Tag Archives: Pac-12 Championship

UCLA moves up to No. 22 in AP poll, USC and Utah fall out

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Josh Rosen might have been right after all.

More than a month ago, after an ugly 56-35 loss at Stanford, UCLA’s freshman quarterback promised a rematch in the Pac-12 Championship. On Saturday, the No. 13 Cardinal clinched the Pac-12 North with a win over Cal, while the Bruins moved to a first-place in their own division by beating then-No. 18 Utah.

That game bumped UCLA back into the AP poll at No. 22, while dropping the Utes out of the rankings. Utah had been ranked third in the country a little over a month ago.

USC is also no longer ranked after a 20-point loss at Oregon, which moved to No. 18. The Trojans and the Bruins will play for the Pac-12 South title on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

No. 20 Washington State is the only other ranked team in the conference.

Here’s the full AP poll: Continue reading “UCLA moves up to No. 22 in AP poll, USC and Utah fall out” »

UCLA and USC set to kick off at 12:30 on ABC/ESPN2

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UCLA and USC will end the regular season with a 12:30 p.m. kickoff at Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, broadcasting on either ABC or ESPN2 depending on the region.

The winner of the Los Angeles rivalry will clinch the Pac-12 South and advance to the conference title game on Dec. 5 against Stanford. The Bruins and the Trojans are both tied with 5-3 records. Utah is technically in a first-place tie as well, but was eliminated from the race after losing to UCLA, 17-9, yesterday.

This will be the fourth time in five weeks that the Bruins have kicked off a game before 2 p.m.

UCLA vs. USC will kick off at 5 p.m. Saturday on ABC

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With the Pac-12 South at stake, UCLA will host USC in a primetime slot this coming Saturday.

The rivalry game will kick off at the Rose Bowl at 5 p.m., with a national broadcast on ABC. Arizona State had held the inside track to the Pac-12 title game for the last month, but its upset loss to Oregon State last night shifts to spotlight to Pasadena — where the Bruins and the Trojans will play a de facto division elimination game.

With two weeks left, five teams still remain mathematically alive to win the Pac-12 South. But despite the hodgepodge of potential tiebreaker scenarios, UCLA holds the clearest path: win out against USC and Stanford, and the Bruins will earn a second shot at Oregon at Levi’s Stadium on Dec. 5.

Beat the Ducks, and a playoff berth that seemed laughable a month ago will be within UCLA’s grasp.

Pac-12 links: Who will head to the Rose Bowl?

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— Why Stanford will beat Arizona State for a Rose Bowl berth, according to the Bay Area News Group’s Jon Wilner.

— Steve Sarkisian has already hired two members of his Washington staff. Might defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox be the next to head to USC?

— An older man kicked a younger man in the face at last week’s Territorial Cup game between ASU and Arizona. Continue reading “Pac-12 links: Who will head to the Rose Bowl?” »

Pac-12 Championship: Running score

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Stanford 27, UCLA 24 – 6:49 fourth quarter: UCLA got the clutch defensive play it needed, with Randall Goforth breaking up the end zone pass. Stanford settles for a 36-yard field goal by Jordan Williamson. Bruins limited that Cardinal drive to just 25 yards on five plays after a big punt return by Drew Terrell.

UCLA 24, Stanford 24 – 11:21 third quarter: Kevin Hogan ties the game with a 26-yard pass to Drew Terrell. UCLA cornerback Sheldon Price had a clear shot at tipping the pass, but jumped too early. One of Hogan’s better throws tonight caps a 10-play, 58-yard drive that was mostly Stepfan Taylor runs.

The Bruins just can’t shake the Cardinal despite more than a 100-yard edge in total offense. UCLA has committed seven penalties for 64 yards. Stanford has three for 25.

UCLA 24, Stanford 17 – 1:04 third quarter: Johnathan Franklin continues to completely wreck Stanford’s vaunted run defense. This time, a 20-yard scamper gives UCLA’s star tailback his second score of the day, capping the Bruins’ 12-play, 80-yard drive. In what has already been a remarkable season by Franklin, this is the gem.

He already has 173 rushing yards on just 15 carries with over a quarter to go. Few teams have been able to rush for triple digits against Stanford, with Oregon rolling up the most with 198 on 40 carries.

UCLA 17, Stanford 17 – 8:20 third quarter: The Bruins tie the game on a 31-yard field goal from freshman Ka’imi Fairbairn, who has incredibly reliable from short range all season. UCLA’s nine-play, 47-yard drive stalled as Brett Hundley couldn’t find open receivers, including Joe Fauria running out of bounds to make himself ineligible to receive.

Johnathan Franklin continues one of his best games of the season. His 32-yard run on the drive helped give him 149 on the day, more than any other back has against Stanford.

Stanford 17, UCLA 14 – 0:02 second quarter: Jordan Williamson’s 37-yard field goal breaks the game’s streak of five straight punts, giving the Cardinal a slight edge heading into halftime. The 10-play, 62-yard drive was mostly Kevin Hogan on both passes and runs, but tailback Stepfan Taylor set up the field goal with a 9-yard scamper — one that made him Stanford’s all-time leading rusher.

The natural grass field at Stanford Stadium is getting slippery, and it’s started to affect a number of plays. Even officials have lost their footing.

UCLA 14, Stanford 14 – 12:57 second quarter: Brett Hundley makes a costly mistake, forcing a throw to Joe Fauria that just wasn’t there. That gets taken back 80 yards on a eye-popping return by safety Ed Reynolds, who misses out on a pick six after the play is reviewed. Stepfan Taylor punches the ball in on a one-play, one-yard drive.

Bruins absolutely had all the momentum until that interception, having just churned out 59 yards in six plays. That included a 31-yard run by Franklin and a 17-yard pass from Hundley to Fauria.

UCLA 14, Stanford 7 – 3:40 in the first quarter: Brett Hundley abuses the Stanford defense with his legs, finding space on the left side and scrambling five yards to the end zone. Hundley had followed up his team’s 15-yard penalty earlier on the drive with a 48-yard streak to the Stanford 24-yard-line.

Really good showing on the ground today for UCLA. The Bruins already have 132 yards rushing. Franklin has 80 on the day, and is the new single-season record holder for rushing yards.

UCLA 7, Stanford 7 — 6:07 first quarter: Kevin Hogan absolutely embarrassed the Bruins defense on a fake handoff, turning around to walk two yards into the end zone. No one was within even 10 yards of the Stanford quarterback on that naked bootleg. Great playcall by David Shaw there.

The Cardinal came up big twice on that 11-play, 69-yard drive. Kevin Hogan rushed 13 yards to convert a third down around midfield, and Stepfan Taylor turned a little toss into a 32-yard gain. That gave Stanford first-and-goal on the 2-yard-line.

UCLA 7, Stanford 0 – 11:35 first quarter: The Bruins get on the board early with 51-yard run up the middle by Johnathan Franklin. The tailback has now broken Maurice Jones-Drew’s record in career all-purpose yards (4,688).

UCLA lucked out a bit earlier on this drive when Trent Murphy nailed Brett Hundley from the weakside to force a fumble, but the play was called back had been blown dead due to referee confusion as to whether it should have been first or second down for the Bruins. That drive went 85 yards for 8 plays for the Bruins, including four first downs.