A Drew-Blue Comeback

UCLA’s Maurice Drew might not be the biggest running back around, but when it comes to making big plays to carry a team, he can match up with anyone.

Drew proved that Saturday by matching his school record with a five-touchdown effort to carry the No. 20 Bruins to a dramatic, come-from-behind, 47-40 victory over No. 10 California before UCLA’s largest home crowd of the season, 84,811 at the Rose Bowl.

Drew had 299 all-purpose yards, scored three rushing touchdowns, reached the end zone on an 81-yard punt return and caught a pass for the go-ahead score for the Bruins, who improved to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Pacific 10 Conference.

“This game was about everything that we’ve had to overcome these last couple of years since Coach [Karl] Dorrell has been here,” said Drew, who scored twice in the fourth quarter. “Even this season, we’ve had a lot of ups and downs. But we’ve been able to grind and get through it and that’s how we came out and beat a great Cal team.”

The Bears (5-1, 2-1) certainly performed well enough to win. California outgained UCLA, 545-395, in total offense and had 26 first downs to the Bruins’ 17.

California had two backs rush for more than 100 yards in Justin Forsett (153 yards) and Marshawn Lynch (135), and freshman wide receiver DeSean Jackson finished with 10 catches for 128 yards.

But when it came to making big plays to clinch the game after taking a 12-point lead early in the fourth quarter, the Bears fell short against the inspired Bruins.

“This is just an unbelievable win for us,” senior linebacker Spencer Havner said. “We could have easily folded it in, but we didn’t. To be able to come back like that against a team like Cal is crazy. This was a total team win.”

UCLA’s undefeated season was in serious jeopardy early in the fourth quarter. The Bears had taken control of the game. The Bruins trailed, 40-28, and faced fourth down and two from their own 42.

With less than 12 minutes remaining, UCLA fans booed with gusto when Dorrell sent out his punter, Aaron Perez.

But they quickly changed their tone when the Bruins tricked Cal with a fake punt and safety Jarrad Page ran 38 yards for a first down.

“I felt like we needed to make a play,” Dorrell said about the call. “We were at a point in the game when we had to get ourselves back into the game. I trusted those guys to make the play.”

Three plays after Page’s run, UCLA quarterback Drew Olson scored on a one-yard sneak to cut Cal’s lead to 40-35 with 7:30 left.

That’s when UCLA’s defense finally got tough. After being run over and around by the Bears most of the game, the Bruins were able to keep Cal from scoring, forcing a punt with 2:30 left.

“We always tell the guys that if you play hard and give all your effort, we’ll make some plays and we’ll make them when we have to,” UCLA defensive coordinator Larry Kerr said. “We were able to get some stops in the fourth quarter.”

On UCLA’s game-deciding drive, Olson kept the Bruins poised and made the type of throws UCLA fans have grown to expect this season in completing three of five passes for 76 yards.

His two biggest completions came on a 38-yarder to sophomore Marcus Everett, who made a highlight grab between two Cal defensive backs, and a 28-yarder to Drew, who turned a swing pass into a touchdown to give UCLA a 41-40 lead with 1:35 left.

“He never flinched,” UCLA offensive coordinator Tom Cable said about Olson, who completed 17 of 33 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns. “I thought this game was another big step for Drew. When we got behind at the end, he just made some great plays.”

Said Everett, who had a team-high six catches for 95 yards: “Drew was so calm out there. He just kept telling us, ‘Let’s just go out there and do this and give all we can for the next two minutes and we’ll win this’. And, we did.”

Cal had one last chance to pull out a victory, but UCLA’s Trey Brown intercepted a pass by the Bears’ Joe Ayoob. Drew scored on a two-yard run on the game’s final play.

“You have to give UCLA credit,” Cal Coach Jeff Tedford said. “They made catches today, where our guys should have had interceptions.... We hurt ourselves with a couple of penalties tonight. It’s not so much what they did, we just didn’t make enough plays.”

With the win, UCLA ended the Bears’ 12-game regular-season winning streak and should move up in the rankings. It’s the type of start Dorrell primed his team about in training camp.

“There’s so much our team can grow from and learn from in this particular type of game,” Dorrell said. “It was not the prettiest of wins or the cleanest of executions. It was a gut check, and the guys were determined to make the plays when they needed to. That’s what this team’s all about. We may be young, we may be undersized, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t play football, or that we can’t play with heart.”