STANFORD “”mdash; UCLA left the door open one too many times for Stanford and its Heisman Trophy candidate and quarterback Andrew Luck, falling 45-19 on Saturday at Stanford Stadium.
The Bruins were able to build momentum as the first half came to a close, with junior quarterback Richard Brehaut leading a quick drive down the field to pull the Bruins within 10 points.
It didn’t take Luck and the Cardinal long to seize control again in the second half. Luck found tight end Coby Fleener to extend Stanford’s lead just 45 seconds into the third quarter.
After Brehaut hooked up with tight end Joe Fauria again for a touchdown that included the hurdling of a Stanford defender, the UCLA defense appeared to be stiffening. The Bruins forced two consecutive punts but senior Taylor Embree failed to call for a fair catch which of course led to seven more Stanford points.
The UCLA offense answered again on its next possession, going 56 yards on a drive that was capped by a 7-yard touchdown run from redshirt senior Josh Smith.
The defense wasn’t so lucky. Luck led the Cardinal offense down the field once more ““ albeit a short field after an attempted UCLA onside kick failed ““ for a touchdown to keep the game out of reach.