The Chip Kelly era at UCLA was supposed to start off with a bang. But after losing his starting quarterback, the new start in Westwood is off to a shaky start.
Things were supposed to be going much smoother for Chip Kelly back in the college game.
It was supposed to be a new dawn, a new era at UCLA with an innovative offense that would set Hollywood ablaze. Alas, that appears to not be the case as the Bruins lost their starting quarterback and didn’t look very inspiring as they trailed Cincinnati 17-10 at half.
Part of the reason for the Bruins dismal start to the season is the injury to Wilton Speight, who was only recently named the starter after transferring from Michigan.
DTR's first pass is complete to Theo Howard. Wilton Speight, meanwhile, walking toward the locker room with trainers and a towel draped over his head.
— Thuc Nhi Nguyen (@thucnhi21) September 2, 2018
Yep, that’s the dreaded “towel draped over head” moment, which signals that Speight could be missing some time. But all is not lost, though, as Kelly may have a secret ace up his sleeve.
Enter Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who rode in from Las Vegas’s Bishop Gorman High School as the nation’s No. 2 dual-threat recruit and No. 34 overall prospect. Thompson-Robinson pushed Speight in the offseason for the right to be the team’s starting quarterback before Kelly went with the more experienced option.
Now that Speight is out, this may be the perfect time for Thompson-Robinson to show Kelly and Bruins Nation why they were so high on him coming out of high school. He’s making them smile already, with Thompson-Robinson hitting all four of his passes and not turning the ball over.
The Bruins are down only a touchdown with plenty of time to go, so Thompson-Robinson will have every opportunity display his talent. Who knows? The injury to Speights may be a blessing in disguise for Kelly, as it may allow him to right a potential wrong.