UCLA’s Big Ten era begins with an ominous blowout loss to Indiana
This time, there would be no coming back. There would be no shrugging off a bad first half. There would be no plausible excuses.
UCLA was outclassed from start to finish of a 42-13 loss to Indiana on Saturday evening at the Rose Bowl, intensifying concerns about the Bruins’ ability to succeed in coach DeShaun Foster’s debut season.
It was a frustrating follow-up to a lousy opener that the Bruins pulled out thanks to a strong second half. Given a bye week to correct the breakdowns they withstood against Hawaii, they only looked worse in their Big Ten Conference opener.
UCLA finally runs out clock to end game
Indiana started on its 12-yard line.
Elijah Green rushed for two yards before triggering the end-of-half two-minute timeout. Green rushed for a one-yard loss. Kaelon Black run for five yards.
On fourth and four, Indiana took the delay of game penalty to run down the clock.
The Hoosiers then punted. Indiana was called for illegal formation.
UCLA took a fair catch at its 49 with 19 seconds left.
UCLA fumbled the snap and fell on the ball. Indiana was called for illegal substitution, resetting the clock.
The Bruins finally ran out the clock to end the game.
Indiana 42, UCLA 13, end of the fourth quarter
UCLA changes quarterbacks and its drive ends in a punt
UCLA signaled for a fair catch on the kickoff and the Bruins started on their 25-yard line.
Justyn Martin took over at quarterback for UCLA. Jalen Berger ran for 11 yards and then another two on his next carry. Berger then rushed up the middle for no gain.
On third and eight at the UCLA 38, Martin passed for five yards and UCLA punted to end the drive. Myles Cook took a fair catch at the Indiana 12.
Indiana 42, UCLA 13, 2:31 left in the fourth quarter
Indiana pads its lead after Ethan Garbers interception
Indiana started on UCLA’s 40-yard line after the interception.
Kurtis Rourke tossed an incomplete pass. Justice Ellison then ran for five yards. Ellison ran another seven yards and Kain Medrano was called for a horse collar tackle.
Elijah Green then ran for a 14-yard touchdown. Indiana hit the extra point.
Indiana 42, UCLA 13, 5:28 left in the fourth quarter
Ethan Garbers tosses interception, adding to rough night
UCLA took a fair catch on the kickoff and started on its 25-yard line.
Ethan Garbers passed to T.J. Harden for six yards. Garbers looked down field and tossed a pass low that was intercepted by Indiana’s Amare Ferrell at the UCLA 40-yard line. Ferrell didn’t return the pick.
Indiana 35, UCLA 13, 7:04 left in the fourth quarter
Indiana scores, pads its lead in fourth quarter
After a fair catch, Indiana starts at its 25.
Ty Son Lawton runs for eight yards and then adds another rush for seven yards. Lawton hit the center of the pile and bounced outside for an eight-yard run, but the Hoosiers were called for holding.
Kurtis Rourke tossed a screen pass to Ke’Shawn Williams for a gain of 14 yards. Rourke then passed to Miles Cross for nine yards, moving the ball to the UCLA 47.
Justice Ellison ran for one yard. Rourke then passed to Myles Price for 10 yards, but the Hoosiers were called for holding.
On second and 13 at midfield, Kaelon Black ran for three yards. Rourke passed to Cross for 17 yards and a first down.
Black rushed for seven yards to the UCLA 23. Rourke then passed to Omar Cooper Jr. for a 23-yard touchdown. The Bruins were offside on the play, but the penalty was declined. The Hoosiers hit the extra point to pad their lead.
Indiana 35, UCLA 13, 7:28 left in the fourth quarter
UCLA settles for a field goal after long drive
After multiple penalties late in the third quarter, UCLA faced second-and-24 at the Indiana 43 to open the fourth quarter.
Ethan Garbers tossed a screen pass to T.J. Harden for 10 yards. On third-and-14, Garbers passed to J.Michael Sturdivant inside the five-yard line and he was crushed by Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds as he was catching the ball. A flag was thrown and Ponds was ejected for targeting on the play. Sturdivant walked unsteadily off the field with athletic trainers surrounding him.
On first down at the Indiana 18, Garbers passed out of bounds. Harden then ran for two yards. On third-and-eight, Garber’s short pass sailed out of bounds.
Mateen Bhaghani hit a 34-yard field goal that trimmed Indiana’s lead, but the call is sure to trigger questions from fans. The Bruins are running out of time to overcome what was an 18-point deficit when UCLA coach DeShaun Foster opted for the field goal instead of trying for a touchdown or first down.
Indiana 28, UCLA 13, 13:13 left in the fourth quarter
UCLA offense ends third quarter trying to overcome penalties, trim Indiana lead
Keegan Jones returned the kickoff to the UCLA 18-yard line.
