Down 7-10 late in the third, USC’s Jayden Maiava threw a 32-yard dot to Makai Lemon in the end zone, lighting up the sea of red at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. From there, the momentum spiraled into a 22-0 run that lifted the Trojans to a 29-10 win over UCLA.
UCLA football has had a year of unpredictability, including the signing of star quarterback Nico Iamaleava, the firing of head coach DeShaun Foster, an upset win over No.7 Penn State and possibly a final goodbye to the historic Rose Bowl. Nonetheless, the season came to an end on Saturday evening in front of 69,614 fans, as UCLA (3-9, 3-6 Big Ten) fell to USC (9-3, 7-2 Big Ten) in the battle for Los Angeles.
The Trojans came out of the tunnel dialed in, with running back King Miller splitting the Bruins’ defense for a 5-yard touchdown on the opening drive. On top of that, USC held UCLA to three-and-out on their first possession, forcing the Bruins to punt and setting up another scoring opportunity. Kicker Ryon Sayeri had a chance to extend the Trojans lead with a 38-yard field goal attempt, but the kick was blocked by UCLA’s Scott Taylor.
With the sun setting against the LA skyline, UCLA finally found a spark. The Bruins marched 79 yards down the field and capped it off with Iamaleava firing a 2-yard bullet to Kwazi Gilmer in the end zone. With the score now tied, USC put together a solid run to UCLA’s 12-yard line, but Sayeri’s field goal attempt sailed just right, his second miss of the night.
As the second quarter came to a close, the Bruins earned another red-zone look on fourth-and-one at USC’s 20-yard line. However, head coach Tim Skipper settled for the safer move, bringing out the field goal unit instead of going for a first down. Kicker Mateen Bhaghani nailed the field goal right down the middle, granting the Bruins a 10-7 lead at half.
UCLA’s troubles surfaced immediately as the third quarter began. Linebacker Wyatt Mosier was flagged for unnecessary roughness on the kickoff, pushing the Bruins back to their own 14-yard line to begin the drive. USC then held them to a three-and-out, prompting another punt for UCLA.
The two teams exchanged blows throughout the rest of the third, until the Trojans caught fire with Lemon’s 32-yard touchdown. For the remainder of the game, USC’s defense locked down UCLA while their offense kept punching. With 11:28 left in the match, Maiava threw a 2-yard dart to Lake McRee in the right corner of the end zone, extending the Trojans lead to 21-10.
Clinging to a sliver of hope, UCLA watched it disappear as Miller ripped through the Bruins’ defense for a 41-yard touchdown that pushed the lead to 27-10. The Trojans then rubbed salt in the wound, cashing in on the two-point conversion to seal the win.
UCLA now shifts its attention to the offseason, where the program will need to make several changes before regrouping for the 2026 season.
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Featured Image Photographed by Catherine Rodriguez/BruinLife
