The UCLA Bruins (3-8, 3-5 in Pac-12 Conference) used 13 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to pick up the victory over the USC Trojans (5-6, 4-5) today at the Rose Bowl in the 88th edition of their rivalry game. The loss leaves USC still one win from becoming eligible for a bowl game. The Trojans’ regular-season finale is next Saturday against the third-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish at the Coliseum. The Bruins conclude their first season under coach Chip Kelly with a Pac-12 game against Stanford next Saturday at the Rose Bowl.
USC came within 29 yards of the end zone but could not get past the UCLA defense in the final minutes of the game, allowing the Bruins to take a 34-27 win.
With 2 ½ minutes left on the clock, JT Daniels completed his first three passes for 33 yards to put the Trojans in UCLA territory. But his next three passes landed incomplete, as the Bruins defense shut down any last-minute comeback effort.
USC was 4-for-13 in third-down conversions, and both teams earned more than 400 total yards on offense
JJ Molson drilled a 48-yard field goal with 2:36 to play in the game, extending UCLA’s lead over USC to 34-27.
A USC possession with limited yardage left the Trojans’ punt landing in mid-field, so UCLA only needed a few gains to reach field goal range. Joshua Kelley rushed 21 yards in four carries to put the Bruins within distance, as USC kept the Bruins from approaching the red zone.
The field goal was UCLA’s second of the game, as the Bruins have held the Trojans scoreless in the fourth quarter to take a seven-point lead.
JJ Molson drilled his first field goal of the game, a 19-yard kick, giving UCLA a 31-27 lead over USC.
Wilton Speight completed two passes for 26 yards and a five-yard rush to get the Bruins in position to score. Joshua Kelley added a few short rushes, but the Trojans’ defense held the Bruins back from the end zone, forcing the field goal attempt.
Speight has completed 13 of 22 passes for 166 yards, with a touchdown and an interception, while Kelley earned 268 rushing yards in 36 carries, with two touchdowns.
JT Daniels hurled a long pass to the left that Darnay Holmes snagged as he fell to the ground, giving UCLA possession in Daniels’ second interception of the game with 10:31 left in the fourth quarter.
After Joshua Kelley gave UCLA a one-point lead with a 55-yard touchdown run, Daniels threw the interception on the first play of the Trojans’ drive, a pass that slipped far away from a USC receiver.
The interception was Holmes’ third of the season, and his second straight, after recording a pick against Arizona State.
Joshua Kelley found a hole in the USC defense and bolted down the left sideline for a 55-yard touchdown run, giving UCLA a 28-27 lead with 10:39 to play in the fourth quarter.
After a holding penalty squandered the Trojans’ chance at a field goal the drive before, UCLA took over. Wilton Speight completed two passes for 26 yards, and Kelley rushed 16 yards in three carries before his explosive touchdown run.
With 256 yards in 32 attempts, Kelley is averaging eight yards per carry, with two touchdowns, against the Trojans’ defense.
After gaining possession through a UCLA interception, USC claimed a 27-21 lead over the Bruins when Michael Brown nailed a 22-yard field goal with 7:04 left in the third quarter.
After Aca’Cedric Ware gained 12 yards in two rushes, two of his three pass attempts — a 37-yard pass to Michael Pittman Jr. and an 8-yard pass to Amon-ra St. Brown — a trick play that saw Tyler Vaughns take the snap and run was called back because of a USC penalty. The Trojans have given up four penalties for 18 yards in the game.
After the penalty, UCLA held Vavae Malepeai to a pair of short rushes, as JT Daniels’ pass to Pittman fell incomplete, bringing the 77-yard, 11-play drive to an end with USC’s third field goal attempt of the game.
Wilton Speight threw a long pass to the middle of the end zone, but Isaiah Langley intercepted it, giving USC possession on its own 25-yard line with 12:21 left to play in the third quarter.
The Bruins gained 35 yards in six plays before the turnover, with three rushes for 19 yards by Joshua Kelley and a rush apiece from Martell Irby and Speight. Kelley has rushed for 166 yards in 24 carries, with a touchdown.
The interception was Speight’s fifth of the season. He has completed nine of 15 passes for 114 yards and a touchdown.
Velus Jones Jr. caught a short pass from JT Daniels, got a block from Michael Pittman Jr. and tore down the field untouched to the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown play, giving USC a 24-21 lead over UCLA.
The play was Daniels’ second touchdown pass of the game and Jones’ first catch. It was Jones’ longest reception of the season and his first touchdown.
Nate Meadors intercepted JT Daniels’ pass in the second quarter, setting up UCLA for a touchdown drive to take a lead over USC.
Daniels aimed the pass for Michael Pittman Jr. down the left sideline, but he overthrew the ball, and Meadors bolted for the interception — Daniels’ ninth of the season.
Once the Bruins gained possession, they got inside the five-yard line when Wilton Speight threw a deep pass to Theo Howard down the left sideline. After Brandon Pili picked up an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty, Joshua Kelley made the 1-yard touchdown run for the Bruins.
As UCLA lined up to punt deep in its own territory, Jake Russell rushed the punter with his USC teammates. He blocked the punt and sent the ball tumbling into the end zone, where USC recovered for a touchdown, taking a 17-14 lead over UCLA.
The Trojans held Joshua Kelley to three net rushing yards in two carries then sacked Wilton Speight for a nine-yard loss to force the punt. It was UCLA’s first drive of the game that did not result in a touchdown.
With the score, USC took the lead for the first time since its game-opening field goal.