Big Plays Remind Defense of Last Season

The noteworthy strides by the defense to rehabilitate its reputation, a successful process that began in the season opener and carried through most of the Fresno State game, ultimately suffered a relapse that nearly cost the team a great deal of suffering.

The unit had allowed only 10 points to Alabama, with the Crimson Tide getting two other touchdowns on punt and interception returns, and then followed that by holding Fresno State to seven points until midway through the fourth quarter Saturday. That enabled the Bruins to cling to a slim lead until a pair of scoring runs by DeShaun Foster created a cushion.

And then came a near disaster. Fresno State needed only five plays and 61 seconds to go 77 yards for a touchdown, a drive that included gains of 34, 22 and 16 yards. On their next possession, it took the Bulldogs three plays and 31 seconds to go 62 yards, closing the deficit to 24-21 with five minutes remaining. That’s 139 yards in eight plays and 1:32.

The deluge wasn’t over yet, either. In position to force overtime or even win, Fresno State took over on its own 34. Three plays later, it was at the Bruin 43. It finally took the Bulldogs to stop the Bulldogs--a bad center exchange created a fumble that was recovered by UCLA’s Marques Anderson with 1:17 left, ending the threat.

“We were playing so good,” said linebacker Robert Thomas, who led the Bruins with six tackles. “We played intense the whole game. But in the fourth quarter, we gave up a couple plays that killed us.”

All the Fresno State gains in the two scoring series, in obvious passing situations, were through the air. The Bulldogs had only 26 yards rushing, in 23 carries, the best showing by the Bruins since stuffing Stanford for minus-34 yards in 24 attempts on Nov. 1, 1997.

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Even with the surprisingly narrow victory, the Bruins moved up two spots in the Associated Press poll.

The anger of the past week over the fact Alabama was still ranked ahead of them paid off too, as the Bruins moved ahead of the Crimson Tide, who dropped to No. 15 despite a 28-10 victory over Vanderbilt.