University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
UCLA FB Rewind: Bruins Win Big
September 08, 2020 | Football
Sept. 9, 1972 -- Nebraska at UCLA
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The Cornhuskers arrived for the 1972 season opener in the L.A. Coliseum with impressive credentials as the No. 1 team in the nation, two-time defending national champions and owners of a 32-game unbeaten stretch and a 23-game win streak. The Bruins were seeking to improve on a 2-7-1 record posted in Coach Pepper Rodgers' first season at the helm in 1971.
Transfer quarterback Mark Harmon, starting his first major college game, and running back James McAllister helped the Bruins capitalize on a pair of early Cornhusker fumbles to put points on the board. Both loose balls were recovered by Cal Peterson, as the Bruins tallied the first 10 points of the contest, but top-ranked Nebraska managed to pull even by halftime.
UCLA responded in the second half with a two-yard touchdown run by Harmon, set up by a Jimmy Allen interception return to the Husker 15, and held a 17-10 advantage entering the fourth quarter.
A 44-yard Cornhusker touchdown strike early in the fourth quarter sent the game hurtling toward a dramatic finish. UCLA took over with 6:13 remaining in the contest after forcing a Nebraska punt. Harmon directed the Bruins from the UCLA 43 to the Nebraska 12, converting a pass for a key first down to receiver Jack Lassnerย along the way. Efren Herrera came on to kick a game-winning 30-yard field goal with 22 seconds left.
UCLA racked up 65 passing yards and 219 on the ground. Nebraska gained 320 yards of total offense but committed five turnovers (2 interceptions, 3 lost fumbles) for the game.
The report from the Omaha World-Herald's Tom Ash starts this way:
"When the UCLA band played the Bruin alma mater after the football game in the Los Angeles Coliseum Saturday night, it sounded like a funeral dirge to the multitude of visiting Nebraska fans. They had just witnessed the death of the Cornhusker dynasty."
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Sept. 13, 1997 -- UCLA at Texasย
UCLA came into the 1997 season unranked and had opened the season with losses to Washington State and Tennessee when it traveled to Austin for game three to take on the No. 11 Longhorns who had captured the Big 12 Championship the previous year. At the final gun, the Bruins had posted a memorable first victory and taken its initial step on a journey which would yield 20-straight wins.
UCLA quarterback Cade McNown threw for 202 yards and a school-record five touchdown passes to spark the stunning victory over Texas. McNown blew the game open with a pair of touchdown tosses 20 seconds apart early in the second quarter. He hit running back Skip Hicks on a 43-yard scoring pass and then hooked up with tight end Mike Grieb on a 1-yard touchdown reception following a UT turnover.
McNown, continued his golden touch, hitting wide out Jim McElroy with a 4-yard scoring pass and Grieb for another 1-yard scoring play that boosted UCLA to a 38-0 lead with 4:37 left in the first half.
Texas tallied a 35-yard field goal from Phil Dawson early in the third quarter to account for all of its scoring, but the landslide didn't stop when UCLA coach Bob Toledo went to the reserves. The Bruins erupted for 21 fourth-quarter points, including a 10-yard scoring run from Keith Brown with 4:24 left and a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown from Damian Allen just 23 seconds later.
The Longhorns struggled with eight turnovers and seven Bruin sacks in a humbling performance that had not been matched in Texas' modern football history. UCLA turned six of the eight turnovers into touchdowns in what was the worst home defeat in Texas history and at the time was the worst loss for a ranked team in the 61-year history of the Associated Press poll.
When it was all said and done, the Bruins had scored on its first six possessions of the contest. UCLA's defense limited All-America running back Ricky Williams to one of the worst performances of his career as he rushed for 36 yards on 13 carries. The victory was the most lopsided for UCLA since the Bruins romped over San Diego Naval Training Center, 67-0, in 1954.
UCLA capped off the 1997 campaign with a return trip to the state of Texas, handing Texas A&M a 29-23 setback in the 1998 Cotton Bowl. In that contest, UCLA overcame an early 16-0 A&M lead to charge back for a triumph which led to a No. 5ย finish in the final Associated Press poll.
