This post was updated Oct. 7 at 2:01 a.m.

UCLA football (1-4, 0-3 Big Ten) lost by a score of 27-11 to then-No. 7 Penn State (5-0, 2-0) on Saturday at Beaver Stadium. Assistant Sports editor Kai Dizon gives his five main takeaways from the Bruins’ game against the Nittany Lions.

Trial by fire

When redshirt senior quarterback Ethan Garbers was listed as questionable ahead of kickoff, command of Saturday’s affair was thrust in Justyn Martin’s hands.

The redshirt sophomore had not attempted a pass until this season and had only completed two of five passes heading into Beaver Stadium.

Martin delivered a more-than-respectable performance – going 22-for-30 with 167 yards and a touchdown.

More importantly, the Inglewood, California, local didn’t throw a single interception – something Garbers had done in each of his four starts. While coach DeShaun Foster has continued to shoot down competition over the starting job, Martin’s 73.3% completion percentage is greater than any performance from Garbers – who’s averaged a 57.3% clip.

But quarterback wasn’t the only position to see an unfamiliar face. Redshirt sophomore Sam Yoon got his first start at center with redshirt senior Josh Carlin – who had started the previous four games at the post – moved back to right guard, where he started all 13 games in 2023.

While Martin was sacked twice against Penn State, that’s still less than the four times Garbers was sacked against Oregon or the five against LSU.

Wide receiver carousel

With sophomore Rico Flores Jr. – who leads the team with 187 receiving yards on the season – unavailable for Saturday’s game, the Bruins needed to find a new threat against the Nittany Lions.

It turned out to be redshirt senior wide receiver Logan Loya.

In 2023, Loya paced the program with 655 receiving yards on 59 receptions. But entering “Happy Valley,” the Garden Grove, California, local had been held to just five receptions for 52 yards through four games – including zero catches against Oregon.

But against Penn State, Loya recorded 57 receiving yards on six receptions while scoring UCLA’s first offensive touchdown since Sept. 21.

However, that’s really the only bright spot for UCLA’s receiving corps – the rest of the group combined for just three yards Saturday, though all courtesy of freshman wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer.

Even more concerning, J.Michael Sturdivant didn’t tally a single target all game. The redshirt junior was second to Loya in receiving yards last season and entered 2024 a favorite in the receiving department. Instead, Sturdivant hasn’t recorded a reception since the Bruins’ contest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and has been limited to five receptions nearly halfway through this season.

A slow burn

Saturday marked the Bruins’ first time holding an opponent scoreless during the first quarter this season.

With 2:51 left in the second quarter, a UCLA field goal made it a 7-3 game – keeping the Bruins in striking distance.

But by halftime, UCLA trailed 14-3 and Penn State quarterback Drew Allar, who started 5-for-9 in passing, began to find his groove. Between the end of the second quarter and the beginning of the third, Allar went a perfect 10-for-10 – earning six first downs and a touchdown during the stretch.

Penn State running back Kaytron Allen joined in on the action as well – racking up 30 yards and a touchdown in the third frame alone.

Meanwhile, things only slowed down for the Bruins.

After their first drive made it to the Penn State 23-yard line and the third ending in the aforementioned field goal, UCLA’s ensuing five drives remained scoreless, including a second failed fourth-down conversion on Penn State’s 12-yard line.

UCLA’s only silver lining was a garbage-time touchdown with 0:16 left on the clock and a 16-point deficit haunting the scoreboard.

Still stuck in the mud

Good news, UCLA rushed for its second-highest total this season.

Bad news, it was only for 93 yards.

And while that’ll certainly help the 57-yard average the Bruins had heading to Beaver Stadium, it won’t help them climb the Big Ten leaderboard. Actually, even if UCLA was averaging 93 rushing yards per game, it’d still be dead last in the conference.

UCLA debuted a running-back-by-committee approach against Penn State, with junior T.J. Harden, redshirt senior Jalen Berger and redshirt senior Keegan Jones all sharing 21 rushes.

Berger and Jones tied each other with 38 yards apiece, but it was Jones who did it in just five carries while Berger required nine.

For the first time this season, Harden wasn’t the running back with the most carries on the stat sheet. Instead, the Los Angeles local found himself as UCLA’s receiving yards leader. Harden accumulated 59 yards on five receptions – including a 53-yard catch and run, the Bruins’ biggest gain of the day.

Special teams

While the offense has struggled to find the end zone all season, sophomore kicker Mateen Bhaghani is finding the space between the uprights.

Bhaghani is 9-for-10 on field goals and a perfect 4-for-4 on extra points this season. The former is particularly important for the Bruins after special teams issues ran rampant last season. In 2023, UCLA’s kickers combined for an 8-for-17 mark on field goals.

Bhaghani’s nine field goals are tied for first in the Big Ten while his field goal percentage of 90% ranks third. His only miss was a 41-yard attempt against Indiana.

Redshirt sophomore Brody Richter has averaged 44.6 yards per punt – good for eighth in the Big Ten. While certainly not earth-shattering, Richter has been a comparative improvement of Will Powers last season, who ranked second-worst among qualified Pac-12 punters with 42 yards per punt.