Bruin resolve steamrollered Cornhuskers for second-half blowout win
Coach Jim Mora and the Bruins came away from their 41-21 win over the Cornhuskers with some positives, as well as things to work on.
By Andrew Erickson
Sept. 16, 2013 3:42 p.m.
Every UCLA football Saturday, whether at the Rose Bowl or on the road, has so much more to it than a win or a loss. That’s why each postgame Monday, the Daily Bruin will break down the Bruins’ most recent game, outlining the good, the bad and the verdict for their performance.
This week, we take a closer look at UCLA’s 41-21 Saturday win over the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.
The Good: Second-Half Offensive Production
The Bruins struggled early on in Saturday’s game, but more than made up for it in a second half in which they outscored Nebraska 31-0 and sucked the air out of Memorial Stadium.
Four different UCLA players scored touchdowns in the final 30 minutes against the Cornhuskers, a testament to how off-balance UCLA’s unpredictable offense kept Nebraska.
A major difference for the Bruins during the second half was its pace, which finished the Cornhuskers seemingly moments after they were celebrating a sizeable lead. UCLA scored on drives of 3:31, 1:01, 1:49 and 0:45 during that pivotal third quarter.
“The faster we played, it seems like we’re a better offense,” said offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone.
The Bad: First-Half Overall Performance
Quarterback Brett Hundley passed for 294 yards and three touchdowns with nearly a two-thirds completion ratio on the afternoon, but in the first half, he completed just half of his passes and had none of those touchdowns.
Redshirt junior Jordon James rushed for just 18 yards on 10 carries in the first half, and the Bruin offense as a whole just looked out of sync, not piecing together a drive of fifty or more yards until its second-to-last possession of the first half.
On defense, UCLA was dinged for three touchdowns through the air, two resulting from long drives and the third from a Brett Hundley interception on just the Bruins’ second offensive drive. Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez beat sophomore cornerback Fabian Moreau through the air on a 22-yard touchdown pass, his third and final, to wide receiver Kenny Bell in the corner of the endzone midway through the second quarter.
“I didn’t really look at the score,” Moreau said. “I just knew I gave up a touchdown, which is unacceptable. They were just double-moving us. No excuses, we just can’t let touchdown passes happen.”
The Verdict: Impressive Road Win
Following the conclusion of Saturday’s game, Mora said he doesn’t exactly believe in signature wins, but it was hard for the team not to admire its performance at Memorial Stadium.
Playing with an incredible amount of adversity in the form of a record Nebraska crowd of 91,471 and the death of wide receiver Nick Pasquale, the Bruins showed their resolve, clawing their way back into what later became a blowout in their favor.
The home-field advantage for Nebraska has proven quite effective over the last couple years. Heading into the game, the Huskers were riding a ten-game home win streak and a four-game home win streak over ranked opponents.
“For me, it was a hectic environment coming out there, especially when they were up on us 21-3,” said freshman outside linebacker Myles Jack. “But I just looked to my seniors and they kept us composed.”
Sloppy first-half drives aside, the No. 13 Bruins leave Lincoln with three consecutive highly-winnable games – versus New Mexico State, Utah and Cal – in the near future.
Player of the Game: Brett Hundley
Hundley put aside a rocky first half, which featured a few missed reads and an interception that led to a Nebraska touchdown and was the catalyst behind the majority of UCLA’s late offensive success.
The redshirt sophomore quarterback completed all eight of his second-half pass attempts, and effectively spread the wealth to his wide receivers. Six different Bruins had 20 or more receiving yards on the day.
It was what Hundley did with his legs, however, that likely propelled the Bruins to victory. Evading the Nebraska pass rush, Hundley converted several key first downs on broken plays, giving him 61 yards on the ground.
Through two games, Hundley has compiled 568 passing yards and five touchdowns through the air.
Quote of the Game: Coach Jim Mora, on his team’s emotional victory honoring Nick Pasquale
“You don’t ever want to say you won one for somebody. We didn’t win one for Nick. What we tried to do today is try and go out and play with the type of effort, enthusiasm, energy and passion for the game that would reflect what he meant to us, and so his parents could see it on TV and recognize that we were playing the game like their son played the game.”
