Fumble after fumble, penalty after penalty, the Bruins frittered away any and all opportunities Saturday.
Terrence Austin fumbled away the first punt of the game, running back Chris Markey fumbled on UCLA’s second run of the day, wide receiver Brandon Breazell fumbled early in the third quarter just when UCLA was gathering some momentum, and quarterback Pat Cowan did his part, throwing an interception at the end of the third quarter that was 10 yards from any Bruin receiver.
The Bruins were penalized 10 times for 86 yards, with none more glaring than Kyle Bosworth’s personal foul on Booty early in the second quarter when the Bruins had just stopped the Trojans short of the UCLA end zone. Two plays later, the Trojans scored and went up 14-0.
“We had too many turnovers, and against a team like this, it’s catastrophic,” Dorrell said. “To play against a good team like USC you can’t afford mistakes.”
In a game where USC was not at its best, with quarterback John David Booty erratic, the Bruins had chances. But with so many penalties, and so many turnovers, they were unable to take advantage.
INJURIES: Linebacker Reggie Carter did not participate in pregame warmups because of pain in his knee, but played during the game.
The linebacker, who had arthroscopic surgery on his knee prior to the California game, needed the early time to warm up his knee.
“My knee’s still just a little sore,” Carter said. “I guess it’s like scar tissue so it’s like a sharp pain and I just wanted to get it warm to the point where I could push through the pain. The pain never goes away but I wanted to get it to the point where the pain was sustainable.”
As for taking a shot to numb the pain, Carter was adamant that was something he would not do.
“I don’t really want to take a shot. What is it, game No. 12? I went through 11 without a shot, may as well go 12.”