UCLA Defense Bends But Doesn't Break, Then Runs All Over Washington State

Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Derrick Coleman ran for 185 yards and three touchdowns as the UCLA Bruins posted a 42-28 win over the Washington State Cougars in Pac-10 play at the Rose Bowl.

Coleman carried the ball 15 times for the Bruins (3-2, 1-1 Pac-10) as the team registered a hefty 437 yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Johnathan Franklin also had a strong day coming out of the backfield as he tallied a game-high 216 yards and scored once on 30 attempts. Richard Brehaut converted 12-of-23 passes for 128 yards.

The Cougars (1-4, 0-2) were paced by Jeff Tuel who converted 20-of-37 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns, but he was also sacked five times which resulted in the team posting a mere 73 net rushing yards. James Montgomery accounted for 45 yards and two TDs on 12 rushing attempts in the team's third straight setback.

UCLA opened with a pair of touchdowns to take a 14-0 lead, thanks to a three- yard scoring run by Franklin and a one-yard effort by Coleman.

The Cougars countered with a nine-yard TD pass from Tuel to Jeffrey Solomon to cut the deficit to 14-7 with 10:30 remaining in the first half.

Kai Forbath got in on the action for the Bruins in the period as he knocked through field goals of 33 and 20 yards, pushing the UCLA advantage to 20-7 before Tuel combined with Dan Blackledge on an 18-yard WSU touchdown to make the score 20-14 at the break.

Washington State rebounded and moved out to a 28-20 advantage in the third when Montgomery hit the end zone on runs of three and one yards, but that was the end of the offense for the Cougars on the afternoon.

Coleman posted a pair of scoring runs of his own in the second half, putting up points on runs of one and four yards, while in between Brehaut tallied a one-yard TD run of his own to provide the Bruins with their 14-point margin of victory.

UCLA rolled up 565 yards of total offense and controlled the ball for nearly 35 minutes in the contest.

In a week in which Kevin Prince barely practiced, it was not surprising that he wouldn’t start at quarterback today for the Bruins against the Washington State Cougars. In the last few minutes, the UCLA athletic department made it official:

Football. Richard Brehaut will make is first career start today vs. Washington State.

The sophomore Brehaut has appeared in seven games in his career, completing 16 of 26 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns.

The UCLA Bruins have beaten the Washington State Cougars in their last two meetings, and look for a third today. Rick Neuheisel has had even more success, beating the Cougars all eight times he has faced them in his coaching career:

2009: UCLA 43, WSU 7

2008: UCLA 28, WSU 3

2003: Washington 27, WSU 19

2002: Washington 29, WSU 26

2001: Washington 26, WSU 14

2000: Washington 51, WSU 3

1999: Washington 24, WSU 14

1996: Colorado 37, WSU 19

That's an 8-0 record for Neuheisel against Washington State, with an average score of 33-13. UCLA looks for more today, with a 12:37 p.m. kickoff on Prime Ticket. Bill Macdonald, James Washington, and Rebecca Haarlow are on the call.

Here's a look at today's game between the UCLA Bruins and Washington State Cougars from the WSU point of view.

The SB Nation blog Coug Center notes that better play-calling has helped quarterback Jeff Tuel:

Simply put, he was awesome on first down -- and that's due both to his performance and to the play calling. We had advocated for quick, short passes designed to make use of the athleticism and quickness at wideout (while simultaneously covering for a lacking ground game and subpar pass protection), and that's exactly what we got. No, the 6.4 yards per attempt isn't eye-popping, but when you call passes on 15 first downs and average 6.4 yards -- more than double what you were averaging on first down runs in the first three games -- that's a huge improvement.

One of Tuel's top targets, wide receiver Jared Karstetter, has improved this season after being hurt in the offseason, writes Vince Grippi of the Seattle Times:

But those skills have started to really emerge this year, despite an offseason in which he was unable to lift weights and his workouts were limited due to injury. His 18 receptions are second on the team to Marquess Wilson's 20, but his four touchdowns are double Wilson's total and 40 percent of the Cougars'.

In Karstetter and Wilson, the Cougars have some weapons on the outside. They, like the Bruins, run the pistol offense, albeit a different version. The problem for the Cougars will be, can they stop UCLA:

"(The pistol) stresses discipline the most, just like an option outfit," said linebackers coach Travis Niekamp, whose group struggled last week in a 50-16 defeat against USC. "There's a lot of motions, whether it be a fly motion, the tight end falling back across the formation, those type of things.

Kickoff is today at 12:37 p.m.

For more UCLA news and information, be sure to visit Bruins Nation.

FACTS & STATS: Site: Rose Bowl (91,500) -- Los Angeles, California. Television:FSN-PT. Home Record: Washington State 1-1, UCLA 1-1. Away Record: Washington State 0-2, UCLA 1-1. Neutral Record: Washington State 0-0, UCLA 0-0. Conference Record: Washington State 0-1, UCLA 0-1. Series Record: UCLA leads, 37-18-1.

