A season that started with national championship hopes for Penn State football took a disastrous turn on Saturday in Pasadena.
Previously winless UCLA (1-4) jumped out to a big early lead and held off the Nittany Lions late for a 42-37 upset victory, handing No. 7 Penn State (3-2) its second consecutive loss and the worst defeat of James Franklin’s 12-year tenure.
The Bruins, who had fired their head coach three weeks into the season and were 25.5-point underdogs, defeated a top-10 team for the first time in 16 tries over the last 18 years. The Nittany Lions, meanwhile, saw their streak of 34 consecutive wins against unranked opponents come to an end.
Penn State had an opportunity to tie or win the game with under a minute remaining, but on fourth and 2 from the UCLA 9, Drew Allar was thrown for a loss on a keeper. After a quick defensive stop and an intentional safety by the Bruins on a punt attempt, the Nittany Lion offense got one more chance from their own 37 with 12 seconds left but couldn’t make it happen.
In tight ends coach Jerry Neuheisel’s first game as offensive play caller, the Bruins came out aggressive. They marched down field for not only their first opening-drive score but also their first lead of the season, then recovered an onside kick that led to an early 10-0 advantage. While Penn State had only three first-half possessions and got points out of just one, UCLA and quarterback Nico Iamaleava made the most of their opportunities, scoring on all five of their drives to take a stunning 27-7 lead into the locker room.
Penn State settled some in the second half, twice pulling within six and even getting its first blocked punt for a touchdown in 12 years. But the Nittany Lion defense just couldn’t contain Iamaleava, who finished the day 17-24 passing for 166 yards and two scores, and more importantly, ran 16 times for 128 yards and three TDs to lead a 280-yard rushing effort for UCLA .
The Bruins outgained the Nittany Lions 446 to 357.
For Penn State, Allar was 19-26 for 200 yards and two touchdowns and led the Nittany Lions with 78 yards rushing on 11 carries.
Penn State returns to Beaver Stadium next Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. homecoming kickoff against Northwestern.
HOW IT HAPPENED
1st quarter
UCLA’s offense went through the Nittany Lions like a buzzsaw on the game’s opening drive. Running back Jaivian Thomas converted a third-and-short near midfield with a 15-yard run and QB Nico Iamaleava scrambled on third and 11 for 22 yards to move the Bruins to the Penn State 12. Two players later, Iamaleava tossed a short pass to tight end Kwazi Gilmer, who ran it in for the touchdown and a 7-0 UCLA lead to cap the 10-play, 75-yard drive.
The Bruins caught Penn State off guard with an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff and UCLA was immediately back in business at the Nittany Lion 46. After picking up a first down, Iamaleava went deep to Titus Mokiao-Atimalala for a 24-yard gain to the 11. Penn State finally got a stop, and Mateen Bhaghani came on for a 24-yard chip shot that extended the Bruins’ lead to 10-0 with 7:20 remaining in the first.
After spending more than half of the first period on the sidelines, the Nittany Lion offense came out looking sharp. A balanced drive that saw Drew Allar go 4-4 passing for 38 yards and Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen combine for 37 yards three carries a piece was capped off with Allen’s 13-yard scoring run. The 10-play, five-minute drive narrowed UCLA’s lead to 10-7 with 2:06 left in the quarter.
UCLA again went on the march, picking up a first down and reaching its own 46, where it faced a third-and-1 as the quarter ended.
UCLA 10, Penn State 7
2nd Quarter
The Bruin offense continued to slice up the Nittany Lion defense as the second got underway. UCLA gained 8 on an Iamaleava keeper into PSU territory on the quarter’s first play and converted three more third downs, including a third-and-15 from the 25 on another run by the QB. Then facing third and goal from the 6, Iamaleava found Mokiao-Atimalala in the end zone. UCLA led 17-7 with 8:50 left in the half.
After a Penn State three and out, UCLA’s domination of the Penn State defense rolled on, as the run game continued to push through the Nittany Lion front before Iamaleava connected with Gilmer on a 43-yard bomb to the PSU 8. Two plays later, Iamaleava ran in for a touchdown and UCLA extended its lead to 24-7 with 4:47 remaining in the second.
Penn State drove to the UCLA 36 on its ensuing possession, but facing fourth and 2 Allar was sacked for an 11-yard loss and UCLA got another shot with 22 seconds remaining.
Iamaleava quickly completed passes of 11 and 6 yards to put the Bruins in position for a 54-yard field goal attempt. Bhaghani’s kick was good as time expired, and the Bruins completed a dominant first half with a 27-7 lead.
UCLA outgained Penn State 285 to 92 in the half and had possession for 19:25 to Penn State’s 10:35
UCLA 27, Penn State 7
3rd Quarter
Allar completed a 17-yard pass to tight end Luke Reynolds on the second play of the second half, but UCLA knocked it loose and recovered at the Penn State 38. This time the Nittany Lion defense held, and Bhaghani’s 56-yard field goal attempt went wide right as the Bruins ended a possession without points for the first time on the day.
A 13-yard Kaytron Allen run on third down moved Penn State to the UCLA 40. From there Allar found Khalil Dinkins open on a wheel route, and the tight end took it 40 yards for the score to cut the Bruins’ lead to 27-14 at the 11:28 mark of the third.
The Nittany Lion defense stepped up on UCLA’s next drive as sacks by Amare Campbell and Dani Dennis-Sutton forced a punt. Dennis-Sutton then burst through the line to block the punt, and Liam Clifford recovered it and ran it 6 yards into the end zone. The special teams score pulled Penn State to within six at 27-21 with 7:19 to go in the quarter. It was Penn State’s first blocked punt for a touchdown since 2012.
UCLA responded, though, once again burning Penn State on the ground. Iamaleava scrambled for 52 yards on a third-and-7 and the Bruins pounded it in from there, pushing their lead back to double digits at 34-21 with 2:55 remaining in the third.
The third quarter came to a close with Penn State driving, thanks to a couple of Allar scrambles for 30 yards and five Singleton runs that got the Nittany Lions to the UCLA 29.
UCLA 34, Penn State 21
4th Quarter
Allar escaped a blitz on third and 1 and scrambled 27 yards to the UCLA 2, and Kaytron Allen punched it in to once again narrow UCLA’s lead to six at 34-28 with 14:26 to go in the game. All 75 of the Nittany Lions’ yards on the drive came on the ground, with Allar accounting for 57.
Again, the Nittany Lion defense couldn’t stop Iamaleava and the Bruin ground game. Iamaleava had a scramble for 26 yards to midfield, Woods took a 17-yard carry inside the 10, and Iamaleava finished it off with a 7-yard touchdown run. A two-point conversion gave UCLA a 42-28 lead with 6:41 on the clock.
Penn State answered with a high-tempo drive as Allar kept the chains moving with scrambles of 11 and 8 yards and found Reynolds and Pena for gains of 17 and 12. On second and 10 from the 15, Kyron Hudson made a spectacular catch in the end zone to pull Penn State within seven at 42-35 with 4:11 remaining.
Facing fourth and 1 from its own 34, UCLA looked to put it away. But Penn State safety Zakee Wheatley closed in to throw Iamaleava for a 2-yard loss and give Penn State the ball back at the Bruin 32 with two minutes to play.
The Nittany Lions moved to the Bruin 9, but on fourth and 2 from the 9, Allar was hit in the backfield on a keeper. Penn State’s defense forced a three and out, and UCLA took an intentional safety on a drawn-out fourth down.
Penn State had one final chance with 12 seconds remaining starting from its own 37, but it wasn’t enough time and a last ditch lateral play fizzled to give UCLA the 42-37 victory.
