Bears Lose Heartbreaker to UCLA in Season Finale, 30-27
PASADENA, CA -Both Cal and UCLA came into Friday night's contest at 5-6, desperately needing a win to salvage their season and gain bowl eligibility but it was the home team that came away the winner in the end, as UCLA kicker JJ Molson booted the game-clinching field goal from 32 to seal their 30-27 win in the Rose Bowl.
The opportunity for Cal to pull the upset and move the forward forward with a bowl game was there for the taking.
The Bruins were in flux with head coach Jim Mora's dismissal earlier in the week, with offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch taking over as interim head coach. The Bears also were able to get to star quarterback Josh Rosen several times, with the last sack knocking UCLA's star QB out for the second half with a concussion, sending inexperienced Devon Modster in relief, but still, the Bears couldn't capitalize. The backup QB virtually matched Rosen stride for stride, going an impressive 14-for-18 for 191 yards in just one half of play.
Untimely penalties (11-for-84 yards) too often were the Bears' undoing, as was an inability to put the ball in the end zone when the opportunity arose, settling for four field goals, as well as a missed fifth attempt.
"We were moving the ball well at times," said Cal head coach Justin Wilcox. "We just couldn't capitalize and had too many penalties. The field goals, it's hard to win kicking field goals.
"Explosive passes killed us on defense, especially third downs. Then we get a stop and roughed the punter and give them 4th and inches so they get the first down and go on to score.
"We played pretty clean most of the year -not perfect- but we shot ourself in the foot too many times tonight."
Cal came into the game knowing the key to victory involved keeping UCLA's future first round draft pick quarterback Rosen in check with regular pressure and hits on the injury-prone QB. Rosen's pattern in his first three years with the Bruins has been to pick apart defenses when given time but to often fold when frequently pressured or hit.
The first two defensive series featured exactly the type of defensive pressure the Bears were looking for, with a pair of deep sacks by linebackers Ray Davison (six tackles, 1.5 tfl) and Alex Funches (three tackles and two sacks) and a pair of forced fumbles, including one recovered by linebacker Jordan Kunaszyk (eight tackles, one sack). The Bears were unable to capitalize on the good field position, however, netting just a 32-yard Matt Anderson in both possessions.
As it turned out, the first two defensive series were the only dominant series of the game for the Cal defense. When given time, Rosen began to pick apart the Bear defense, leading the Bruins on a pair of touchdown drives and another for a field goal, completing 13-for-18 for 202 yards before going down with a concussion right before the halftime break. UCLA took a 17-9 lead into the locker room.
In all, the Bears had nine tackles for loss -eight coming in the first half.
After the frustrating first half, the Bears made it a game, driving 58 yards in six plays, capped off with a 2-yard td run by quarterback Ross Bowers (25-41, 242 yards, one td pass, one td run) just six minutes into the third quarter, tying the game at 17-all on a 2-yard reception by running back Patrick Laird on the PAT.
The junior running back again put the team on his shoulders, rushing for a game-high 178 yards on 32 carries, pushing his season total to an impressive 1,127 yards, but it was not enough in the end.
Just when it looked like things were going the Bears' way, UCLA responded immediately with a drive of their own, with QB Modster torching cornerback Cameron Bynum several times to move the ball down the field, setting up a 1-yard Brandon Stephens td run to push the Bruins ahead again 24-17 after the PAT.
Another big completion over Bynum -this time 41 yards from Modster to receiver Jordan Lasley- set up a 26-yard Molson field goal to push the Bruin lead to 10 at 27-17 with 12:10 remaining in the game. Lasley had his way with the Bears all night long, hauling in 12 receptions for a backbreaking 227 yards (18.9 ypc) and a touchdown on the night.
With the game in danger of slipping away, the Bears wouldn't go away, going 87 yards in 14 plays before having again to settle for a field goal this one good from 20 by Anderson to pull within 7 at 27-20 with 8:30 left in the game.
The Bears defense held, giving their offense time to knot the score, going 77 yards in 11 plays, with a 6-yard Bowers td pass to receiver Jordan Veasy and an Anderson PAT knotting the game at 27 with 2:22 left on the clock.
It was time for the defense to make a stand, to either force a 3-and-out to give their offense a chance to go for the win or at least force overtime.
It was not to be, however, as the Bruins chewed up all but the remaining four seconds, driving 65 yards before Molson converted the game-winner from 37 to send the Bears into hibernation for the winter at 5-7.
What did Wilcox have to say to his team, especially the departing seniors?
"That I'm really proud of them, me and the staff are proud of those guys," said Wilcox. "It really hurts. Obviously some guys walked off the field and it was their last football game.
"There's not a lot you can say that makes them feel better, just that we appreciate them and the job that they've done. I've got to do a better job of helping us move forward."
"I thought our guys played their butts off," said Bowers. "I think this just put a bunch of motivated guys in a pissed-off mood this whole offseason.
"This is not us. We're not losers. It's not this team's goal, this mentality if we get to a bowl, it's a great year. It would be great after today but we're not settling for just a bowl game. We want to win every single game we play."