UCLA football comes up short as Nebraska pulls away

PASADENA — The ease, the simplicity of how Nebraska moved downfield in Huskers quarterback TJ Lateef’s first collegiate start, was as if the true freshman had been studying for an exam and received the answers under his door the night before he took pen to paper.

In many ways, Nebraska had a game plan for how to exploit UCLA. Just look at the start of the season, the three-week more-than-slump that sunk early-season shine into doom and gloom with haphazard defensive displays against offenses that wrung the Bruins’ run defense and edge containment dry of stops.

The index of film, proof of where to attack, set Nebraska on the right track in the first half of UCLA’s 28-21 loss at the Rose Bowl on Saturday night — enough to make the Bruins (3-6, 3-3 Big Ten) comfortably second best.

Nebraska star running back Emmett Johnson — who had already eclipsed the 1,000 rushing yard barrier entering the contest — had a hand in the Huskers’ final three touchdowns touchdowns, the first two being a 56-yard screen pass from Lateef leaving the junior untouched to the end zone and a one-yard run to place Nebraska (7-3, 4-3) up by 14 at halftime.

Johnson started the third quarter with an exclamation point, wide-open along the sideline for a 40-yard receiving touchdown — Lateef’s third passing touchdown — shedding a last-ditch attempt from redshirt senior linebacker JonJon Vaughns to make it 28-7 with 11:44 to go in the period. Lateef, who played at Orange Lutheran High a year ago, finished 13-of-15 passing for 205 yards and three touchdowns, while Johnson paced Nebraska for 129 rushing yards, 103 receiving yards and three total touchdowns.

Earlier in the week, UCLA interim coach Tim Skipper emphasized the need to control time of possession — and for good reason. When the Bruins had their pulse on the clock, it led to cornerstone victories against Penn State and Michigan State, turning a season to forget into an outside bid at bowling.

Nine minutes and 46 seconds — the length of UCLA’s second drive that ended with Jalen Berger taking the snap for a wildcat-formation one-yard touchdown run to make the score 7-7 in the second quarter — appeared to play into such a strategy successfully. And on the Bruins’ third drive, now trailing by seven points, UCLA was well on its way to doing the same again.

On 3rd-and-1 from Nebraska’s 38-yard line, Iamaleava faced pressure from the Huskers’ edge rush, shooting a pass to wide receiver Rico Flores Jr. The redshirt sophomore couldn’t get a grasp on the pass and the Bruins faced fourth down instead.

Defensive lineman Siale Taupaki entered the field of play as a wide receiver, an extra body to help Iamaleava get a yard for the first down. Instead, a lapse in protection saw Taupaki make a defender whiff his quarterback as the big man fell to the ground, but Iamaleava was still far short of moving the chains.

Iamaleava slumped onto a sideline bench, the tech of modern-day college football allowing the redshirt sophomore to study the play repeatedly. He watched Nebraska defensive back DeShaun Singleton storm through the Bruins’ run protection and take him to the ground.

What better could Iamaleava have done on a night where he passed for 191 yards and two touchdowns, as well as accruing 86 yards on the ground? Should the third-and-1 play beforehand have been a run instead of a pass? So go the questions of defeat.

UCLA brought it close, within seven points with 4:54 remaining, thanks to a third-quarter 45-yard touchdown reception from redshirt junior running back Anthony Woods and a fourth-quarter, 9-yard touchdown reception courtesy of redshirt senior running back Anthony Frias II.

Ringing through UCLA’s second consecutive loss, consequently ending a season that would need a stunning victory next week against top-ranked Ohio State to remain in bowl contention, was a reminder of what early-season football looked like at the Rose Bowl.

Often too little, too late.