TEMPE, Ariz. “”mdash; The knock on the UCLA offense this year had
been its inability to make big plays in the passing game.
For UCLA’s wide receivers, a veteran group whose members
were all returning from last season, it had become a personal
challenge.
And for junior Brandon Breazell, Saturday’s game was his
showcase.
After struggling with a pedestrian 18 catches through 10 games,
Breazell made two sensational touchdown catches of 56 and 35 yards
en route to a career-high 91 yards receiving.
“It’s been very frustrating, but we’ve been
patient,” Breazell said of the passing woes. “I was
finally able to provide a spark today, and you saw the lift it gave
to our team.”
Last season, the Bruins’ offense was known for its big
plays and its flair for the dramatic, but with UCLA using two new
quarterbacks this season, the big plays had been far and few
between.
In fact, before Saturday, the Bruins only had one receiver,
junior Marcus Everett, account for more than 90 yards receiving in
a game.
“We’ve had to wait our turn, but we knew it would
come,” Breazell said. “If the quarterbacks give us the
chance, we know we can make the play.”
The challenge for the Bruins now is to prove they can make the
big play consistently, rather than settling for the numerous
three-and-outs they had on Saturday.
Quarterback Pat Cowan, in fact, was only 14-for-24 with 187
yards passing.
The Bruins will surely discover their true offensive potential
when they face cross-town rival USC, the Pac-10’s top-rated
defense, in two weeks.
DEFENSIVE STAND: In its true
“bend-but-don’t-break” style defense, UCLA
allowed Arizona State into the red zone five times on Saturday, but
gave up zero touchdowns.
The highlight of the Bruins’ defensive stand came on a
4th-and-goal stop from the 1-yard line.
On the drive, the Sun Devils had the ball four times within the
10-yard line, but failed to score.
“This was the turning point of the game for us,”
defensive end Bruce Davis said. “We were kind of on the ropes
and someone had to step up, and we did it.”
In large part, the defense was arguably the only reason UCLA was
in the game.
The Bruin defense limited Sun Devil quarterback Rudy Carpenter
to 11-for-30 passing for 149 yards, and only allowed 264 yards of
total offense on the day.
The defining moment of UCLA’s defensive dominance came on
cornerback Trey Brown’s 19-yard interception return to the
Arizona State 1-yard line on a tipped Carpenter pass.
“I saw the ball and made the play,” Brown said.
“I knew our team needed us (the defense) to make a big play,
and I did it.”
That play was triggered by the pressure UCLA’s defensive
lineman were able to put on Carpenter. Defensive ends Justin
Hickman and Davis were constantly in the Sun Devils’
backfield, and the defense finished with five sacks total on the
game.
Davis credits the success to the game-plan that defensive
coordinator DeWayne Walker designed for the game.
“He put us in the right place every time,” Davis
said. “We always knew exactly where to be, and we certainly
made Rudy have a difficult day.”
EXTRA POINTS: Fullback Danny Nelson had a
27-yard run on a fake punt midway through the third quarter. The
play was Nelson’s first carry of his career. … Safety Chris
Horton set a career high for tackles with 11. … The Arizona State
student section started chanting, “Fire (coach Dirk)
Koetter” towards the end of the fourth quarter. …
Saturday’s game marked Arizona State’s Senior Day, and
the announced attendance was 54,459.