AUSTIN, Texas “”mdash; Perhaps it was only fitting that the last time a Texas player touched the ball Saturday, he fumbled it away.
Longhorn kick returner D.J. Monroe couldn’t hang onto the ball on UCLA’s final kickoff of the game, which came after Derrick Coleman rushed for a touchdown with just 46 seconds left. Bruin sophomore Damien Thigpen pounced on the loose pigskin, giving UCLA the chance to seal the deal by taking a knee.
It was the fifth turnover of the game committed by Texas, and the fourth fumble. The Longhorns fell victim to an aggressive and physical Bruin defense that has forced eight turnovers in its last two games, both victories.
“The turnovers really made the game,” redshirt sophomore cornerback Aaron Hester said. “We put the offense in a good position and they executed.”
The defensive takeaways came from familiar faces ““ linebacker Akeem Ayers intercepted a pass for the second consecutive week ““ as well as new ones in the likes of freshman defensive tackle Cassius Marsh, who returned a recovered fumble 26 yards deep into Texas territory in the first quarter.
Sophomore defensive backs Dalton Hilliard and Andrew Abbott each recovered a fumble as well.
“I see improvement in all these young guys every week,” defensive coordinator Chuck Bullough said. “They can see things and really fly to the ball instead of thinking about it. They can just go. The more and more they’re in the system, the better they’re going to be.”
As has become his custom, Ayers was all over the field before he left the game in the second half with what appeared to be an injured shoulder. In addition to his acrobatic interception in the middle of the field, the junior also forced a fumble from Texas’ Garrett Gilbert when he drilled the Longhorns’ quarterback for a sack in the first quarter. Ayers lined up at both defensive end spots, as well as at his traditional outside linebacker position.
“We moved Akeem around the whole time,” Bullough said. “Obviously he’s a special player and we tried to get him as many mismatches as we could.”
The turning point of the game might have occurred in the second quarter, when Texas punt returner Curtis Brown attempted to field a punt inside his own five-yard line. He was hit immediately by UCLA linebacker Sean Westgate, who jarred the ball loose and forced the turnover. The Bruins scored a touchdown two plays later to snare a 7-3 lead that they would not relinquish.
“The muffed punt was huge for us, mentally as well as field position-wise,” junior safety Tony Dye said. “Not so much (that it) lifted us, but kind of got them down. They’re an amazing team, but nobody can muff a punt on the one-yard line and be happy about it.”
One of Texas’ field goals was a direct result of a Bruin fumble deep in UCLA territory, and the Longhorns’ lone touchdown came when the outcome was no longer in question late in the fourth quarter.
The ability of UCLA’s defense to bend but not break ““ thanks in large part to its ability to force turnovers ““ successfully stifled the Texas attack. In addition to the direct takeaways, the Bruins also stopped the Longhorns on a pair of fourth downs.
“We just went out there and looked at them as the same kind of team that we have been playing against,” linebacker Patrick Larimore said. “It wasn’t about them, it was about us. We went out there and did our thing.”