UCLA knew a three-game stretch in the middle of Pac-12 play would define its season.
The Bruins won one of those three games, falling 44-24 on the road against Utah Saturday night to close the stretch that likely knocked the Bruins out of Pac-12 title contention.
Freshman quarterback Ethan Garbers, making his first career start, struggled at times under pressure from a spirited Utah defense driven to honor two fallen teammates whose number was retired during the game.
UCLA turns ball over on downs, Utah runs out the clock to seal win
UCLA could do nothing with its final drive and Utah used two snaps to run out the clock.
Utah got an emotional boost on a night it honored fallen players and improved to 5-3 overall and 4-1 in Pac-12 play.
UCLA, meanwhile, returns home with a 5-4 overall record, 3-3 mark in Pac-12 play and questions about its future after falling short of promises to contend for a Pac-12 title.
Tavion Thomas powers Utah to a rushing touchdown
Tavion Thomas carried the ball five times on a seven-play scoring drive, closing it with a 24-yard touchdown run.
The extra point extended Utah’s lead to 44-24 with 4:40 remaining and extinguished any hope of a UCLA rally.
Ethan Garbers gives up a safety
The momentum UCLA seemed to be building vanished when Utah took advantage of its field position and sacked Ethan Garbers in the end zone, collecting a safety that killed the Bruins’ energy.
Utah leads 37-24 at the 7:16 mark in the fourth quarter.
Personal foul penalty helps UCLA defense get big stop
Utah was facing second and two at the 50-yard line, when a personal foul penalty gave UCLA’s defense a big boost.
The Bruins forced fourth and one and the Utes punted, pinning the UCLA at its six-yard line.
Garbers’ passing success opens up ground options
Ethan Garbers has become enough of a passing threat that it is opening up big opportunities for the Bruins’ rushing attack.
Brittain Brown and Zach Charbonnet have made the most of those seams and Garbers kept efficiently passing the ball, capping a 10-play, 75-yard scoring drive with a nine-yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Dulcich.
The extra point trimmed Utah’s lead to 35-24 at the 11:04 mark in the fourth quarter.
Utah counters Garbers scoring drive with a touchdown
Utah’s Cameron Rising, Tavion Thomas and TJ Pledger responded to Ethan Garbers’ strong touchdown drive with a swift scoring drive of their own.
Rising closed the drive that spilled into the fourth quarter with a 12-yard touchdown run.
With the extra point, Utah extended its lead to 35-17 at the 14:55 mark in the fourth quarter.
Ethan Garbers leads most impressive scoring drive of the game
UCLA was hit with its third offsides penalty of the game, but Ethan Garbers followed it with his most impressive drive of the game.
Garbers hit Chase Cota for a 41-yard gain, Kyle Philips for a 27-yard gain and Michael Ezeike for a 6-yard touchdown.
With the extra point, UCLA trimmed Utah’s lead to 28-17 at the 4:59 mark in the third quarter.
UCLA defense gets boost from Utah penalty, forces a punt
UCLA’s defense has kept Utah scoreless in the third quarter.
The Bruins pressured Cameron Rising on back-to-back plays, setting up a Rising punt.
UCLA still trails Utah 28-10 with 6:52 left in the third.
UCLA offense still lacks a spark
The Bruins’ offense went three-and-out on their second possession of the second quarter, showing no spark with Ethan Garbers continuing to struggle under pressure.
UCLA opening drive of third quarter stalls
After Utah was called for defensive pass interference, Ethan Garbers connected with Kyle Philips for a 25-yard pass.
Following two Zach Charbonnet carries, Garbers faced third-and-five at the Utah 40 and tossed two incomplete passes.
UCLA’s defense limited the damage, with Jordan Noyes missing a 47-yard field goal following the turnover on downs.
Utah still holds a 28-10 lad with 10:07 left in the third quarter.
UCLA misses field goal to close first half
UCLA couldn’t capitalize on the defense’s fourth down stop late in the second quarter.
