PASADENA “”mdash; The UCLA defense came into Saturday’s game against San Jose State feeling confident about the way it finished its week-one loss to Houston. The first half of that game, not so much.
“It won’t ever happen again,” promised senior safety Tony Dye in his weekly video segment on the team’s website.
Turns out, it did happen again, albeit in a win this time, an underwhelming 27-17 one over San Jose State. Until late in the game, the Spartans ““ who haven’t beaten an Football Bowl Subdivision team since 2009 ““ had more first downs and total yards than the Bruins. The score was tied midway through the fourth quarter.
Not surprisingly, the defenders were pleased to be 1-1 even if they had to eek out the win.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” the always optimistic coach Rick Neuheisel said.
“They showed us some different things than we saw on the film,” sophomore safety Dietrich Riley added. “We knew that they were going to play tough.”
The defense did begin to stiffen near the end of the third quarter, getting interceptions from senior linebacker Sean Westgate and junior cornerback Sheldon Price to stop consecutive Spartan drives.
“We proved that we’re capable of being a great defense in the second half,” Riley said.
Redemption for Smith
Redshirt freshman kicker Kip Smith, whose missed field goals ended up being the difference in the loss to Houston, knocked two through the uprights Saturday.
“You have to believe in people and let them know you’re absolutely behind them,” Neuheisel said of Smith.
His first collegiate field goal was from 38 yards and came in the third quarter while his second was a 20 yard chip shot that gave UCLA a slight lead that it wouldn’t relinquish. Smith said he worked hard on the mental side of his game this week during practice.
“I was a little too hard on myself last week but I had to bounce back,” Smith said. “I felt calm out there. I’m comfortable now.”
Coleman goes over 100
Redshirt junior running back Johnathan Franklin was the talk of UCLA’s backfield during the offseason, opposing coaches scheming for the speedster. When San Jose State’s defense actually succeeded in its scheme by limiting Franklin between the tackles, it was time to turn to the bruiser: senior Derrick Coleman.
Coleman had two fewer carries than Franklin but made the most of them, rushing for 135 yards on the night including a 42-yard, third quarter blast that saw him dragging tacklers down the sideline.
“When they call on me, I’m going to go out there and get those tough yards,” said Coleman, who notched just his second career 100 yard game Saturday.
Prince looks on
Redshirt junior quarterback Kevin Prince didn’t see any time at quarterback Saturday despite being cleared to play by team trainers and starting last week against Houston. Instead, junior Richard Brehaut played the whole game.
Prince said he was notified that he would be put into the game “in an emergency.” He missed Tuesday’s practice after sustaining a mild concussion and a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder against Houston. He expects to participate fully in practice next week.
Brehaut, on the other hand, was less impressive in a win than he was in the loss last week, completing fewer passes for more than 100 fewer yards.
“I take full responsibility for some of the struggles we had in the first half,” Brehaut said.