TEMPE, Ariz. — The play started as a stroke of luck – an ounce of redemption. About 10 seconds later, it turned into game changer.
Six minutes of game time after that, junior cornerback Ishmael Adams put the finishing touches on his masterpiece of a performance.
After committing an ill-advised defensive holding penalty on a third and 10 late in the second quarter, Adams nullified his mistake by intercepting a pass, weaving around several Sun Devils and racing 95 yards for a touchdown.
If not for that interception, Arizona State would likely have kicked a short field goal on the next play to head into halftime tied with UCLA at 20.
Instead, Adams sent the Bruins into the locker room with a 10-point advantage, a silent stadium and all the momentum.
“Huge. Huge play in that game. They had momentum. At the very least, they were probably gonna get a field goal. … If they score a touchdown, then they’re up,” said coach Jim Mora. “That was a huge, huge, huge play in the game.”
The Bruins then opened the second half in a similar scoring fashion with an 80-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jordan Payton to bolster the lead.
“We felt them kind of quiver a bit, and we knew if we didn’t come out the second half and start, it was going to be a ball game,” said sophomore Y receiver Thomas Duarte on the impact of Adams’ play.
Then, with 9:08 left in the third quarter, Adams ensured the Sun Devils never got that momentum back.
Following an Arizona State field goal to make it a two-score game, Adams fielded a kickoff at the goal line and sprinted the length of the field to reassert UCLA’s control of the game and put the Bruins up 41-20, a lead they never let dwindle.
Adams, who nearly returned a kick all the way earlier in the game as well, seemed a bit flustered after the game when asked why teams still even bother kicking to him, searching for a delicate way to phrase his response without being too convincing to future opponents.
“Hold on, how should I put this? I don’t know what to say. I’m not surprised, but if they want to, it’s OK,” Adams said. “It’s up to them. I just believe in the guys in front of me, so if they want to keep kicking to me, then we can make something happen.”
“Make something happen” is a bland way to describe the magnitude of Adams’ game. His return was the first touchdown on a return by a UCLA player since 2007 and just the fourth of 100 or more yards in UCLA’s history.
And with 296 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, Adams now has three scores on the year – not a shabby mark for a defensive player – good enough to surpass several starting offensive skill players.
But for Adams, the biggest challenge of all of it seemed to be picking a favorite.
“I don’t know. It’s hard because we haven’t scored in so long on a kick return and then pick-sixes – I love pick-sixes,” Adams said. “I guess I’d go with that one if I had to choose.”