Brett Hundley Blames NFL Draft Decision For UCLA’s Early Season Struggles

ByPatrick Schmidt|

Nov 1, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Brett Hundley (17) runs the ball during the second quarter against the Arizona Wildcats at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley admits thinking about his future in the NFL attributed to some early season struggles for the Bruins

Brett Hundley faced a difficult decision at the end of his redshirt sophomore season after leading the UCLA Bruins to a 10-3 record. Hundley was projected as a potential first round pick by most NFL Draft experts so he could have declared for the draft and cashed in on his lofty potential, but he elected to return to UCLA for the 2014 season, a decision he admits could have played a part in the Bruins early struggles.

More from College Football

Hundley led UCLA to a 17-7 win over Arizona to snap a two-game home losing streak and outside of the 62-27 win over Arizona State when they were without starting quarterback Taylor Kelly, UCLA has won five of their other six games by one possession or less as they have failed to live up to preseason expectations as a potential College Football Playoff participant.

One reason why they haven’t looked like the team we thought they would be is because Hundley has changed his game in an effort to show NFL teams he can make plays in the pocket and made a concerted effort not to run as often.

“I think at the beginning of the season, there was a lot of thought,” Hundley told the Los Angeles Times, “and I think it even got to me as far as not to run.”

“When you want to go to the next level, you want to show people you can do things,”Hundley continued, per the Times. “Sometimes it changed your game, honestly … Even though there’s a future ahead that you want to get to, you can’t focus on that, honestly, because it will really throw your game off. If you don’t make the throws you want to, if you’re scared to make mistakes, it will really throw your game off.”

Hundley has 546 yards on the season on 128 carries after rushing 24 times for 131 yards in the win against Arizona that gave the Bruins hope at a Pac-12 south title as we may need to see the 2013 version of Hundley more during the three regular season games left if UCLA is going to make a run at the title.

Last year Hundley ran 160 times for 748 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Even if he’s not running as often as last year, his accuracy in the pocket has caught the attention of scouts with a 71 percent completion percentage, second best in the nation.

For more college football coverage this weekend stay on FanSided.com to stay on top of the latest updates around the world of college football, including the latest scores, news, injury updates, videos and gif’s, so be sure to follow @FanSidedGIF on twitter so you don’t miss any of the jaw-dropping plays.

More from FanSided

Home/College Football