UCLA
California
Football Hosts Golden Bears Saturday in Regular-Season Finale
November 21, 2023 | Football
GAME INFORMATION
Venue: Rose Bowl Stadium
Kickoff Time: 7:30 p.m. PT
Television: ESPN
TV Talent: Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Brock Osweiler (analyst), Kayla Burton (sideline)
Local Radio (UCLA Sports Network from IMG College): AM570
Local Radio Talent: Josh Lewin (play-by-play), Matt Stevens (analyst), Wayne Cook (sideline)
SiriusXM/SXM App: Ch. 158 or 197/Ch. 959
THE MATCHUP
UCLA, a winner in 19 of its past 27 overall games, returns to Rose Bowl Stadium Saturday to host California. UCLA will honor its senior student-athletes before the game. The Bruins and Golden Bears have met at least once each season since the series began in 1933. UCLA has posted a 10-3 record at home over the past two seasons after going 6-2 in 2022 and 4-1 to date in 2023. UCLA has captured five of the past six overall meetings in the series with Cal and owns a 16-5 overall edge in games played at the Rose Bowl.
UCLA has the Pac-12's top rated rushing defense (64.6 yards per game), team sacks (3.64 per game), team tackles for loss (8.50 per game), yards per play allowed (4.39), rushing offense (202.1 yards per game) and yards per rush allowed (2.17). The Bruins are tied for first in the Pac-12 with Cal in turnovers gained (21) and rank second in passes intercepted (12). UCLA has held eight of its 11 opponents this season to fewer than 20 points and ranks 10th in the nation in scoring defense (16.7 points per game).
This is UCLA's final Pac-12 season. UCLA joined the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) in 1928. The PCC disbanded and UCLA joined Cal, Stanford, USC and Washington in the Athletic Association of Western Universities in 1959, with Washington State (1962), Oregon (1964) and Oregon State (1964) joining the league a few years later. These schools formed the Pac-8 in 1968, which turned into the Pac-10 for the 1978 season after the additions of Arizona and Arizona State. The Pac-12 began in 2011 when Colorado and Utah joined the fold.
Saturday's battle will be televised by the ESPN, with coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. PT. The Bruin IMG Radio Network will broadcast the contest, which will also be aired over SiriusXM and the Varsity App.
SERIES HISTORY
The teams have met at least once each year since the series began in 1933. UCLA owns a 16-5 edge in games played at Rose Bowl Stadium and a 58-34-1 advantage in all series meetings. The Bruins have won five of the past six meetings in the series and the winning team has scored at least 30 points in 13 of the past 14 meetings. UCLA has won the past three battles with the Golden Bears and most recently won four straight times in the series from 1995-98. The Bruins captured 18 straight meetings in the series over the course of the 1972-1989 seasons.
AT A GLANCE
โข UCLA is 10-3 in home games over the past two seasons (4-1 in 2023 and 6-2 in 2022). The Bruins have not won more than six home games in a season at Rose Bowl Stadium.
โข The winner of the UCLA-California game has scored at least 30 points in 13 of the past 14 contests. In that one outlier game, Cal won 28-18 at the Rose Bowl in 2019.
โข UCLA has concluded its regular season with a game against Cal in five of the past seven seasons (3-2 record with wins in 2022, 2021 and 2017 and losses in 2019 and 2016).
โข UCLA is 7-0 this season when scoring at least 25 points.
โข UCLA has 93 tackles for loss (TFLs) on the season. The program record (since 2000, when NCAA began tracking TFLs) is 114 in 2007. The total of 93 is the most by a Bruin team since the 2012 squad had 100. The Bruins have been credited with 40 sacks on the season, which is the most since the 2012 team totaled a program high of 47.
โข UCLA converted a turnover into points against USC for the first time since Game 6 at Oregon State.
โข DB Alex Johnson leads the Pac-12 with four interceptions (11th nationally). He also owns the Pac-12 lead with an average of 0.4 interceptions per game (12th overall). His four picks are the most by a Bruin player since Randall Goforth had four in 2016. No Bruin has had more than four interceptions in a season since 2009, when Rahim Moore had 10.
โข DL Laiatu Latu, who was named a finalist for the Lombardi Award last week, leads the nation in TFLs per game (1.9) and is third nationally in sacks-per-game average (1.18).
โข The Bruins lead the nation in rushing defense (64.6 yards per game) and have held four teams this season to 30 yards of rushing or fewer (USC three, Colorado 25, Stanford 24 and Washington State 12). UCLA had most recently held four teams to 30 rushing yards or fewer in 1985 (Oregon State two, Stanford seven, Arizona State 18 and San Diego State 14).
โข UCLA is allowing 16.7 points per game, which would be the lowest season average by a Bruin team since the 1991 squad gave up 15.8.
โข UCLA leads the nation allowing just 2.17 yards per rush this season (Penn State is second at 2.42). UCLA most recently had a lower mark in 1985 (2.12).