Ethan Garbers passed for one yard to T.J. Harden. Harden then ran for five yards. On third-and-four, there multiple flags thrown as Garbers pass was tipped and intercepted by Indiana for a brief return. Indiana was called for pass interference on the pass play intended for J.Michael Sturdivant.
The play was reviewed to see if a UCLA was guilty of targeting after tackling the player who intercepted the ball. It was not ruled targeting.
On first down at the UCLA 36, Garbers was sacked a loss of eight yards. Indiana was called for roughing the passer because he was in a passing posture and drove him into the ground.
On first down at the Indiana 49, Garbers was under pressure and falling back as he completed pass to for six yards. Harden then rushed for 14 yards to the Indiana 29.
Harden then rushed 29 yards for a touchdown. There was a flag on the play, with UCLA called for holding, erasing the play.
On first-and-16 on the Indiana 35, Garbers evaded pressure and ran up the middle for four yards, but UCLA was called for a face mask penalty.
On first-and-31 at midfield, Garber passed to Jones for seven yards as time ran out in the third quarter.
Indiana 28, UCLA 10, end of the third quarter
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke picks apart UCLA defense
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke is on fire and remains a big headache for the UCLA defense.
Indiana returned the kickoff to its 15-yard line. UCLA’s Kanye Clark was injured on the play, triggering a timeout. His left ankle bent and he limped off the field under his power during the break.
Justice Ellison rushed up the middle for 11 yards. Rourke’s pass was incomplete, but UCLA’s Elijah Sarratt was called for pass interference.
On first down at the Indiana 39, Rourke passed to Zach Horton for 17 yards along the right sideline.
On first down at the UCLA 44, Rouke passed to Omar Cooper Jr. for nine yards. Rourke then passed to Zach Horton for five yards. He wenrt back to Horton for another six yards, voing the ball to the UCLA 24.
Rourke passed to Cooper for 14 yards, moving to the UCLA nine-yard line.
Kaelon Black ran for three yards to the UCLA six-yard line. Black ran for another three yards to the Bruins’ three-yard line. Rourke passed to Ke’Shawn Williams for a three-yard touchdown. The Hoosiers hit the extra point.
Indiana 28, UCLA 10, 4:55 left in the third quarter
UCLA promising drive ends with a field goal
Keegan Jones returned the opening kickoff 19 yards to the UCLA 25.
Ethan Garbers fumbled the ball on the opening snap and landed on it for a loss of five yards.
Before the snap, the game was stopped to review the previous play for potential targeting on CJ West as his helmet hit Garber’s helmet as he recovered the fumble. Officials called West for targeting and he was ejected.
UCLA got a first down at its 40-yard line. Indiana then was called offsides, moving the ball to the UCLA 45.
Garbers passed to T.J. Harden, who caught a pass and ran for gain of 24 yards. He closed the play by leaping over a defender before getting tackled.
On first down at the Indiana 31, Garbers passed to Titus Mokiao-Atimalala for 10 yards.
Harden then ran for four yards to the Indiana 17. Harden took the delayed handoff for two yards. On third-and-four, Garbers rolled out to escape pressure and ran for six yards and a first down.
On first-and-goal at the Indiana 9, Garbers nearly tossed an interception, but the Hoosiers dropped a pass intended for Rico Flores Jr. in the end zone.
Jones faked a handoff off a direct snap and ran forward for a loss of one yard.
On third-and-goal at the Indiana 10, Garbers tossed a pass high and out of the end zone.
Mateen Bhaghani hit a 28-yard field goal to close the drive.
Indiana 21, UCLA 10, 9:37 left in the third quarter
Indiana runs out the second quarter clock with two-touchdown lead
After UCLA finally scored, the Bruins’ defense had to hold off Indiana for the last 42 seconds of the first half.
Indiana took a fair catch and started at its 25-yard line.
Ty Son Lawton ran for five yards and the Hoosiers let time expire.
UCLA has a flicker of momentum and will get the ball to open the third quarter.
Indiana 21, UCLA 7, end of the second quarter
UCLA offense wakes up, scores its first touchdown
UCLA’s Keegan Jones returned the kickoff 22 yards to the Bruins’ 22-yard line.
Ethan Garbers passed to Rico Flores Jr. for nine yards. T.J. Harden rushed for four yards and then ran for another four yards on first down.
Garbers then passed to Moliki Matavao for 15 yards, moving the ball to the Indiana 47. His next pass to Matavo was incomplete.
Garbers passed to Rico Flores Jr. for 22 yards, moving the ball to the Indiana 24 with 1:55 left in the second quarter, triggering the two-minute break before the end of the half.
T.J. Harden ran for three yards. Garbers then scrambled out of a collapsing pocket and nearly ran for a touchdown, gaining 20 yards.
