UCLA football (5-7, 3-6 Big Ten) prevailed over Fresno State (6-6, 4-3 Mountain West) on Senior Day in its final contest of 2024 Saturday afternoon at the Rose Bowl. Assistant Sports editor Connor Dullinger gives his five main takeaways from the Bruins’ duel with the Bulldogs.

Garbers’ finale

Redshirt senior quarterback Ethan Garbers saved arguably his season-best performance for his final game sporting the blue and gold.

The Bruin signal-caller mustered 289 passing yards – his third-best outing of the year – on a 65% completion percentage along with one passing touchdown. Most importantly, though, he recorded zero turnovers – an improvement from the six interceptions he threw through the season’s first four games.

While the Bruin offense put up just 144 yards and a measly six points through a shaky first half, Garbers helmed a revamped offensive unit in the second half – one that garnered 219 total yards and two touchdowns. The field general even connected with redshirt junior wide receiver J.Michael Sturdivant for a score that put the game out of reach for the Bulldogs.

Garbers’ greatest strength has always been his ability to spread the ball, and that was evident as he hit eight different receivers Saturday. Most notable of the pack was senior tight end Moliki Matavao – who ended the day with eight receptions for a season-best 120 receiving yards.

What kept the Bruins offense moving, though, were Garbers’ legs. Despite taking three sacks in the first half and struggling to gain any positive momentum on the ground, Garbers rushed for 20 yards, including a crucial 7-yard carry on third down that kept the chains moving on an eventual game-sealing touchdown.

While Garbers may have played his best game in Westwood, it is his last – leaving questions for who will take over under center come 2025.

Schwesinger is the Butkus Award winner

Carson Schwesinger may have one of the greatest stories in all of college football.

A former walk-on turned Butkus Award finalist doesn’t grace a college campus every day.

And while the redshirt junior linebacker hasn’t officially won the award – which honors the best linebacker in college football – his performance against Fresno State may have sealed the deal and simultaneously pushed him one step closer to an NFL career.

The Moorpark, California, local covered all phases of the field to garner 15 tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss along with a pass breakup. He also blocked a punt attempt, despite it later being wiped off by a facemask penalty assessed to UCLA.

After the season’s end, Schwesinger ranks fifth in the nation and first in the Big Ten with 136 total tackles and 11.3 tackles per game.

But while he’s touted for his ability to cover ground and finish tackles, his greatest weapon may be his ability to create chaos.

The linebacker ranks second on the team in sacks with four and is just a half sack behind the team leader, senior linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo. Schwesinger is also tied for the team lead in interceptions with two and has a forced fumble to go along with it.

There is no debate whether Schwesinger is the best defensive player on the Bruins’ roster, but it may not be long till he’s tabbed the most valuable linebacker in the country.

An awful offensive line

There is no debate that Garbers’ lack of offensive production and tendency to turn the ball over has plagued the Bruin offense all season long.

Not only did he tie Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles with the conference lead in interceptions with 11, but he also contributed five lost fumbles on the season.

But these defects can’t all be chalked up to Garbers himself – the five protecting him deserve some share of the blame. The Bruin offensive front allowed three sacks alone in the first half against Fresno State, and were penalized three times on the first drive of the game.

Garbers’ protection unit allowed at least three sacks in seven of 12 contests this season, including six against Washington on Nov. 15.

And while the offensive line has mitigated Garbers’ efficiency through the air, it has also stifled the team’s ground game. Redshirt senior running back Keegan Jones was limited to 12 rushing yards on seven carries, while redshirt junior running back Anthony Frias II notched just 3.3 yards per carry Saturday.

Fresno State’s defense recorded fewer than three sacks in six of its eight five affairs and conceded at least 100 rushing yards in its six contests leading up to Saturday. But at the Rose Bowl, the Bruins posted just 74 rushing yards and allowed a clear path to Garbers thrice – allowing the Bulldogs to flip their script.

Two different Bruins

The Bruins have sported two teams through most of their 2024 contests – a first-half one, and a starkly different second-half one.

And this was no different Saturday afternoon.

The Bruins did what they could to award the Bulldogs a victory in the first half. A lackluster offensive performance was compounded by failure to capitalize on favorable opportunities.

UCLA recorded five penalties for 40 yards in the first quarter alone – followed closely by two penalties for 25 yards in the second quarter, including the facemask penalty that would have given UCLA the ball in Fresno State’s half.

While the Bruins put up 117 offensive yards in the first quarter, they only had three points to show for it – a result of the penalties the team accumulated. UCLA only fell farther down the abyss in the second stanza, running 15 offensive plays for 27 total yards, as its second red zone trip again ended with just three points.

But at halftime, a new team emerged.

The offense registered 15 plays for 122 yards in the third quarter, scored a rushing touchdown and would have scored again if sophomore running back Leo Kemp didn’t drop what looked like a walk-in touchdown on fourth down.

The domination didn’t stop in the fourth quarter, either. The Bruins finished the game with an additional field goal and a game-sealing touchdown pass to Sturdivant.

Meanwhile, UCLA’s defense restricted Fresno State to just three points in the second half – a testament to the groove the department has found under defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe.

Perseverance, always

Insights into the grit of coach DeShaun Foster’s team conspicuously emerged on the surface through the latter half of this season.

When the Bruins were sitting at 1-5 and the bottom of the Big Ten, things looked bleak. But they got back up – and they did so through each obstacle this season through at them.

The Bruins followed an early five-game skid with a three-game win streak against Rutgers, Nebraska and Iowa, finishing the season with four wins in seven games.

Similarly, after losing back-to-back games against Washington and USC – both of which pushed UCLA out of bowl eligibility – it would have been easy to toss the Fresno State game away. But it did the opposite.

Even after an utterly slow and embarrassing first half where UCLA put up just six points and trailed to a lesser Fresno State team, it persevered.

The Bruins came out in the second half and not only held the Bulldogs to three points but also didn’t take their foot off offensively, ultimately sealing a 20-13 victory.

And it’s all likely a testament to the culture Foster has cultivated in Westwood – one rooted in grit and brotherhood.