Ethan Garbers admits he was 'dissatisfied' with Week 1 performance
Ethan Garbers was a bit dissatisfied with his performance as UCLA beat Coastal Carolina 27-13 to open the season.
Garbers and true freshman Dante Moore practically split time and it was Moore who sparked the offense. In training camp, Garbers came out on top of the quarterback battle over the five-star recruit.
The position is up in the air right now, but it’s clear Garbers wasn’t happy with what he did personally.
“Me and Dante talked after the game and at the end of the day, we both want to see each other succeed,” Garbers said. “That’s all it is. What matters first is the team and winning games. Whatever happens happens and those are the two priorities.
“I’m a little dissatisfied in my performance. You try to get the ball to amazing guys and it doesn’t go your way. It was one of those nights.”
Garbers finished 10-of-17 passing for 121 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Moore meanwhile, finished seven-of-12 passing for 143 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
“It is a little tough to go in, then come out, then come back in, but, hey, that’s part of the job,” Garbers said. “When you have a room with a lot of good players, and they’re going to play a lot of other guys, it is what it is and you do what you do.”
Ethan Garbers evaluated by Chip Kelly following UCLA win
Head coach Chip Kelly provided his evaluation of both quarterbacks following the game.
“Yeah, I think that Garbs wants the first one back,” Kelly said. “But the other two interceptions were protection issues, and the quarterback is getting hit while he is throwing the ball. I don’t fault the quarterback in that. We will look at the film and figure out where the breakdown was and how do we make sure that we handle that a little bit better.”
Kelly also talked about how Dante made some plays but also misfired.
“The one that Dante threw in the end zone was just a very bad call by the play-caller, so he’ll get reprimanded but I thought they performed and we are excited about the next step,” Kelly said. “But it is a lot easier when the next step is coming after 1-0, not 0-1.
“You know, half the teams in the country lost today and half the teams in the country won today. And we are fortunate to be on that side of it, so there is a lot that we’ve got to work on, but it’s in a positive vein.”
UCLA hits the road Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET to take on San Diego State.