The color red filled the Rose Bowl Saturday night, and not just from the pink tint of the stands. As the clock hit zero, chants of “Go Big Red” could be heard throughout the stadium, signifying the Bruins’ defeat.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-3, 4-3 Big Ten) defeated UCLA (3-6, 3-3 Big Ten) 28-21, marking the Bruins’ 2nd consecutive loss following their three-game winning streak. It was a game of momentum on both sides, as leads vanished and touchdowns came in bunches.
Nebraska’s quarterback TJ Lateef, a Los Angeles native, filled in for their typical starter Dylan Raiola, who broke his fibula at USC last week. He looked more than comfortable in his first collegiate start, completing 13 of his 15 passes for 205 yards, throwing three touchdowns and adding 31 yards on the ground.
Lateef opened the scoring after a UCLA three-and-out, capitalizing on a goal-to-go opportunity. The freshman threw a perfectly placed 2-yard touchdown pass to Jacory Barney Jr. to take an early 7-0 lead.
The Bruins were able to respond back, logging a lengthy 17-play, 75-yard 9:46 drive. Finally, on a 4th and goal on the Nebraska one-yard line, senior running back Jalen Berger took a direct snap into the endzone for a score, evening the contest.
The rest of the first half, however, was all Cornhuskers. Just over two minutes later, Lateef found Emmett Johnson out of the backfield, who proceeded to take the screen pass 56 yards for the touchdown. Then, with 1:51 remaining in the 2nd, Johnson found the endzone again, this time on a 1-yard rush. By halftime, Nebraska led 21-7.
On the opening drive of the second half, Lateef once again found Johnson for a touchdown. The 40-yard throw-and-catch, Johnson’s third touchdown of the night, put the Bruins down 21.
Despite the seemingly insurmountable deficit, quarterback Nico Iamaleava would not go down without a fight. Iamaleava was dancing around the pocket all night, taking huge hits, but repeatedly bouncing back. “I’ve gotten hit a lot of times in many games”, the Tennessee transfer said. “I don’t think it affected me in that way.”
Iamaleava finished with 15 attempts and 86 yards rushing, adding in 191 yards and two touchdowns through the air. The first came on a 45-yard pass to Anthony Woods, making the score 28-14, Nebraska.
The Bruins’ defense finally figured out the Cornhuskers’ offensive success late in the 3rd, putting together a series of stops to put themselves back in the game. “I feel like we did a better job in the second half of everybody running to the ball”, UCLA linebacker Jalen Woods added, when asked about the adjustment.
In the 4th quarter, Iamaleava led another huge drive, this time for 96 yards in 6:39. He avoided sack after sack, converting on multiple 3rd and 10+ scenarios and capping off the drive with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Anthony Frias II.
Suddenly, the Bruins were within seven, and the prospect of a comeback felt real. “I thought if we got one more stop we were going to go back down and score and go for two and try to win the game”, Iamaleava said.
However, UCLA was unable to secure one final stop on defense, allowing Nebraska to run the clock out and seal the victory. Their inability to contain Lateef and Johnson, who set a career-high in total yards, ultimately created a deficit too large to overcome.
The Bruins hope to bounce back next weekend, but face their most rigorous test of the season: No.1 Ohio State in their home stadium.
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Featured Image Photographed by Luana Caravalho/BruinLife
