SEATTLE “”mdash; Ironically, for a devastatingly cold November evening in Washington, the only drops that weren’t a factor were the rain variety.
The precipitation was lacking, but there was the interception that safety Tony Dye couldn’t hang onto that would have been a likely touchdown. There were the two third-down passes that tight end Cory Harkey didn’t come up with. Then there was the blow to the head that felled quarterback Richard Brehaut and essentially executed any hope UCLA had of finishing off a hard-fought contest on the road.
The Bruins fell to Washington 24-7 Thursday night in a game that dropped UCLA further into a deepening hole. With just two games left, the Bruins (4-6, 2-5 Pac-10) need to win out in order to become bowl eligible.
“It’s back to the drawing board,” cornerback Aaron Hester said.
In losing in Seattle, the Bruins learned a valuable lesson: Never go against a pack of Huskies in a dogfight. The game became a battle in the trenches, and aside from an early UCLA drive, the team with the canine mascot was clearly more comfortable with the pound. Washington (4-6, 3-4) racked up 254 yards on the ground and held UCLA to just 108.
UCLA drew first blood with a 13-play, 92-yard drive on its second series of the game. The Bruins threw just twice on the drive, but racked up five first downs before running back Johnathan Franklin scored on a 31-yard run.
From there, it was all Washington. The Huskies got a methodical performance from their offense and a shutdown effort from their defense the rest of the evening.
A second-quarter interception of Brehaut by Washington’s Cort Dennison signified the end of whatever momentum the UCLA offense had going for it.
“We just didn’t get enough done on offense to beat a spirited Washington team,” UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel said.
“We just couldn’t really find a rhythm,” Brehaut added. “That’s what held us back.”
Washington quarterback Jake Locker had all the accolades going in, but running back Chris Polk led the charge for the Huskies. The sophomore carried the ball 27 times for 141 yards and a touchdown. Polk’s backup Jesse Callier gained 105 yards on the ground in his own right, as Washington was able to overcome a pedestrian outing from Locker, who was just 10-of-21 for 68 yards and an interception.
Locker did score on a 3-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to tie things up heading into halftime. Washington kicker Erik Folk converted a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter before things really began to snowball.
Brehaut took a shot to the head after sliding to the ground on a quarterback keeper midway through the third quarter. He was replaced by sophomore Darius Bell, who had a forgettable UCLA debut. Bell failed to complete a pass in three attempts, one of which was returned for a touchdown in the fourth quarter by Quinton Richardson on a play that proved to be the defeating blow for the Bruins.
“(Bell) struggled a little bit recognizing some things, and it cost him and it cost us,” Neuheisel said.
In a final act of desperation, Neuheisel turned to walk-on quarterback Clayton Tunney ““ fifth on the depth chart to start the season ““ to try to spark a comeback through the air in the closing minutes. But Tunney was just 1-of-8 in passing with an interception of his own.
Without an experienced signal-caller to lead the way in the game’s final moments, UCLA went stagnant. Penalties, missed tackles, and miscommunications began to pile up, and Polk added the game’s final score with a 2-yard touchdown run with just more than four minutes to go.
The official word on Brehaut’s departure from the game was that the sophomore was “confused and disoriented” on the sideline. As the Bruins crumbled under the assault of the Huskies, you couldn’t help but wonder if the condition was contagious.