Ethan Garbers helped the Bruins move the ball 27 yards to set up a 55-yard Nicolas Barr-Mira field-goal attempt.
He missed and the Bruins trail the Utes 28-10 at halftime.
UCLA defense gets a fourth-down stop
After the UCLA offense went three-and-out, the Bruins’ defense delivered their first big stop of the game.
Facing fourth-and-seven at the UCLA 36, Cameron Rising was forced to throw an incomplete pass and the Bruins’ offense took over.
Ethan Garbers tosses interception, Utah scores two plays later
Ethan Garbers faced a tough assignment with his first career start coming against a formidable Utah defense.
It isn’t going well.
After Zach Charbonnet rushed for two yards to the UCLA 19, Utah’s Nephi Sewell and returned 13 yards to the UCLA 17.
Two plays latter, Tavion Thomas ran for a 10-yard touchdown.
Utah took a commanding 28-10 lead with 4:27 left in the second quarter.
Utah keeps running over the UCLA defense
Utah had little trouble countering UCLA’s first touchdown of the game, overpowering the Bruins’ defense on the ensuing drive.
Cameron Rising opened with a 24-yard pass to Brant Kuithe before TJ Pledger delivered chunk plays on the ground. Rising closed the drive wiht a four-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Kincaid.
With the extra point, Utah took a 21-10 lead with 5:51 left in the second quarter.
Zach is Back. Charbonnet shakes off slow start with touchdown run
Just when it appeared Brittain Brown might be the only consistent rushing threat tonight, Zach Charbonnet showed off his mix of power and speed on a 30-yard touchdown run.
During the drive setting up Charbonnet’s score, Ethan Garbers frequently handed off or passed to Brown. He also hit Kyle Philips, Chase Cota and Greg Dulcich for key gains that extended the drive.
The Bruins faced fourth-and-one at the Utah 30-yard-line when Garbers handed off to Charbonnet and he broke tackles all the way to the end zone.
With Charbonnet’s score and the extra point, UCLA trimmed Utah’s lead to 14-10 with 9:06 left in the second quarter.
Utah scores second touchdown after emotional tribute
UCLA’s defense was flagged for being offside on the opening play of Utah’s second drive.
The Bruins’ defense kept rolling backward.
The Utes relied on a steady diet of Tavion Thomas runs and three Cameron Rising passes spanning at least 10 yards during a scoring drive that spilled into the second quarter.
Utah retired the No. 22 jersey worn by Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe, football players who died during the past two years, between the first and second quarters. The Utes scored a touchdown immediately after the tribute.
The UCLA football team has extended its condolences to the Utah football program struck by tragedy multiple times this season.
Before kickoff Saturday, the Bruins left flowers in honor of the fallen Utes.
Thomas closed out Utah’s scoring drive with his second score of the night, rumbling for a eight-yard touchdown.
With the extra point, Utah leads UCLA 14-3 at the 14:55 mark in the second quarter.
Ethan Garbers leads Bruins to field goal on first drive as a starter
Ethan Garbers fell short of a touchdown during his first drive as a starting quarterback and narrowly avoided a costly mistake.
Garbers was 5-of-6 passing for 36 yards. He also scrambled for nine yards on three carries, a hint Chip Kelly wasn’t joking when he said he wanted to Garbers to carry the ball just as injured dual-threat starter Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
Brittain Brown had two carries for 12 yards and Zach Charbonnet continues to struggle to match his early season success, gaining eight yards on four carries.
On first-and-goal from Utah 9-yard line, Garbers tossed an incomplete pass, Charbonnet was hit for a loss of one yard and Garbers ran for a yard and fumbled the ball. UCLA recovered and Nicholas Barr-Mira hit a 28-yard field goal that trimmed Utah’s lead to 7-3 with 3:48 left in the first quarter.
Ethan Garbers starts in place of Dorian Thompson-Robinson
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham officially is surprised.
Whittingham was adamant UCLA veteran quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson is tough and would rebound from injury in time to line up against the Utes tonight.
