Oregon quarterback makes Bruins pay for missed opportunities

PASADENA — It was billed a matchup of two of the conference’s top teams with two of the nation’s premier signal callers squaring off. Marcus Mariota and Oregon delivered. UCLA didn’t.

Mariota and No. 12 Oregon bested Brett Hundley and No. 18 UCLA 42-30 in a game that wasn’t that close, reaffirming the Ducks’ College Football Playoff chances and all but dashing UCLA’s.

After forcing Oregon (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) to punt on its first two drives, UCLA’s (4-2, 1-2 Pac-12) defense had no answer for Mariota, who boosted his Heisman chances with a four-touchdown performance on the road.

“He’s a dynamic quarterback as everyone knows. He finds a way to make plays with his feet,” said redshirt senior safety Anthony Jefferson.

The redshirt junior quarterback from Honolulu consistently beat the Bruins with his arm and legs, tossing two touchdowns while adding another 75 yards and two scores on the ground.

“Throughout the game he rarely made throws in the pocket, most of his throws were scrambling around making something happen after the play,” Jefferson said.

For the second straight week, UCLA’s defense looked clearly overmatched. After Oregon’s initial two drives, the Ducks scored touchdowns on six of their next eight, with one ending on downs at the UCLA two-yard line and another being cut short as time expired in the first half.

Throughout the game, Mariota kept his poise. Nowhere was that more evident than with 9:30 in the second quarter, when he executed a perfect screen pass to Thomas Tyner on third-and-11 deep in UCLA territory. Mariota evaded the rush and found Tyner, who took the pass 21 yards to the end zone to put the Ducks up 14-3.

The same can’t be said about UCLA. Following Tyner’s touchdown, television cameras caught coach Jim Mora and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich in a heated exchange on the sideline where, at one point, Ulbrich gave Mora his play call sheet.

Mora and Ulbrich declined to state what caused the exchange, attributing it to passion and competitiveness.

“I lost a little control and I can’t do that, its not a good message to my players,” Ulbrich said. “I responded in the wrong way. I should have responded better … I should have handled it better is what it comes down to.”

Saturday certainly wouldn’t be the first time Mariota has had such an effect on opposing defensive coordinators.

For his part, Hundley looked Mariota’s equal in the first half, frustrating Oregon’s defense. UCLA’s redshirt junior quarterback impressively improvised runs throughout the first two quarters – often making something out of nothing to keep drives alive.

Hundley had 68 yards on 12 carries by halftime, none more important than the 16 he racked up on a late touchdown in the second quarter to cut Oregon’s lead to 21-10.

It would be one of the few times the Bruins successfully executed in the red zone. UCLA was forced to settle for a 20-yard field goal from junior Ka’imi Fairbairn after Hundley severely underthrew wide open junior receiver Devin Fuller at the two-yard line.

On UCLA’s next drive, Fairbairn missed a 41-yard field goal after the Bruins failed to convert on third and short.

Throughout the day Mariota and the Ducks executed seemingly at will. UCLA just wilted.

“We didn’t capitalize on opportunities,” Hundley said. “We got in the red zone (and) we didn’t score the touchdowns when we needed to. We can learn from this game. We still have everything out there in front of us.”

Yes, for the second straight week the Bruins failed to capitalize on a golden opportunity. And for the second straight week UCLA is looking for answers, not yet ready for prime time.

While Hundley and UCLA remain optimistic, national and conference championship hopes are all but gone, stripped away by a team, and a player in Mariota, who looked every bit the champion Saturday.

As the Bruins look for answers as to why they aren’t playing at the level so many thought them worthy, only one thing is clear about UCLA.

“Something’s got to change,” said sophomore linebacker Myles Jack. “There’s no panic in me, in my voice … I feel like we have the team that can turn things around like we did last year. We can make plays. You’ll see a different UCLA Bruins team.”