Football flies past the Cardinal, taking lead at halftime
Redshirt freshman receiver Kyle Philips caught a pair of touchdown passes in the first half Thursday night. He also racked up 46 yards on six catches. (Jintak Han/Daily Bruin senior staff)
By Ryan Smith
Oct. 17, 2019 7:39 p.m.
STANFORD, Calif. – The Bruins had a chance to take full control early on but failed to cash in.
UCLA football (1-5, 1-2 Pac-12) leads Stanford (3-3, 2-2) 21-10 at halftime in a battle between the Pac-12 North and South foes, but the Bruins’ advantage could have been much greater.
After sophomore quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and redshirt freshman wide receiver Kyle Philips connected for touchdowns on each of UCLA’s first two drives of the night, the Bruins got the ball back holding a 14-3 lead.
UCLA’s drive stalled out deep in its own territory, and Stanford’s special teams unit managed to halt the Bruins’ momentum with a blocked punt recovered for a touchdown to cut the deficit to four.
Following that score, neither team was able to generate much offense until midway through the second quarter when redshirt senior running back Joshua Kelley broke out for a 53-yard carry, setting the Bruins up at the Cardinal 1-yard line.
Thompson-Robinson capped off the drive with a 1-yard keeper for his third touchdown of the half just two plays later, extending the UCLA lead to 21-10.
Thompson-Robinson – who missed the previous game with a leg injury – finished the first half with 100 yards through the air on 10-of-17 passing and two touchdowns. He also ran for 67 yards and a score on seven attempts.
The Bruins’ defense showed out in the first half, posting five sacks and allowing just three points, the lowest total the unit has surrendered in a half all season. The defense also managed to hold the Cardinal to just 11 yards on the ground and 86 yards total.
With a win Thursday night, UCLA would snap an 11-game losing streak against Stanford that dates back to 2009.
The Bruins will receive the ball to begin the second half.
