Bruins’ offense has little firepower against Golden Bears

Reporting from Berkeley

The day was going to come when UCLA was going to have to throw the ball. It arrived Saturday in a 35-7 loss to California.

The Bruins’ “pistol” offense had rolled up yards on the ground the last three weeks. The Bears took that away Saturday.

UCLA completed 15 of 37 passes for 118 yards.

“We have been running the ball so well that it’s tough to go away from that,” quarterback Kevin Prince said. “I’m not saying that’s why the passing game is out of sync. We just have to keep working on it as the season progresses.”

Prince completed 13 of 31 for 99 yards before Richard Brehaut took over in the fourth quarter.

The Bruins came into the game ranked 10th nationally in rushing, averaging 262.4 yards a game. Johnathan Franklin was second in the Pacific 10 Conference, averaging 125 yards a game.

The Bears held UCLA to 26 net yards rushing, counting the yards lost on five sacks. Franklin had 54 yards in 13 carries.

Prince was wild on some throws and rushed on others, as the Bears’ pass rush sent him scrambling out of the pocket at times.

“I’m disappointed overall,” offensive coordinator Norm Chow said. “It’s hard to point a finger at anybody. I don’t think any group [on offense] played particularly well.”

Prince gets braced

Prince, who sat out last week’s game because of a right knee injury, wore a brace on the knee Saturday.

Prince said the knee “didn’t feel great all week, but it felt good enough. Out there today, it was fine.”

Ed says

Ed Kezirian, a former UCLA player, coach and administrator, gave the Bruins the “beat Cal” speech Friday night. They didn’t heed his words.

Still, Kezirian said afterward, “This is a midterm, not a final.”

Ramirez scores

UCLA’s only points came on a six-yard touchdown pass from Prince to Christian Ramirez in the third quarter with the Bears leading, 28-0.

Prince had a pass intercepted by Darian Hagan on the next possession.

Injuries

UCLA injuries: cornerback Sheldon Price (sprained knee), cornerback Anthony Jefferson ( sprained ankle), defensive lineman Owamagbe Odighizuwa (sprained shoulder) and F-back Anthony Barr (strained calf).

Quick kicks

This was UCLA’s sixth consecutive at California. The Bruins have not won in Berkeley since 1998. … Linebacker Sean Westgate had 12 tackles, nine solo, to lead UCLA.

chris.foster@latimes.com

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