PASADENA — The ball flew in a straight line, wobbling slightly as it began its descent. Dipping lower and lower, it stayed on target between the yellow goalposts, just barely clearing the crossbar.
The referees raised their arms straight into the air, announcing the kick’s validity, and the black-and-gold-clad Bruins rushed the field.
Sixty yards from the end zone, senior kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn jumped up and down with his arms raised above his head, mirroring the referees.
“We got out there and it was 55 (yards), and I do that at practice quite a bit,” Fairbairn said. “We got the penalty … backed it up five (yards) and coach was looking at me, and I gave him the thumbs-up.”
The school record-breaking field goal gave UCLA a 16-point lead over No. 20 Cal heading into halftime, which eventually translated into a 40-24 win for the Bruins Thursday night.
Fairbairn’s kick provided the exclamation point on a night in which UCLA got everything it wanted, easily dominating its northern California rival.
In front of 57,046 fans at an ill-fated “blackout” game doomed by rush-hour traffic, UCLA experienced anything but adversity, piecing together its most comprehensive four quarters of play this season.
The Bruin defense, which was largely ineffective against the Stanford rush last week, limited the Golden Bears to their lowest scoring total of the season. Cal came into the Rose Bowl averaging 40.2 points per game, but was held to 24 points by UCLA.
Cal quarterback Jared Goff, in the midst of a career season with a 66.7 percent completion rate, was 32-for-53 on the night, throwing three touchdowns. The Bruins took advantage of the Bears’ weak offensive line with five sacks on Goff.
On the other side of the field, UCLA freshman quarterback Josh Rosen had a near-flawless showing, setting a school record for most completions in a game with 34. The freshman had a 72.3 percent completion rate against Cal, his highest of the season, while throwing for 399 yards.
“We needed to beat Cal, and that’s what we did,” Rosen said. “You can’t look ahead, can’t look behind. (There’s) no shoulda, woulda, coulda.”
Rosen and the rest of the offense rebounded well from a poor showing against Stanford to play efficiently and effectively Thursday. The quarterback distributed his passes among seven receivers, the best of which being junior Thomas Duarte, who had a career game catching 10 passes for 141 yards and one touchdown while breaking multiple tackles.
“I just fell into the groove that all receivers do,” Duarte said. “Once you catch that first pass, you have a feeling.”
Freshman running back Soso Jamabo picked up the slack following an injury to key redshirt junior running back Paul Perkins, rushing for a touchdown and 79 yards.
UCLA hardly emerged unscathed, as Perkins, senior receiver Devin Fuller and junior linebacker Isaako Savaiinaea all left the game with injuries, adding to the Bruins’ long-term issues. Coach Jim Mora said after the game that none of the injuries looked good, although Perkins was riding a bike on the sidelines for portions of the game.
The field goal cleared the crossbar by like 10 yards.