Column: UCLA stays in Pac-12 division race with hard work, win over Cal
UCLA receiver Devin Fuller beats the California defense on a 19-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.
The gates at the Rose Bowl hadn’t opened Thursday when UCLA Coach Jim Mora, his preparations done on the field, began his pregame ritual.
Dressed in dark shorts and a dark T-shirt, Mora ran up the concrete steps to the concourse, pausing to wipe the sweat from his face before walking over one section and beginning his descent. He ran back up, walked over a section and went down again, building up to a long run to the upper-most row of the sun-dappled stands.
Pumping his arms purposefully, Mora reached the top and paused to savor the view. The pinnacle is a destination Mora’s Bruins have yet to reach, although their hopes and their season are still afloat thanks to a sharp performance by freshman quarterback Josh Rosen, a stalwart effort by their battered defense and a school-record, 60-yard field goal by kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn just before the end of the first half of their 40-24 victory over the 20th-ranked California Golden Bears.
For UCLA (5-2, 2-2 in Pac-12 play), that ended a two-game losing streak and improved its record to 1-2 in October, long a treacherous month for the Bruins. A loss Thursday would have ended their South Division title hopes and consigned them to a lower-tier bowl game; the victory left them only two losses behind division leader Utah and they will face the Utes on the road on Nov. 21.
If the Bruins had lost they could have been accused of another October flameout after a torrid September, another example of knocking at the door only to falter at the point where champions are separated from pretenders — those final steps that lead to the top. It would have been fair, too, to question where Mora was leading the program, even putting aside the to-be-expected trials and tribulations of playing a freshman quarterback.
But in winning, they held firm and stayed in the conversation, scoring on each of their first seven drives and sacking Cal quarterback Jared Goff five times. The team that gave up 94 points in losses to Arizona State and Stanford gave up 24 on Thursday, eight of those in the fourth quarter; after giving up an average of 285 rushing yards in losing two of their previous three games the Bruins gave up 131 on Thursday.
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“We all know that we’ve struggled in October since I got here,” Mora said after balancing his October record at 7-7. “We lost a couple games and trying to figure out why, but we found a way to pull out of it, and I believe we will again.”
His mantra in the days leading up to the game was about staying the course, but he said it wasn’t aimed merely at this game but toward the bigger picture.
“It’s a continual message. It’s got to be part of your culture,” he said. “I don’t think people really understand how hard it is to win a game and win multiple games, especially if you’re facing some of the adversity that we’ve faced with regards to personnel changes. And yet our young men just continue to believe and continue to work hard, and when you do that and you have faith and you have trust and you work hard and you believe in what you’re doing, good things are going to happen. I really believe that. It’s just a message that has to permeate your program at all times and we’ve been able to do that.”
They lived that message despite losing Paul Perkins, Devin Fuller and linebacker Isaako Savaiinaea to injuries.
“I’m proud of our guys who have been battling adversity and the things we’ve had to fight through,” Mora said. “Losing our top runner and our starting right tackle and still come out and playing like we did on offense, I was really impressed. Josh played well. I thought our starting offensive line was great.”
Fairbairn’s field goal, he said, was a turning point. “That was a big, big adrenaline rush. Boost to our momentum,” he said. “It gave us a 16-point [lead] rather than 13 points so it made it a three-score [game] rather than two-score at halftime.”
From there, the Bruins continued stayed the course in admirable fashion. “We’re trying to get better every single day and focus on each singular step,” Mora said, “and tonight was another step but we have to back it up with another good step tomorrow and that’s what our intentions are.”
No one said it would be easy to reach the top. But the Bruins have at least given themselves another chance to get there and savor the view.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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