UCLA football breakdown: How the Bruins look at quarterback
Coach Chip Kelly’s handling of the quarterback situation only appeared to complicate the offense and the 2023 season for the Bruins.
After landing five-star recruit Dante Moore from Detroit King High and transfer Collin Schlee from Kent State, the Bruins entered camp with a promising group that also featured returning backup Ethan Garbers.
Garbers was initially tabbed as the starter for the 2023 season opener against Coastal Carolina after taking most of the first-team reps in the lead-up to that game, but things quickly fell out of favor for him. He completed 10 of 17 passes for 121 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in less than a half before Moore took over.
The quarterback carousel started from that moment on, with all three quarterbacks making multiple starts.
“There was a lot of times where I just kind of wanted to quit a little bit, but hey, I got to keep my head straight, I got to keep moving cause you never know what could happen,” Garbers said in late October. “I mean you’re always one play away, you’re always one snap away.”
Five days after the Bruins’ disastrous regular-season finale against Cal in which he was sacked six times, Moore was reported to be entering the transfer portal. Schlee started the L.A. Bowl Game but was injured early in the third quarter, opening the door for Garbers to earn the victory over Boise State and MVP honors before publicly announcing that he’ll be back for the upcoming season.
Garbers is expected to earn first-team reps to start spring ball ahead of the Bruins’ inaugural season in the Big Ten Conference, but nothing is guaranteed beyond that with a talented group of quarterbacks in the shadows.
Here’s a full breakdown of UCLA’s quarterback room entering spring ball, the first in a six-part series by the Southern California News Group examining the post-portal outlook for every part of the roster.
Quarterback
Returning: R-Jr. Ethan Garbers, R-Jr. Collin Schlee, Sr. Chase Griffin, Red-Fr. Justyn Martin, Fr. Luke Duncan
Arriving (both true freshman): Henry Hasselbeck, Karson Gordon
Departing: Fr. Dante Moore (transfer, Oregon)
Top questions
Transfer portal strategy? Kelly successfully brought in a transfer portal quarterback in two of the last three seasons (Garbers in 2021 and Schlee in 2023). With Schlee back for another season and Kelly planning long-term with the addition of two incoming freshmen, the Bruins may spend time using the portal to fill other needs on the roster.
Will Chase Griffin be back? The former Gatorade Texas state Player of the Year is expected to return for a sixth season. Griffin could take advantage of the extra year of eligibility he was granted by the NCAA for being on the Bruins’ 2020 roster during the pandemic-shortened season. He hasn’t seen as much playing time as he did in relief of former quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson earlier in his career but continues to serve as the quarterback room’s leader and a significant part of the gameday operation on the sidelines.
The group X-factor
Justyn Martin. The redshirt freshman is one of the most asked-about players among the fan base when it comes to the position. With Moore’s decision to transfer to Oregon, there’s an opportunity for Martin to compete for playing time. Martin was buried on the depth chart behind at least four other quarterbacks, appearing just briefly in games against North Carolina Central and Stanford without attempting a pass this season. Martin could likely compete with Garbers and Schlee this season and begin traveling with the team for road games in place of Moore. Martin can serve as a dual-threat quarterback, something Thompson-Robinson provided to Kelly’s offense while the program was on an upward trajectory.