Down by four to Arizona State with 41 seconds remaining, the Bruins’ fate essentially rested on the arm of quarterback Osaar Rasshan.
The redshirt sophomore, who switched back to quarterback from wideout only six weeks ago, had 97 yards separating him from a comeback of the year and the Bruins’ fourth loss in five games.
But the quarterback, known more for his athletic ability than his accuracy, only made one completion on the final drive and UCLA’s 24-20 loss was sealed.
Although UCLA’s mistakes held it back all game, the final series of Rasshan’s starting debut was the culmination of a game in which he kept the Bruins afloat but could not get them over the top.
Rasshan completed 14 of 27 attempts for 181 yards, almost all of which came in the second half, but his one big mistake was a costly one.
With just over four minutes remaining on the Sun Devils’ 33, Rasshan rolled to his right and overthrew Joe Cowan in the corner of the end zone, and was picked off by ASU safety Josh Barrett.
“I didn’t see the safety over the top and thought it was one-on-one,” Rasshan said. “The next thing you know, the ball’s in the air too long and the safety recovered.
“I saw the corner bite up on the pivot and I was trying to wave Joe to go back. I threw it up, threw it up too high.”
Despite his fourth-quarter mistake, Rasshan’s playmaking abilities and determination to spark the offense drew praise from his teammates.
“I think Osaar handled his job pretty well,” wide receiver Terrence Austin said. “He did what he could. Any chance he had to make the play, he made it. I’m proud of him.”
Rasshan’s package of available plays was a compact version of the typical Bruin playbook because of his short preparation time for Saturday’s game.
He attempted only seven passes in the first half but was allowed to throw downfield more in the second half as the ASU defense keyed in on his scrambling ability.
“Going off the Arizona game, we were most successful with the run,” Rasshan said.
“Personally, I probably ran the ball better than I threw it. We came out (against ASU) and tried to feed off that. After we came out and played a half, we realized that they were forcing us to throw it. So (the coaches) just said that I’m going to throw it.”
Coach Karl Dorrell was pleased with the productivity he got out of Rasshan and named him the starter against Oregon in two weeks, even if Ben Olson is healthy.
“We are building Osaar’s package and feeding him more and more,” Dorrell said. “He did really nice stuff and he is growing with the offense. He brings a different dimension with his mobility and we are encouraged with what he was able to do. We have two weeks to get him ready for Oregon.”
As the fourth quarterback the Bruins have used this season, Rasshan knows he must be ready for the No. 2 Ducks and has to put Saturday’s mistakes behind him.
“I mean, that’s football,” Rasshan said. “I went out there, tried to give it my heart. That’s all that we can do.”