Hemby as well as wide receivers Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. – but everything falls back to the man in the middle.
It falls back to the man Cignetti trusted to replace Kurtis Rourke after reaching College Football Playoff highs a year ago.
“We got a good challenge with him,” Cole Martin said, “and we got to go perform.”
When Indiana has the ball: Who leads the NCAA in yards per pass? Mendoza. Who leads the nation in quarterback rating? You guessed it. Indiana will likely bully its way downfield through the air and trust the wideout duo of Sarratt and Cooper to make it happen. Even Hemby, out of the backfield, has become a target of Mendoza’s through the air.
Don’t be surprised if Mendoza targets shorter defensive backs like Rodrick Pleasant and Martin downfield, as the under-6-foot defensive backs may struggle to defend Sarratt and Cooper, who are 6 foot or taller.
When UCLA has the ball: The Bruins better hope the multi-turnover day from a week ago does not show up in Bloomington, as it will need an ultra-efficient day from quarterback Nico Iamaleava at the office to have a chance. Running back Anthony Woods is still recovering from an ailment that prevented him from practicing during the media-watching period Wednesday.
Woods’ absence could see Anthony Frias II and Jalen Berger continue to get an extended run as lead tailbacks, as Jaivian Thomas also left last week’s game with an injury.
UCLA (3-4 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) at No. 2 Indiana (7-0, 4-0)
When: 9 a.m. PT Saturday
Where: Indiana University Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Ind.
TV/radio: FOX (Ch. 11)/790 AM