โข The Bruins are tied for second in the nation (also Ohio State) with just three rushing touchdowns allowed. Iowa has allowed one.
โข UCLA opponents are averaging 4.53 yards per play, which is sixth in the nation. Ohio State leads the nation at 3.99.
โข UCLA is tied for second in the country, with Texas A&M, at 40 sacks. Penn State tops the nation with 41.
โข UCLA's defense has given up 17 touchdowns on the year. That ranks first in the Pac-12 and fifth nationally. Ohio State, with 10, is the NCAA leader.
โข The Bruin defense has given up multiple touchdowns in just four games, while opponents have scored a total of 17 touchdowns on 136 drives in 2023 ... Possessions/touchdown drives: USC 12/2, ASU 11/2, Arizona 9/3, CU 13/1, Stanford 13/1, Oregon State 11/3, WSU 16/1, Utah 14/1, North Carolina Central 13/1, SDSU 13/1 and Coastal Carolina 11/1.
MOST RECENT MEETINGS
In the most recent matchup, QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson ran for two scores and passed for another as UCLA rallied from an 11-point deficit (21-10 in the second quarter) to beat California 35-28 on the day after Thanksgiving in 2022. It was the ninth victory of the season for the Bruins, who finished with 541 yards of offense โ including 352 on the ground.
After trailing 21-17 at the half, UCLA scored on its first possession of the second half to take the lead. Cal answered to go back in front 28-27 with 11:16 remaining. Thompson-Robinson then engineered a 73-yard scoring drive and two-point-conversion pass to take a 35-28 edge. Thompson-Robinson passed for 189 yards and gained another 88 on the ground. RB Zach Charbonnet added 119 rushing yards and a score. RB T.J. Harden added 89 yards rushing on 12 carries for the Bruins.
The Golden Bears got a fourth-down stop that gave them the ball back trailing 35-28 with 1:58 remaining. LB Kain Medrano knocked the ball loose from Jaydn Ott after a fourth-down reception that would have been a first down, however, and LB Carl Jones Jr. recovered to seal the game for UCLA.
In the most recent meeting played at Rose Bowl Stadium, UCLA rallied from an early deficit by scoring 32 unanswered points for a 42-14 win over Cal to close out the 2021 regular season. UCLA clinched a tie for second place in the South Division with the win, the Bruins' highest finish since it tied for second in 2014. The Bruins finished with 282 rushing yards against the Pac-12's top rushing defense (122.0 yards per game), led by Charbonnet's 106-yard effort. Thompson-Robinson completed 19 of 28 passes for 164 yards, threw three touchdowns (with no interceptions), and added 102 rushing yards on 13 carries against the Golden Bears.
TEAM NOTES
โข With an eighth win in 2023, Chip Kelly would join Jim Mora (2012-15), Terry Donahue (1984-88) and Henry "Red" Sanders (1952-55) as the only UCLA head coaches to lead teams to at least eight wins in at least three straight seasons.
โข UCLA leads the Pac-12 in the following statistics: Scoring Defense (16.7 points per game, 10th nationally), Rushing Defense (64.8 yards per game, first), Team Sacks (3.64 per game, second), Tackles for Loss (8.5 per game, second), Total Defense (298.7, 12th) and Rushing Offense (202.1 yards per game, 15th). UCLA is tied for first with 21 turnovers gained (10th overall).
โข UCLA has held eight of its 11 opponents to fewer than 20 points this season. It most recently held more than eight teams to fewer than 20 in 1987 (nine).
โข UCLA matched its Pac-12 season high for first-quarter points at USC, with 14 (also at Stanford).
โข The Bruin defense has yet to surrender a touchdown on an opponent's first drive this season. Colorado and Oregon State each tallied a field goal for the only opponent first-drive points.
โข The Bruins scored points on five of six red-zone trips at USC. In the previous three games, UCLA had scored on six of 13 trips into the red zone: ASU 1/3, Arizona 2/5 and CU 3/5.
โข Under head coach Chip Kelly, UCLA is 26-7 when it rushes for at least 200 yards in a game.
โข UCLA has won 14 straight games when forcing multiple turnovers after the win at USC (three turnovers). The Bruins have forced multiple turnovers in six of this season's 11 games.
โข UCLA is 19-4 under Kelly when committing fewer turnovers than its counterparts and 4-19 when committing more than the opposition.
โข The USC game marked UCLA's third this season in which it did not commit a turnover (also Arizona and Stanford).
โข UCLA's 24 second-half points at USC were the most scored in a game this season after the intermission by the Bruins.
โข The Bruins have given up fewer than 100 rushing yards in eight games this season: three to USC, 74 to ASU, 25 to CU, 24 at Stanford, 12 to Washington State, 90 to North Carolina Central, 63 at San Diego State and 56 to Coastal Carolina this season. UCLA previously held more teams in a season to fewer than 100 yards on the ground in 1985 (nine games). UCLA has held 18 teams under 100 yards rushing over the past three seasons.
