Quarterback Kevin Prince, UCLA defense get redemption in win over Washington State
Coach Rick Neuheisel and Kevin Prince embrace after defeating the Washington State Cougars, 28-25. Prince took over for quarterback Richard Brehaut after he was injured in the beginning of the second quarter.
By Daily Bruin Staff
Oct. 9, 2011 2:43 a.m.
PASADENA “”mdash; Maybe Kevin Prince should get booed more often.
The oft-injured redshirt junior quarterback has heard his fair share at the Rose Bowl. He heard them when he got benched three weeks ago and he heard them again when he entered Saturday’s game after junior Richard Brehaut broke his left leg in the second quarter.
In came Prince ““ nothing more than a spectator in UCLA’s last three games ““ to overcome the boos and lead the Bruins to a 28-25 win over Washington State.
“How could you not hear the boos?” asked a smiling Prince in the postgame locker room.
As for the ovation the Rose Bowl crowd gave him when he connected with senior receiver Nelson Rosario on a 58-yard pass to set up the go-ahead touchdown, “Yeah, I heard that too,” he said.
Prince started in UCLA’s season-opening loss to Houston as well as its 49-20 loss to Texas on Sept. 17, but after throwing three interceptions in the first quarter of that game, he was all but forgotten about.
He received a minimal amount of reps in practice as the team began to rally around Brehaut, but Prince stayed patient and waited his turn.
“You figure you’re going to get another chance at some point,” Prince said. “That’s just the world of football. I hate to see Richard get hurt. I truly do. I wish him the best and I love Richard, but to be able to go in and help my team win felt amazing.”
Brehaut went down after getting hit on consecutive running plays and said he felt the weight of a defender on his left leg. He attempted to make his way back to the huddle but began limping before falling to the field.
“If there is a tougher guy, I don’t know him,” UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel said of Brehaut. “He’s a resilient son of a gun.”
Having trainers and coaches huddled around a fallen quarterback is a scene that UCLA (3-3, 2-1 Pac-12) fans are more used to seeing from Prince, but this time he was the one coming off the bench with aspirations to save the game and perhaps the season.
“To be benched and looked down upon, fans booing you telling you that you need a replacement, he really stepped up this week,” junior wide receiver Randall Carroll said. “He shined when he needed to.”
Neither UCLA nor Washington State (3-2, 1-1) could hang on to the lead. Prince led four scoring drives, each of them culminating in a touchdown that helped his team regain the lead.
The Bruins’ bend-but-don’t-break defense stopped the Cougars three times in the red zone in the first half, limiting them to field goals, but still allowed quarterback Marshall Lobbestael and the Cougars to outgain the Bruins on their way to 28 first downs and 389 yards of total offense.
The defense stiffened when it needed to, however, and helped to seal the win when redshirt junior cornerback Andrew Abbott jumped in front of Lobbestael’s third-down pass for his first career interception.
“Right when he caught that ball, I just turned to the sideline and saw our team jumping for joy and ecstatic,” junior safety Dalton Hilliard said of the play. “It’s one of those moments that you’re never going to forget.
“I think that play was huge for us in terms of momentum and showing ourselves that it’s time. We’ve talked about changing this program for a while now and I think this could be the kick step that we needed.”
