Examine UCLA OC Eric Bieniemy's struggles so far in 2024

The UCLA Bruins coaching staff has undergone a major overhaul following the departure of head coach Chip Kelly. In his wake, the Bruins named running backs coach DeShaun Foster head coach and hired Eric Bieniemy to lead the offense.

So far, both have had major problems in the Big Ten.

The Bruins' offense ranks 126th nationally in points per game and 125th in yards per game. This begs the question: What's going on?

First of all, Bieniemy didn't inherit an overly talented attacking group. From its passable receiver play to its below-average success on offense, UCLA is hardly one of the most talented offensive squads in the Big Ten.

While it's not Bieniemy's fault, even teams without high-end talent can develop systems to generate offense and points. For Bieniemy, he and the Bruins were lacking in both categories.

Additionally, many of Bieniemy's play calls look more vanilla than running a varied or unique offense. With simple plans and little misdirection, UCLA's already depleted roster is very predictable. The combination of substandard talent and poor schemes is likely the cause of UCLA's anemic offense.

If UCLA's offense continues to show little sign of improvement by the end of the year, Bieniemy could find himself on the hot seat similar to Foster.