Things started off on the right foot for the Bruins, and even when they had glaring problems, the path to victory always seemed clear.
UCLA’s No.20 football fans (3-2, 1-1 Pac-12) were bought out in pre-game and at times in the first half of their game against Arizona State (4-1 , 2-0 Pac-12), only for the Bruins to pull the mat under them. UCLA’s 42-23 loss forced much of the population off the bandwagon, and the roller coaster year continues in Pasadena.
Coming away with three points on the opening disc put people in a happy mood, to say the least.
It took a while for the bottom to fall, but people started to understand some pretty obvious and costly mistakes soon after, like when the center slam Duke Clemens turned into a fumble picked up by the Sun Devils. . A few games later, Arizona State scored to tie it, as UCLA could have gone up two possessions instead.
A 3-3 game isn’t the time to panic, however, and Bruin’s supporters rightly have a few props in defense for a goal line that kept him from being 7-3 Sun Devils.
UCLA actually went up 10-3 and then 17-10 thanks to strong, well-managed records. Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who is used to doing it in the second half after lackluster first halves, really rolled early, both on the ground and in the air.
From that point on, all the Bruins could have was a few field goals.
The Sun Devils, on the other hand, were just getting started. Their big plays absolutely slashed the UCLA defense and people weren’t too happy to see everything from indoor races to screens to vertical roads being caught 50 yards for touchdowns.
Getting shutout 18-0 in the second half meant a slow and painful death for the Bruins, and fans and talking heads had seen enough.
For the second or third time this season, depending on where you look, coach Chip Kelly’s head was on the internet chopping block.
This is the first double-digit loss for UCLA since 2019.
The reaction to the defeat has been partly lethargic, partly defeatist and largely disappointed. After all, a win would have meant first place in the Pac-12 South.
Instead, another average start to the year for the Kelly Bruins.
The UCLA fan base has been labeled as Chicken Littles, claiming the sky is falling at the drop of a hat.
On Saturday night, however, they had their fair share to complain, and now the question is whether the roller coaster will go up again or is just the start of a major descent?
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