ONLINE EXTRA: Bruins rip Tide in season opener

Photo by Daily Bruin Senior Staffs

By Joshua Mason
Daily Bruin Staff

Tuscaloosa, Ala. – Maybe rock legend Lynyrd Skynyrd’s stay at
the UCLA team hotel had something to do with the Bruins’ ability to
turn a seemingly troublesome road venue into their own "Sweet
Home."

Whatever the explanation was, on Saturday, the No. 17 Bruins
were able to trounce on a century of tradition for the second year
in a row, defeating hometown favorite No. 25 Alabama in a 20-17
thriller.

For the 83,818 Crimson Tide faithful in attendance, the game was
supposed to be the first installment of the Dennis Franchione era,
the heir apparent to the late and great Paul "Bear" Bryant.

When all was said and done, however, it was the sparse Bruin
crowd on hand that was chanting "East Coast Bias" in response to
the supposed bias against west coast teams by the voters of the
college football ranking polls.

"A lot of people didn’t think we were going to win this football
game," UCLA head coach Bob Toledo said in a postgame press
conference. "We won it and that’s the main thing. You’ve got to win
the close games, and we won the close game. You’ve got to win on
the road, and we won on the road. Now we just have to build on what
we did and try to get better."

Defensively, the Bruins (1-0) planned well for the new
Franchione offense, lining up five players on the line to defend
against the option, including newly converted strongside linebacker
Mat Ball.

Alabama (0-1) started the fleet-footed Tyler Watts at
quarterback over former starter Andrew Zow to exploit what has been
a disposition of the Bruins in years past: the inability to
consistently stifle a running team.

All told, the Tide accounted for 458 yards of total offense, but
aside from two broken coverages, the UCLA defense held up when the
game was on the line.

"We went in there with the confidence that we weren’t going to
beat ourselves because of mental lapses," Bruin defensive end Dave
Ball said. "We won that battle, and it’s a good sign for this
team."

Playing in a hostile environment, the Bruins committed zero
penalties and didn’t turn the ball over once in the game’s
duration.

Alabama, on the other hand, committed a school record 15
penalties for 93 yards under a coach that has preached a new focus
on discipline.

"That’s the way to do it," UCLA quarterback Cory Paus said. "It
was pretty freaking loud, and not getting a penalty is a good
testament to our offensive line."

Photo by Daily Bruin Senior Staffs Despite UCLA’s poise, the
game wasn’t decided until the game’s final play, when a Watts pass
knocked down by Bruin safety Marques Anderson.

The game became a three-point contest when Zow, who at one point
replaced Watts, connected with receiver Freddie Millons for a
71-yard one-handed touchdown grab that sent Bryant-Denny Stadium
into a roar.

"He read my mind and I read his," Millons said of the catch he
made with 2:32 of regulation to play, cutting the UCLA lead to
20-17. "I just stuck my left hand out there and made the
catch."

In the first half, Alabama scored the first points of the game
when Watts connected with Antonio Carter for a 78-yard sideline
run.

A series later, the Tide were able to drive down the field for
61 more yards and take a 10-0 lead on a 30-yd Neal Thomas field
goal.

With 9:30 to play in the first half, a key offsides penalty by
the Tide gave the Bruins a first down at the Alabama 18, and an
opportunity to set in motion their first score of the game.

With the defense keying in on DeShaun Foster, the Bruins gave
the ball to Akil Harris for an eight yard run up the middle. A play
later, fullback Ed Ieremia-Stansbury carried the ball for a 10-yd
touchdown, cutting the Tide lead to 10-7 going into halftime.

"We started out slow being it the first game," Ieremia-Stansbury
said. "We just needed to get in the groove and get that first
touchdown."

In the second half, UCLA struck first, this time on a 53-yd
touchdown strike to a wide open Tab Perry.

Later, the Bruins’ defense forced Alabama to commit two
turnovers which led to UCLA field goals. The first turnover came
from an interception at the Alabama 32-yd line by cornerback Ricky
Manning, and the second was a fumble forced and recovered by
defensive tackle Rodney Leslie during a potentially dangerous
Alabama drive.

And when Alabama went for the goal line score on 4th-and-1 early
in the fourth quarter, Manning came up big again, forcing running
back Ahmaad Galloway out of bounds two yards shy of a
touchdown.

"That play at the goal line was huge for us," Toledo said. "It
was probably the play of the game."