Defense comes through in the clutch

Alterraun Verner had the dramatic defensive play -- the acrobatic interception and speedy return for the clinching touchdown -- and Verner got all the celebratory hugs and back slaps and television and radio microphones stuck in front of his nose.

“He made the big play,” fellow UCLA cornerback Rodney Van said. “But we all made a lot of little plays.”

It was not a defensive performance for the ages, according to Bruins defensive tackle Kevin Brown. “Not enough sacks,” the senior grumbled. “Not enough pressure on the quarterback. We gave them 21 points, so, yeah, we can play a lot better.”

But the defense turned a restless Rose Bowl crowd from second-guessing boo birds to cheering, happy fans and led the Bruins to a 30-21 upset of California in front of 83,494 Saturday.

When it was fourth and one at the California 42-yard line with less than a minute left in the third quarter and UCLA trailing, 21-20, the Bruins called a timeout and chose to try to draw the Golden Bears offsides. The booing started immediately and continued as the third quarter ended.

“We heard that,” Brown said. “The thing was, when we found out the offense wasn’t going for it, that just told us the team had faith in the defense to hold things in check.”

Confirmed defensive end Bruce Davis: “What we saw was a big opportunity.”

The UCLA defense held, though not immediately. California tailback Justin Forsett gained 13 yards and a first down. But a Bears holding penalty nullified a 15-yard pass from quarterback Nate Longshore to receiver Lavelle Hawkins, and the Bruins forced a punt after Davis caught Forsett from behind on an eight-yard gain.

“That changed the tone a little bit,” Davis said. “It got the crowd back going for us, and we knew the offense would score again.”

The Bears gained 299 yards. DeSean Jackson, who is still featured on a YouTube clip running back a punt 72 yards for a touchdown against UCLA last year, caught nine passes for 138 yards and scored two touchdowns.

Yet, when defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker said he thought his cornerbacks did a good job of keeping Jackson from taking the game over, Davis agreed. “We gave up some stuff,” he said. “But we stopped some stuff too.”

Walker said he didn’t like the “feel” of the game in the first half, when Cal led, 14-13, and Jackson had seven of his catches and both his touchdowns.

“We were concentrating on stopping Forsett,” Walker said, “and playing a lot of zone. But the tenor of the game was just wrong. We did a good job on Forsett, but I didn’t like the whole tone of the game. So I told the guys we were just going out and going after them.”

Even as Walker called off the zone and loosened the area around Forsett, the Cal tailback couldn’t get altogether free. Before Saturday the senior averaged 122.6 yards a game and 6.4 yards a carry, but he had only 76 yards -- averaging 3.0 yards a carry -- against the Bruins.

“When Coach Walker told us we could go get them in the second half,” safety Chris Horton said, “it was just a great boost to us. It meant we could do what we do best.”

Horton said Verner was “playing football with his eyes,” and that was another advantage for the Bruins.

“He saw everything,” Horton said. “Two interceptions, man. That’s what this defense has been missing. Not only the big play, but the big play that turns into a turnover and the turnover that turns into a touchdown.”

--

diane.pucin@latimes.com