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The Cornhuskers arrived for the 1972 season opener in the L.A. Coliseum with impressive credentials as the No. 1 team in the nation, two-time defending national champions and owners of a 32-game unbeaten stretch and a 23-game win streak. The Bruins were seeking to improve on a 2-7-1 record posted in Coach Pepper Rodgers' first season at the helm in 1971.
Transfer quarterback Mark Harmon, starting his first major college game, and running back James McAllister helped the Bruins capitalize on a pair of early Cornhusker fumbles to put points on the board. Both loose balls were recovered by Cal Peterson, as the Bruins tallied the first 10 points of the contest, but top-ranked Nebraska managed to pull even by halftime.
UCLA responded in the second half with a two-yard touchdown run by Harmon, set up by a Jimmy Allen interception return to the Husker 15, and held a 17-10 advantage entering the fourth quarter.
A 44-yard Cornhusker touchdown strike early in the fourth quarter sent the game hurtling toward a dramatic finish. UCLA took over with 6:13 remaining in the contest after forcing a Nebraska punt. Harmon directed the Bruins from the UCLA 43 to the Nebraska 12, converting a pass for a key first down to receiver Jack Lassnerย along the way. Efren Herrera came on to kick a game-winning 30-yard field goal with 22 seconds left.
UCLA racked up 65 passing yards and 219 on the ground. Nebraska gained 320 yards of total offense but committed five turnovers (2 interceptions, 3 lost fumbles) for the game.
The report from the Omaha World-Herald's Tom Ash starts this way:
"When the UCLA band played the Bruin alma mater after the football game in the Los Angeles Coliseum Saturday night, it sounded like a funeral dirge to the multitude of visiting Nebraska fans. They had just witnessed the death of the Cornhusker dynasty."
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEB | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| UCLA | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
Sept. 13, 1997 -- UCLA at Texasย
UCLA came into the 1997 season unranked and had opened the season with losses to Washington State and Tennessee when it traveled to Austin for game three to take on the No. 11 Longhorns who had captured the Big 12 Championship the previous year. At the final gun, the Bruins had posted a memorable first victory and taken its initial step on a journey which would yield 20-straight wins.
UCLA quarterback Cade McNown threw for 202 yards and a school-record five touchdown passes to spark the stunning victory over Texas. McNown blew the game open with a pair of touchdown tosses 20 seconds apart early in the second quarter. He hit running back Skip Hicks on a 43-yard scoring pass and then hooked up with tight end Mike Grieb on a 1-yard touchdown reception following a UT turnover.
McNown, continued his golden touch, hitting wide out Jim McElroy with a 4-yard scoring pass and Grieb for another 1-yard scoring play that boosted UCLA to a 38-0 lead with 4:37 left in the first half.
Texas tallied a 35-yard field goal from Phil Dawson early in the third quarter to account for all of its scoring, but the landslide didn't stop when UCLA coach Bob Toledo went to the reserves. The Bruins erupted for 21 fourth-quarter points, including a 10-yard scoring run from Keith Brown with 4:24 left and a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown from Damian Allen just 23 seconds later.
The Longhorns struggled with eight turnovers and seven Bruin sacks in a humbling performance that had not been matched in Texas' modern football history. UCLA turned six of the eight turnovers into touchdowns in what was the worst home defeat in Texas history and at the time was the worst loss for a ranked team in the 61-year history of the Associated Press poll.
When it was all said and done, the Bruins had scored on its first six possessions of the contest. UCLA's defense limited All-America running back Ricky Williams to one of the worst performances of his career as he rushed for 36 yards on 13 carries. The victory was the most lopsided for UCLA since the Bruins romped over San Diego Naval Training Center, 67-0, in 1954.
UCLA capped off the 1997 campaign with a return trip to the state of Texas, handing Texas A&M a 29-23 setback in the 1998 Cotton Bowl. In that contest, UCLA overcame an early 16-0 A&M lead to charge back for a triumph which led to a No. 5ย finish in the final Associated Press poll.
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 10 | 28 | 7 | 21 | 66 |
| TEXAS | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
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