GAME NOTES: The suddenly resurgent UCLA Bruins return home this weekend to entertain the Washington State Cougars in Pac-10 play at the Rose Bowl.

No team has had a bigger turnaround in the last two weeks than the Bruins, who have knocked off a pair of Top 25 opponents following an 0-2 start to the season. After upending then No.23 Houston on September 18th, UCLA pulled off a stunning upset with a convincing 34-12 victory at then No.7 Texas this past weekend. The Bruins' resiliency has been terrific and the team now has a great chance to move over .500 on the campaign.

The Cougars meanwhile, opened their Pac-10 slate over the weekend and were thrashed 50-16 by 18th-ranked USC. The loss was nothing new for WSU, which is now 1-18 in Pac-10 action under head coach Paul Wulff. Overall, WSU is just 1-3 on the campaign and it has been outscored by an average of 50-17 in the three setbacks.

As far as the all-time series is concerned, UCLA holds a 37-18-1 advantage over WSU and that includes a 43-7 triumph in last season's meeting.

The Cougars hung tough with USC in the first half, but managed just three points after the intermission of a 50-16 setback last weekend. An inability to run the ball once again hurt the offense, as WSU managed just 67 yards on 26 carries. The team is now averaging a meager 89.2 ypg on the ground and that simply isn't good enough to get the job done. QB Jeff Tuel though, has done well and he has passed for 922 yards with six TDs against four INTs. He did however throw three of those picks last weekend against USC, finishing with 222 yards and a score on 24-of-37 pass attempts. Jared Karstetter, now fully healthy, hauled in eight balls for 87 yards and two TDs in the loss, giving him four scores of the year. He, however, ranks second in catches and receiving yards to Marquess Wilson, who has 20 receptions and 340 yards for the season.

WSU kept things close with USC for a little bit thanks to three turnovers forced by the defense. Aside from those takeaways, the Cougars were simply horrific on defense, as they failed to force a single punt. The unit allowed a whopping 613 total yards, including 285 on the ground. Poor defense has plagued WSU all season long, as the Cougars are surrendering 209.8 ypg on the ground and another 286.2 ypg through the air. Tyree Toomer heads the defense with 26 stops for the campaign and that includes an eight-tackle effort last weekend.

The Bruins have adjusted to their new Pistol offense and scored 65 points in their last two games after being shutout by Stanford. The biggest improvement for UCLA has been its ground attack, which is averaging a healthy 218.8 ypg. Facing the No.2 run defense last weekend. the Bruins showed their stuff by gaining 264 yards and three TDs on the ground in an upset of Texas. Johnathan Franklin led the charge with 118 yards on 19 carries, while Derrick Coleman returned from injury to rush for 94 yards and a score on 16 carries. On the season, Franklin tops the roster with 409 yards and four TDs and he is averaging an hardy 5.9 yards per carry. QB Kevin Prince adds 142 yards and three scores to the ground attack and he posted 50 yards and a TD versus Texas last weekend. Prince hasn't done much passing the ball, completing just 46.0 percent of his tosses with two TDs, so his mobility has been a real asset.

Despite surrendering 439 total yards, UCLA was able to keep Texas from making the big plays, while also recording five takeaways. The defense forced and recovered four fumbles and limited Texas to just 85 yards on the ground. It was a nice accomplishment for the Bruins, who are still allowing 179.2 rushing ypg. Akeem Ayers had himself quite a game versus Texas, as he had six stops to go with an INT and a sack. He currently sits third on the team with 29 tackles, while ranking first with 5.5 TFLs, two sacks and a pair of INTs for the season.

The Bruins are on the rise and they should be able to run past a WSU club that is in line for another long season.

The UCLA Bruins might be without their quarterback this week against the Washington State Cougars, as Kevin Prince is still suffering from a right knee injury. Per Peter Yoon of ESPN Los Angeles:

Prince injured his right knee last Saturday during UCLA's 34-12 victory over Texas. He had an MRI exam Sunday that revealed no structural damage, but he had fluid drained from the knee and was experiencing pain and swelling.

He sat out of practice Tuesday and Wednesday but came dressed for practice Thursday. He looked fine early in the session during one-on-one passing drills, but on his first snap during a team drill against the scout team, he rolled to the right after handing off to Johnathan Franklin before limping off.

The two weeks that quarterback Prince has been healthy, the Bruins have won. Despite throwing only nine passes, Prince helped lead UCLA to their win over Texas last week by expertly running the offense and collecting 50 yards on the ground himself, including a 38-yard touchdown at the end of the third quarter to widen the lead to 27-6, essentially putting the game away. It was one of 22 consecutive running plays by the Bruins.

If Prince can't play, sophomore Richard Brehaut will start at quarterback. Brehaut appeared in six games off the bench as a freshman, completing 11 of 17 passes for 124 yards and one interception.