Despite win, coaches and quarterback critical of performance
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Brett Hundley set a career high in passing yards, but still performed below his and his coach’s standards in UCLA’s 37-10 win over Cal.
By Andrew Erickson
Oct. 13, 2013 1:21 a.m.
PASADENA, Calif. — On the night the Rose Bowl’s press box was officially named after former football coach Terry Donahue, the 20-year head of UCLA football reflected back on his playing and coaching days.
He recalled his feelings of awe playing in and winning the 1966 Rose Bowl over then No. 1 Michigan State. He remembered his excitement during a conversation with UCLA Chancellor Charles E. Young in 1982 in which he found out that his team would make the Rose Bowl its permanent home.
In one of his most lucid memories, Donahue reminisced over the impact of quarterback Gary Beban, who became UCLA’s first and only Heisman Trophy winner in 1967, and how his abilities find a modern day parallel in redshirt sophomore quarterback Brett Hundley.
“The other players around Gary Beban are going to rise to a different level because Gary Beban is on the team,” Donahue said. “I think the same thing is true of a player like Brett Hundley, I really do. With his ability and his leadership skills and all the things he possesses, it helps everybody on the team rise to a different level.”
In small bunches of No. 9 UCLA’s 37-10 win over Cal, Hundley confirmed the comparison made by UCLA’s all-time wins leader. The second-year quarterback completed 21 of 25 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, at one point connecting on 13 consecutive passes.
Hundley peppered the Golden Bear defense with a bevy of short passes and ultimately finished with 410 yards, a career high.
The Beban parallels, however, stopped there.
“It was OK,” said Hundley of his performance. “The stats looked good, but at the end of the day we could’ve had so much better and so much more out on the field, and there was a lot left.”
He left redshirt senior running back Damien Thigpen with a short throw and an incompletion when Thigpen had daylight and what looked like a sure touchdown in the second quarter. He left – in two consecutive third quarter drives – the glory to sophomore kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn, throwing a total of five incompletions inside the 10-yard line.
On a night when Hundley etched his name in the record books with the third best single-game passing yard total in UCLA (5-0, 2-0 Pac-12) history, there was still so much for he and his coaches to scrutinize. To many within the program, it’s a sign of what the team aspires to be this season.
“(Hundley) missed a few throws down there in the goal line that changed the game around,” said offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone. “I thought it was alright. Obviously with that statement, you see our expectations of him.”
Hundley shouldered much of the disappointment with UCLA’s 27-point win, and throughout the game, the defensive strategy of Cal (1-5, 0-3) forced him to carry the bulk of the offensive load.
Heading into the game, the Bruins averaged just under 260 rushing yards per game. Against a stout Golden Bear defense that frequently overloaded the box with eight defenders, they mustered just 78 rushing yards on 34 attempts, forcing Hundley to go to the air 41 times in an effort to build some momentum for his offense.
“We struggled versus the run because they packed the box,” said coach Jim Mora. “I’m proud of our offense for adjusting.”
UCLA was penalized nine times on Saturday night. They botched several opportunities to pull away from the Pac-12’s worst team, record-wise, with a number of three and outs in the second half. Still, they head to Stanford next weekend unbeaten, never having scored less than 34 points in a game.
“Once we get out of our way, we’re a force to be reckoned with,” said freshman wide receiver Thomas Duarte. “It’s just little mistakes. We’ve got to execute a whole lot better, but other than that, I don’t see why we’re not one of the top offenses in the nation.”
