UCLA unwell, all but done

The bracelets came off a week ago, UCLA players no longer wearing the reminder that had been with them since Day One.

Pac-10 champions. Finish.

The possibility vanished Saturday.

Pac-10 champions? Finished.

The illusion was stripped away in a 24-20 loss to Arizona State in front of 78,690 at the Rose Bowl, a game that ended with a rugby exhibition. UCLA quarterback Osaar Rasshan, guard Shannon Tevaga and center Chris Joseph did what they could to not let it end, lateraling the ball back and forth across the field without much progress to keep reality from intruding a little while longer.

The inevitable was waiting.

The play and game ended with the ball being cradled in the arms of Arizona State’s Rodney Cox. Referee Jay Stricherz untangled the mess and announced over the public address system, “The game is over” -- a message that seemed to echo in the Bruins’ locker room.

“A lot hasn’t gone our way,” linebacker Christian Taylor said. “There is no one to blame but ourselves.”

The Bruins (5-5 overall, 4-3 in Pacific 10 Conference play) will look at a Pac-10 race this morning that belongs to others. Arizona State (8-1, 6-1) took care of that by making enough big plays to send the Bruins to their third consecutive defeat.

Sun Devils running backs Dimitri Nance and Keegan Herring ran through Bruins arms for third-quarter touchdowns, and quarterback Rudy Carpenter did just enough despite an injured right thumb to overcome a 13-10 halftime deficit.

Nance eluded the grasp of three Bruins for an 11-yard touchdown run and a 17-13 lead five minutes into the second half. Herring pulled a now-you-see-me-now-you-don’t maneuver, rolling off several defenders before sprinting 71 yards for a 24-13 lead. Carpenter threw for 200 yards and one touchdown.

The Bruins’ spit-and-bailing-wire offense, missing its top two quarterbacks and top two tailbacks, could not match it.

The last hope died when Rasshan scrambled upfield and threw a lateral back to Tevaga, who then pitched the ball to Joseph. When Joseph tossed the ball illegally forward, the Bruins had lost for the fourth time in five games.

The season’s disintegration has left Coach Karl Dorrell’s future in serious doubt with two games remaining -- against third-ranked Oregon and 12th-ranked USC.

It has been a long fall from those heady preseason days when the Bruins, loaded with returning starters and seniors, talked about winning the conference and possibly even getting to the national title game.

Instead, they will now try to scratch out one more victory just to become bowl eligible.

“We cannot go out on a losing streak like this,” defensive end Bruce Davis said. “I don’t want to look back 20 years from now and see we lost all these games and think, ‘We could have done this, we could have done that.’

“The Pac-10 championship is obviously out of our reach. We have at least two more games, two big games. One against Oregon and one against those guys across the street.”

The Bruins will get a week off to ponder all that.

“I think what we have to do as football players, and as men, is to be courageous and show character and continue to fight when there isn’t a tangible thing to grasp,” Taylor said.

Injuries have played a part in the collapse. They left the offense in the hands of Rasshan, who started the season at wide receiver, and left Chane Moline, a third-stringer, and Craig Sheppard, a walk-on, as Saturday’s tailbacks.

The Bruins’ points came via their special teams.

Kai Forbath had two field goals, though Dorrell passed on two long attempts in the second half. Matthew Slater returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown. Terrence Austin took a punt back 68 yards to set up a two-yard touchdown run by Sheppard.

“A play here, a play there and we win games,” cornerback Trey Brown said. “We keep coming back and saying the same thing every week. There has got to be a time when we go out there and fix it.”

As it was, the Bruins gaffed a play here and a play there.

* Davis was called for roughing the passer after Carpenter had flung a desperation pass that fell incomplete as time ran out in the first half. The penalty gave the Sun Devils the ball in UCLA territory and one more play. Thomas Weber kicked a 53-yard field goal. Instead of leading, 13-7, at halftime, the Bruins led, 13-10.

* On a gadget play in the third quarter, Chris Meadows, a walk-on defensive back moved to wide receiver, dropped a pass from wide receiver Brandon Breazell at the Sun Devils 15-yard line.

* Taylor forced a fumble that gave the Bruins the ball on the Arizona State 28 with five minutes left. Two plays later, Rasshan rolled to his right, waved at receiver Joe Cowan to go deep, then threw a pass that was intercepted by safety Josh Barrett.

“We had chances,” Tevaga said. “We just didn’t finish.”

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chris.foster@latimes.com

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KEYS TO THE GAME

Chris Foster’s keys to the game and how UCLA measured up:

1. Sack lunch. Arizona State came into the game having allowed 37 sacks, including nine against Oregon last week. The Bruins got to quarterback Rudy Carpenter five times, including three sacks by safety Chris Horton. Carpenter was harassed throughout and finished with only 200 yards passing -- 58 below his average.

2. The Osaar factor. Bruins quarterback Osaar Rasshan had a so-so debut as a starter. UCLA coaches limited his play package, but he threw for 181 yards and ran for 41. Rasshan also had a pass intercepted with five minutes left.

3. Early risers. The Bruins went up, 10-0, in the first quarter, but their limited offense could not sustain the momentum. Arizona State, coming off its first loss of the season, looked sluggish but made enough big plays in the second half.