TUCSON, Ariz. “”mdash; All the momentum that UCLA built during
its second-half surge against Washington on Oct. 4 disintegrated to
dust in the desert.
The Bruins were pitiful at times during their 24-21 victory over
the Wildcats Saturday in front of 44,481 at Arizona Stadium. And
although they managed to eke out a win, the overwhelming mood of
the team was that they were fortunate to leave Tucson, Ariz., with
their perfect Pac-10 record ““ and their dignity ““
intact.
“I’ve been nervous all week. Now you know
why,” UCLA coach Karl Dorrell said. “We stole one here.
Arizona came ready to play.”
Despite giving up a whopping 519 yards of total offense to an
Arizona team that was ranked dead last in the nation, the Bruins
stayed close enough in the first half to give themselves a chance
to win.
UCLA (4-2, 2-0 Pac-10) trailed 21-17 with 13:41 remaining in the
fourth quarter, when senior defensive tackle Rodney Leisle
intercepted a Kris Heavner shovel pass intended for Mike Bell and
ran it back 55 yards for a touchdown, giving UCLA a lead it would
not relinquish.
“I just got penetration and the next thing I knew I was
bobbling the ball and then I grabbed it,” said Leisle, who
has scored a touchdown in each of UCLA’s last two games.
“At first I didn’t think I would make it, but then I
got my motor going and thanks to my blockers, I scored.”
UCLA had a chance to seal the win leading by three points with
12:15 remaining in the game. The Bruins drove to the 18-yard line,
but had to settle for a 35-yard field goal attempt, which freshman
kicker Justin Medlock missed wide.
The Wildcats (1-6, 0-3 Pac-10) mounted a four-minute drive, but
Nicholas Folk missed a 28-yard field goal try. UCLA burned 4:16 off
the clock on the ensuing possession before Chris Kluwe’s punt
was downed at the Arizona 1-yard line by freshman defensive back
Mil’Von James. Arizona took over with 1:12 remaining, and
moved the ball 33 yards before sophomore linebacker Justin London
sealed the UCLA victory when he picked off a pass from quarterback
Nic Costa.
“I don’t feel like we let them off the hook,”
said Arizona running back Clarence Farmer, who rushed for 132 yards
on 25 carries, and caught a touchdown pass. “I feel like we
did not convert when we needed to.”
UCLA entered the locker room at halftime trailing 21-10, after
making several costly turnovers and failing to stop a poised
Arizona offense ““ the same offense that had not registered a
point in the first half of its previous five games.
Offensively, the Bruins did little to impress. Sophomore
quarterback Drew Olson had already thrown one interception when
sophomore Matt Moore took over for the Bruins with just under seven
minutes remaining in the half and UCLA trailing 14-10.
Moore fumbled the ball on his second touch with Paul Philipp
recovering the ball for the Wildcats. Moore’s second try at
the helm didn’t fare much better, as he threw an interception
and didn’t see action afterward. Moore went four-of-eight for
41 yards, while Olson was more effective, throwing 15-of-22 for 189
yards.
“I felt really good out there and I was
comfortable,” Olson said, despite the inconsistency plaguing
the offense.
Junior wide receiver Craig Bragg led all receivers with six
catches for 105 yards while sophomore tailback Tyler Ebell led the
UCLA rushing attack with 14 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown.
Despite rushing for over 100 yards as a team and spreading the ball
to eight different receivers, the Bruins were never better than
decent on the offensive side of the ball.
With the Arizona team reeling after five-straight losses and an
attempted mutiny on the players’ part, the UCLA coaching
staff still stressed the importance of not overlooking the
Wildcats.
“I tried to guard against the let-down all week,”
Dorrell said. “This is a tough place to play. Our team found
a way. This was our first road win. Was it pretty? No. But we found
a way and that is a step in the right direction.”