UCLA is heading into Saturday night with one clear offensive priority: no more slow starts.
The Bruins will host Purdue at 8 p.m. at the Rose Bowl in the teams’ Big Ten Conference opener, and offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy made it plain that his group has to come out sharper than it did in the season’s first two games.
“We can’t wait,” Kennedy said. “In any team in college football, they’re good enough to beat you, and you’re good enough to beat them. I think the biggest piece for us is a huge stress point of putting our foot on the pedal for all four quarters.”
That urgency has been part of the conversation around junior quarterback Nico Iamaleava as he continues settling in under Kennedy. Iamaleava went 14 of 22 for 151 yards with one interception in UCLA’s 28-10 win over San Diego State on Saturday. The pick came from the 2-yard line on a throw intended for tight end Brayden Loftin in the end zone.
Kennedy said the adjustment process is about more than just timing and reads.
“Everything is about trust, and you got to prove that you have their back and they have to prove that they have our back and it’s about time,” Kennedy said. “It’s about football, but it’s also about a lot of the things from the meeting rooms from spring and fall camp just in terms of getting to know each other and proving to each other that you have each other’s best in mind.”
For UCLA, the cleaner early reps have shown up in practice this week, at least in Kennedy’s view. He said the Bruins got better work over the last three days leading into Purdue than they did before last week’s opener against the Aztecs.
And the challenge waiting on Saturday is not small. Purdue’s defense brings linebacker Charles Correa, a 2025 All-Big Ten Honorable Mention selection who had 12 tackles in Saturday’s 38-26 loss to Wake Forest, along with junior college transfer defensive end Jeremy Lewis, who posted five tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
Kennedy pointed to the rhythm of the week as a major factor in getting ready for that kind of opponent.
“It’s interesting because Tuesdays are base downs, Wednesdays are situations, and Thursdays are the day you put it all together,” Kennedy said. “You’re going to have mistakes on Wednesday when you’re talking about its new scheme on third down, and they’ll showcase different blitzes we haven’t seen up to this point.
They’ll do different things in coverage. You’re talking about the stress point of Thursday, that’s a day where you put it all together.
Tomorrow is a huge day for us.”
There’s also a personal connection on the other side of the ball. Purdue’s leading rusher, Fame Ijeboi, attended William Penn Charter in Philadelphia, the same high school as UCLA defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler.
“He’s a good player, and it’s been fun to watch his growth and following him through high school and watching him earn those scholarships and opportunities,” Hitschler said. “Those first two games, he’s jumped off the tape, and it’s exciting to watch a guy grow into that.
He’s got great potential in this game, and he’s going to go a long way. We have to do a good job of putting a physical shoulder on him and knocking him down because he’ll run through contact.”
Purdue’s offense has shown more than just a run threat. Junior quarterback Ryan Browne has completed 32 of 42 passes for 329 yards and one touchdown without an interception, and the Boilermakers have also added more help at receiver with Florida Atlantic transfer Asaad Waseem and Iowa State transfer Xavier Townsend.
Hitschler said Browne looks like a quarterback who is benefiting from the upgraded pieces around him.
“He was a good quarterback last year,” Hitschler said. “They’ve got better weapons around him, and you’re starting to see his potential pay off with more open guys, finding the open seam, and basically not having to win games by himself last year, which put him in danger of throwing takeaways. We have to find a way of creating takeaways.”
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