Garbers faked a pass and handed the ball Harden, who froze one defender, hopped to the left and ran up the middle for the touchdown. The Bruins hit the extra point to trim Indiana’s lead.
Indiana 21, UCLA 7, 42 seconds left in the second quarter
Indiana extends its lead in second quarter
The next Indiana drive was brutal for the UCLA defense, which seemed to have the Hoosiers pinned several times but could not get off the field.
Indiana started at its 10-yard line.
Hoosier Kurtis Rourke hit two passes for six yards and another 13 yards. His next pass was incomplete ebfore he found Miles Cross for a 15-yard gain.
Ty Son Lawton rushed for three yards to the 50-yard line. Rourke then tossed an incomplete pass and another pass for four yards.
On fourth-and-three near midfield, officials tossed out flags as Rourke was snapping the ball and UCLA was called for offsides.
Rourke’s next pass was broken up. On second down, Justice Ellison ran for seven yards. On third-and-three at the UCLA 34. Rourke passed over the top of the middle of the UCLA defense to Miles Cross, who hauled the ball in one handed for a 33-yard gain.
Ellison then punched the ball in for a one-yard touchdown and the Hoosiers hit the extra point despite a false start penalty that made it a longer kick.
Indiana 21, UCLA 0, 4:21 left in the second quarter.
UCLA goes three-and-out on first drive of second quarter
UCLA started on its 23-yard line.
Ethan Garbers’ first pass was incomplete. The Bruins’ Keegan Jones then ran for a nine-yard gain after a bit of misdirection on the handoff. Garbers rolled out to pass on third-and-one and was knocked out of bounds.
UCLA punted and Indiana took a fair catch near its 10-yard line.
Indiana 14, UCLA 0, 9:50 left in the second quarter.
UCLA defense earns big stop after Bruins’ missed field goal
Indiana started on its 23-yard line.
Hoosier Kurtis Rourke passed up the middle to Omar Cooper Jr. for an 11-yard gain. Rourke then passed to Elijah Sarratt for 16 yards.
Justice Ellison rushed for five yards to the UCLA 45 and then for another eight yards to the UCLA 37.
Ty Son Lawton ran for one yard on the next play. Rourke’s next pass is incomplete and was broken up by Devin Kirkwood. On third-and-nine, Lawton rushed for three yards.
On fourth-and-six at the UCLA 33, Rourke’s pass was broken up by Kanye Clark and fell incomplete for a turnover on downs.
Indiana 14, UCLA 0, 11:14 left in the second quarter
UCLA drive ends in missed field goal
After the Indiana kickoff, UCLA started on its 35.
Ethan Garbers completed a four-yard pass to Titus Mokiao-Atimalala. His next pass was incomplete, before he found Logan Loya for a six-yard pass. Mokiao-Atimalala ran for 12 yards, but a holding penalty reduced the gain to two yards.
On first-and-18, Garbers passed Moliki Matavao for nine yards. Garbers then scrambled for three yards and another five. On fourth-and-one, T.J. Harden ran for two yards.
During the season opener, UCLA didn’t go for it on fourth down, but the deficit naturally puts more pressure on the Bruins to immediately make up ground.
Harden rushed for another three yards before Garbers tossed an incomplete pass. On third-and-seven, Garbers’ deep pass across the middle sailed off target and fell incomplete. Indiana was called for roughing the passer after hitting Garbers after he released the ball, giving the Bruins’ 15 yards.
On first down at the Indiana 26, Keegan Jones ran for four yards. Garbers was then sacked for a loss of nine yards.
On third-and-15, Garbers passed to Matavo for an eight-yard gain, moving the ball to the Indiana 23.
Mateen Bhaghani then missed a 41-yard field goal wide left as time expired in the first quarter. The only win for UCLA was that it kept Indiana’s potent offense off the field for the final 7:28 of the first quarter.
Indiana 14, UCLA 0, end of the first quarter
Ethan Garbers fumble sets up Indiana touchdown
Indiana started at the UCLA 17-yard line after Ethan Garbers’ fumble.
Ty Son Lawton ran for three yards, Kurtis Rourke tossed an incomplete pass and Rourke passed to Ke’Shawn Williams up the middle. Williams ran after the catch and dove into the end zone. Indiana hit the extra point to take the quick two-touchdown lead and UCLA is already in trouble.
Indiana 14, UCLA 0, 7:28 left in the first quarter
Ethan Garbers fumbles and Indiana recovers in the red zone
Ethan Garbers’ rough start to the season continued against Indiana.
UCLA returned the Hoosiers’ kickoff 19 yards to the Bruins’ 19-yard line.
Garbers clocked the ball as he looked to pass and then brushed the ball against his running back, fumbling at the UCLA 17. Indiana’s Mikail Kamara recovered the ball and did not return it.
