Clark Phillips (CB – Utah) vs UCLA’s Offense
Well as it turns out the perfect storm of UCLA’s quick passing game and Clark Phillips’ aggression did in fact lead to a big defensive play – as I predicted in our preview article. Phillips jumped a Dorian Thompson-Robinson pass to the curl concept and returned the interception 82 yards for a touchdown. Unfortunately for Utah, this big play didn’t really affect the game as it occurred with the Utes trailing by 17 with under a minute to go.
Phillips had a relatively uneventful day. This is usually good news for a corner. Utah played Phillips in the slot mostly and had him off-ball in the seven to nine yard range. It appears the plan was to allow quick passes from the Bruins then rally and make a tackle. Phillips rarely saw the ball thrown his way outside of the pick six and a quick touchdown on a slant route exposing Phillips’ deep leverage. Utah was unable to stop UCLA’s ground game which led to offensive production. Overall, a solid outing for Phillips.