Instead, freshman Ethan Garbers made his first career start in a high pressure game with the Bruins trailing the Utes 7-0.
Utah strikes first with long scoring drive
Utah received the opening kickoff on a emotional night that will include tributes to two players who died during the past two years.
The Utes steadily drove the ball up the field to score first.
Cameron Rising was 3-of-4 passing for 30 yards, while the tailbacks combined for 30 yards on five carries.
Tavion Thomas capped the drive with a 10-yard touchdown run.
With the extra point, Utah took a 7-0 lead with 11:26 left in the first quarter.
Bruins have a QB question; Utes found the answer to theirs
Chip Kelly did not come to UCLA to go to the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl (Sorry, Jimmy).
If the Bruins (5-3 overall, 3-2 Pac-12) beat Utah (4-3, 3-1)on Saturday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium (7 p.m. PDT, ESPN), his team might be able to do considerably better. Las Vegas? Alamo? Rose? Everything would remain on the table with a victory that clinched bowl eligibility for the first time under the fourth-year coach while sustaining the Bruins’ hopes of winning the Pac-12 South.
The Bruins are 6½-point underdogs and their fortunes could hinge heavily on who takes the first snap, with senior quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson trying to overcome an apparent hand injury. Times staff writer Ben Bolch looks at the game’s matchups and storylines.
Ethan Garbers’ high school coach isn’t surprised by UCLA QB’s fearlessness
Ethan Garbers looks so young, so innocent, as if he should be sidling up to the Rose Bowl concession stand for cotton candy instead of throwing passes on the field.
“He looks like he’s about 13 years old,” said Dan O’Shea, his high school coach, “with freckly little cheeks.”
That tenderness betrays the fearlessness with which Garbers plays. O’Shea knew UCLA could be assured of one thing when the redshirt freshman quarterback entered the game against Oregon with just over a minute left Saturday.
Garbers would not be nervous.
“He will not blink at anything,” O’Shea, who coached Garbers at Corona del Mar High, said Sunday during a telephone interview. “You can walk him into [a game] at Alabama and the kid will handle it better than anyone I’ve met at the quarterback position.”
‘He’s a tough kid, he’ll play.’ Utah expects to face UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson
In keeping with the theme of its wildly wavering season, UCLA was confronted with only end-of-the-spectrum possibilities heading into its most pivotal game of 2021.
As part of the best-case scenario, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, one of the most experienced quarterbacks in college football, would be able to push through the apparent throwing-hand injury he suffered last week to start against Utah.
The other option would be to go with Ethan Garbers, a promising newbie who has thrown all of seven passes since bidding farewell to high school stardom.
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham seemed unequivocal about which way it would go Saturday night at Rice-Eccles Stadium, even if he was not privy to the Bruins’ medical reports.
UCLA vs. Utah: College football betting lines, odds and picks
UCLA Bruins at Utah Utes (-6.5, 60.5)
It’s awkward and painful to watch, but when Chip Kelly dances he takes one step forward followed by one step back. That has been the UCLA coach’s lame dance routine this season. Just when it appears the Bruins are ready to rise in the Pac-12 standings, they fall flat. UCLA blew a 14-0 lead in a 34-31 loss to Oregon that killed most of the momentum Kelly had seemingly built. The Bruins dropped their third consecutive home game after being upset by Arizona State and Fresno State.
Four years into his program rebuild, Kelly’s offense is inconsistent, and the Bruins’ defense remains an embarrassment. Monitor the status of quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who left Saturday’s game with an injury late in the fourth quarter. His replacement, Ethan Garbers, played well before throwing the game-ending interception.
The good news for the Bruins, who are 3-0 on the road, is they play in Salt Lake City this weekend. After a 42-34 loss at Oregon State, Utah slipped into a tie with Arizona State for first place in the South Division. Utes quarterback Cameron Rising passed for 267 yards and two touchdowns while taking his first loss in four starts this season.