Indiana 7, UCLA 0, 8:21 left in the first quarter
Indiana converts three times on third down, scores first
UCLA deferred the opening kickoff and gave the ball to Indiana, which scored 77 points last week against a struggling Western Illinois team.
After the touchback, Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke passed to Myles Price for a 23-yard gain.
UCLA’s Kain Medrano then wrapped up Ty Son Lawton for a loss of a yard. Rourke’s next pass was incomplete. The Hoosiers were called for false start, forcing third-and-11 at the Indiana 42. Rourke passed to Elijah Sarratt for a 24-yard gain.
Lawton then rushed for five yards to the UCLA 29. Justice Ellison ran up the middle for four yards to the UCLA 25. On third-and-one, Indiana was called for false start. It triggered third-and-five at the UCLA 30. Rourke again found Price for a 10-yard gain. It was the team’s third third-down conversion of the drive.
Rourke scrambled for seven yards to the UCLA 13.
UCLA’s Bryan Addison tackled Ellison for a two-yard loss. Rourke responded by passing to Sarratt for an eight-yard gain.
On first-and-goal at the UCLA seven-yard line, Rourke passed toward Donovaen McCulley and it was broken up but Jalylin Davies was called for pass interference. On-first and-goal at the UCLA two-yard line, Lawton was dropped for a one-yard loss by UCLA’s Oluwafemi Oladejo.
On second-and-goal, Rourke passed to Miles Cross for the three-yard touchdown and Indiana hit the extra point.
Indiana 7, UCLA 0, 8:31 left in the first quarter
And we’re off ...
UCLA won the toss and deferred. The Bruins kicked the ball out of the end zone.
UCLA 0, Indiana 0, start of first quarter
A run for the Rose Bowl: Big Ten fans flocking to Pasadena after many years away
It’s a comeback story years, sometimes decades in the making.
Indiana hasn’t played in the Rose Bowl since its futile attempt to stop USC running back O.J. Simpson on Jan. 1, 1968, making the team’s return this week to face UCLA something of a now-or-never pilgrimage for those who played in that game.
“We have a very thin group of guys who are still around,” said Harry Gonso, the Hoosiers’ quarterback that day 56 years ago, “if you understand what I mean.”
Minnesota was once such a Rose Bowl regular — appearing in the New Year’s Day game as the Big Ten champion in 1961 and ’62 — that Dave Mona, then a freshman writing for the school’s student newspaper, decided not to splurge on the $49 round-trip train fare to Pasadena to attend the latter game.
UCLA season opener takeaways: What’s going on with Ethan Garbers?
HONOLULU — Milling about outside UCLA’s locker room, sweat trickling from his forehead after a scorching afternoon in the Hawaiian sun, Martin Jarmond stopped briefly near a group of reporters to put an upbeat spin on a stickier-than-expected victory.
“Do you know what the best part of going 1-0 is?” the Bruins athletic director asked. “It gives you a chance to go 2-0.”
Indeed it does. But this team will have to play significantly better than it did in coach DeShaun Foster’s debut to get there.
Want to attend a Big Ten football game? Here’s a guide to all 18 stadiums
Hey there, fans of USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington football.
Welcome to the Big Ten Conference.
Sure, conference road games may be a bit farther away (much more than 2,000 miles in many cases) than they were in the Pac-12 days.
But just think of all the fun, exciting and often historic venues — each with its own quirks and unique traditions — you’ll have the opportunity to visit.
Chase Griffin wants to show his UCLA teammates the money with new NIL venture
According to U.S. Dept. of Education figures, UCLA topped all Big Ten schools by receiving $692 million in donations from 2022-23.
But that zeal for lavishing cash did not carry over to the school’s athletic department, which ranked fourth from the bottom of the conference with just $16 million in donations over the same period.
Like a quarterback calling an audible, Chase Griffin wants to change those financial fortunes for his Bruins teammates.
“Our No. 1 goal,” said the backup quarterback who has long been a star in the name, image and likeness space, “is to make UCLA football the best team in the Big Ten.”
UCLA vs. Indiana: Betting odds and lines
Here are the latest betting odds for UCLA vs. Indiana on Saturday:
Can UCLA make a run for it in Big Ten debut? Five things to watch against Indiana
If a college football team nearly combusts halfway across the Pacific Ocean, does it make a ruckus back on campus?
Depends on how many fans turned on their televisions.
After stumbling over itself for much of its season opener in Hawaii, UCLA gets a do-over of sorts in its home opener Saturday at the Rose Bowl. This time, everyone will be watching.
Significant improvement is a must to beat Indiana. The running game, blocking and game management all came under fire during that clunker of a 16-13 victory two weeks ago, leaving the Bruins seeking a better showing in DeShaun Foster’s head coaching debut at a stadium he knows well.