SALT LAKE CITY — For a moment, Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium looked like its same old 2011 self.
Two hours before kickoff, a dark, ominous cloud opened up over the site of UCLA’s Thursday game, releasing a torrent of snow flurries reminiscent of the Bruins’ 31-6 dud two years ago. UCLA didn’t leave Rice-Eccles with the same numbness, but teetered on complete heartbreak, narrowly defeating its Pac-12 counterpart 34-27.
“We knew coming in that (Utah was) an excellent football team, and that certainly proved to be true,” said coach Jim Mora. “We came in with the mindset that it was going to be a slugfest.”
In the days leading up to Thursday’s nationally televised matchup, UCLA’s coaching staff preached a mantra of starting fast, or playing loose and explosively from the first drive onward.
In the opening plays of the game, UCLA lived up to that expectation, as redshirt sophomore quarterback Brett Hundley completed his first three passes for 56 yards to lead the Bruins on a 10-play, 68-yard drive to earn an early 7-0 lead.
Utah likewise started fast. Three plays after the Bruins’ opening strike, Utah sophomore quarterback Travis Wilson hit junior wide receiver Dres Anderson in stride for a 54-yard strike to tie the game at seven apiece.
The Utes added another score before back-to-back Bruin touchdowns brought the tally to 21-14. A field goal by Utah redshirt freshman kicker Andy Phillips narrowed the deficit to 21-17, a score that would remain as the two teams headed for the tunnels to end the half.
Early in the second half, with snow momentarily appearing once again, it was UCLA’s defense that revved its motor early, hauling in three picks in Utah’s first four possessions.
With three separate opportunities to put the game out of reach, the Bruins froze, only scoring three points and allowing the Utes to stay in a game. The Utes hung on until the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, when UCLA’s worst nightmare became a reality when Utah cornerback Keith McGill picked off an underthrown Brett Hundley pass and dashed across the goal line to make the score an even 24.
Even after his worst play of the game, Hundley remained resilient, leading two scoring drives over the final 10 minutes and rushing for the deciding 36-yard touchdown on a quarterback draw play with 3:33 left to play.
“It’s nothing about composing myself,” Hundley said. “I always stay composed and do what I need to do. Things are going to happen week in and week out. You’ve just got to live on and play another down. That’s what a quarterback is supposed to do.”
In the closing seconds of the game, with the Utes (3-2, 0-2 Pac-12) trailing by seven and needing 23 more yards for a game-tying score after a successful onside kick, freshman outside linebacker Myles Jack picked off the defense’s sixth and final Wilson pass to ice the victory.
Several defensive players, including redshirt junior safety Anthony Jefferson, said the defense’s turnover frenzy stemmed from its ability to maintain a positive mindset even against a tough Utah team that fought until the bitter end.
“We were not worried,” Jefferson said. “We didn’t panic at all. It was just owning in to what we need to do, and that’s tighten it down and make some plays. That’s exactly what we did.”
The No. 12 Bruins (4-0, 1-0) lost redshirt sophomore left tackle Torian White to a broken ankle Thursday. They played much of the game without starting running back redshirt junior Jordon James, and they didn’t have the same second-half offensive firepower that carried them in past games.
It wasn’t pretty, but UCLA managed a gutty win and improved to 4-0 for the first time since 2005.
“Not every Rembrandt’s a masterpiece,” Mora said.
That was a hard game. It was go be expected since Utah blew out UCLA the previous two games. This time, UCLA won. Hopefully Jordan James recovers quickly. Sad about losing Torian White. Hopefully, he fully recovers by next year.