After a nice dose of bliss last weekend, UCLA fans were treated
to a bitter taste of reality Saturday during the Bruins’
31-29 loss to Washington State at the Rose Bowl.
The Bruins got off to a slow start and never completely
recovered. Receiver Tab Perry fumbled the opening kick off, giving
the Cougars the ball at UCLA’s 25-yard line. On the very
first ensuing play, Washington State running back Jerome Harrison
scored on a 25-yard touchdown run, giving the Cougars a 7-0 lead
with less than 30 seconds having eclipsed off the clock.
That run foreshadowed what would be an explosive day for
Harrison, who rushed for 246 yards and had three touchdowns.
One week after shutting down Stanford, UCLA’s defense
allowed a mediocre Cougar offense that was averaging 23.5 points
and 347.4 yards per game to rack up 505 total yards.
But in spite of the defense’s renewed struggles, UCLA
almost overcame them in the waning moments of the game.
Down by two touchdowns one minute into the fourth quarter, the
Bruins mounted a comeback. Perry scored on a 47-yard pass from Drew
Olson with 13:47 left in the game to pull UCLA within eight. Later,
on what would prove to be their final drive, the Bruins marched 54
yards on 8 plays into the endzone to close the gap to two. But they
were unable to convert on the two-point conversion and Washington
State was able to run out the clock after recovering the onside
kick with 42 seconds left.
The Bruins were hamstrung by crucial injuries throughout the
game. Maurice Drew and Marcedes Lewis suffered ankle and tailbone
injures respectively. Both Drew and Lewis did not return.
Full coverage of the game will appear on Monday