UCLA fans who gave up and went to bed should consider themselves the smart ones.
They only missed more disappointment.
A late start for the Bruins on Saturday night at the Rose Bowl came with an early ending for hopes of an upset.
UCLA fell behind by multiple touchdowns, found a flicker of hope with a big defensive play and ultimately came up short once again during a 34-13 loss to No. 8 Oregon.
The Bruins played the final nine minutes with backup quarterback Justyn Martin in the game after starter Ethan Garbers, already limping, got walloped in the end zone and came out, a pat to the head from one of his coaches serving as no solace.
That’s three consecutive losses for the Bruins (1-3 overall, 0-2 Big Ten), with little hope of a reprieve next weekend on the road against No. 9 Penn State.
It was basically the same old sad story for UCLA: The Bruins couldn’t generate a pass rush or do much in the running game.
For a third consecutive game, UCLA did not register a sack. The lack of pressure allowed Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel to shrug off one shaky stretch to complete 31 of 41 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns to go with one interception.
His Bruins counterpart was not nearly as efficient while on the run all night. In a sign of how things were going, Garbers lost a shoe on one play in which he threw the ball away while eluding defenders. He completed 12 of 20 passes for 118 yards and two interceptions before his departure. Martin completed one of four passes for seven yards.
Trailing by 15 points on the final play of the third quarter, UCLA’s remote chances for a comeback ended when Garbers had a pass intercepted on fourth down.
UCLA’s run game ran the risk of finishing in negative yardage before some big runs from TJ Harden (53 yards in 13 carries) in the third quarter helped move the Bruins into positive territory. UCLA finished with 47 yards on the ground and averaged only two yards per carry, though a big part of that came as a result of the 21 yards lost on sacks.
The debut of “Big Ten After Dark” was nearly a blackout for the UCLA offense, which managed just two field goals and has not topped 17 points in a game this season.
UCLA’s 28-10 halftime deficit did not fully reflect the essence of what had happened given that Oregon (4-0, 1-0) held a 304-54 advantage in total yardage. The Ducks finished the game with a 433-172 edge in that category.
A former Duck spared his new team a blowout with some spunky play late in the first half. Bruins safety Bryan Addison, who had walloped Oregon receiver Terrance Ferguson on an incomplete pass earlier in the second quarter, stepped in front of a Gabriel pass and returned the interception 96 yards for a touchdown that injected some life into a listless crowd.
Things had been all too easy for Gabriel before that misfire on a play in which his intended receiver fell down. By halftime, Gabriel had completed 22 of 28 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns to go with the interception. At least two of his incompletions came on drops.
By comparison, UCLA’s offense seemed stuck in mud. Garbers had one pass intercepted and was sacked three times. UCLA converted only one of five third downs. Its running game generated minus-seven yards in 11 carries.
It all had a familiar feel.
