Another slow start, rash of penalties drops UCLA to 0-3

PASADENA, Calif. — A pair of games against teams from the Mountain West Conference, including one of the nation’s worst defenses, did nothing to improve UCLA’s outlook in the court of public opinion heading into Big Ten play.

In fact, in a contest the Bruins were favored by more than two touchdowns, it was New Mexico that raced out to the 14-0 lead and owned a 7-point lead at halftime as part of a lifeless start from the hosts Friday night at the Rose Bowl.

Once more, UCLA had trouble both getting out of its own way and impeding the path of the opposing rushing attack. The bright spots continued to be few and far between despite one of the softer spots on the Bruins’ schedule, as New Mexico poured it on late for a 35-10 victory.

UCLA (0-3) has lost three consecutive games to open a season for the first time since 2019.

“Yeah, it’s pretty low right now,” second-year head coach DeShaun Foster said. “Like you said, I’ve been around this program for a long time and it’s just unfortunate, what’s going on right this moment. Just not executing.”

The Lobos (2-1), who entered the game tied for 109th of 134 FBS teams nationally in total defense, allowed 326 yards of total offense, forced five punts, collected an interception and turned the Bruins over on downs once.

UCLA has yet to hold a lead at any point through 12 quarters this season. The 13 penalties were just one fewer than the previous week’s road loss to UNLV, and nine of the infractions went against the offense.

“We gotta be cleaner, man,” Bruins quarterback Nico Iamaleava said. “We gotta stop shooting ourselves in the foot, man.”

Iamaleava finished 22-of-34 passing for 217 yards and a touchdown with an interception.

Defensively, the Bruins allowed 298 of 450 yards on the ground. Three different Lobos running backs ran for touchdowns, including 154 yards rushing on 15 carries from backup Damon Bankston.

Turning point of the game

The Bruins, who trailed 14-7 at the half, made their second fourth-and-1 stop of the contest with 7:28 left in the third quarter to keep the score intact.

With the ball spotted on the UCLA 5-yard line, safety Key Lawrence came in to force the fumble on the Deshaun Buchanan run and defensive end Devin Aupiu recovered on the 3. It was the Bruins’ first forced turnover of the season.

After it appeared UCLA would go three-and-out on the ensuing drive, New Mexico punt returner Michael Buckley muffed the catch and the Bruins recovered on their own 41 at the 6:34 mark.

Iamaleava briefly got on track with an opening-play completion to slot receiver Mikey Matthews for 28 yards. But the drive stalled thanks to back-to-back false starts on left tackle Garrett DiGiorgio, forcing the Bruins to settle for a 51-yard field goal from kicker Mateen Bhaghani to pull within 14-10 before the end of the quarter.

UCLA ran out of luck defending fourth-and-1 on the ensuing possession. New Mexico produced a conversion as part of a 13-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a 2-yard touchdown run by Bankston. It extended the lead to 21-10 with 10:42 left.

The Bruins never got closer and were outscored 21-0 in the final quarter.

UCLA postgame press conference

Below is what Foster, Iamaleava and defensive tackle Gary Smith III had to say following the loss:

UCLA standout on offense: RB Anthony Woods

The reserve was among the early bright spots when the deficit was still manageable. Woods averaged 6.4 yards per carry and collected 53 of his team-high 64 yards rushing in the first half.

Woods also caught five of his six targets for 28 yards.

UCLA standout on defense: Safety Key Lawrence

The transfer’s forced fumble was among the last signs of resistance for a defense that was on the field for 36 minutes, 38 seconds.

Lawrence collected nine tackles.

Why UCLA lost

After drawing 14 penalties last week, the Bruins quickly showed no signs they had learned from their mistakes. UCLA was penalized eight times for 76 yards in the first half.

Meanwhile, the Bruins have yet to solve their issues defending the run. New Mexico averaged 6.7 yards on 19 first-half carries. The Lobos’ play-calling bailed the Bruins out before halftime, attempting a quarterback keeper that was stopped on fourth-and-1 at the UCLA 3 with 1:09 remaining.

Offensively, UCLA mismanaged an opportunity to take a shot at the end zone before the end of the half.

The Bruins drove the ball to the Lobos’ 48 with a second remaining. However, a false start on left guard Eugene Brooks led Foster to decide against attempting a Hail Mary. Instead, Iamaleava handed off to Woods for a 33-yard run up the middle that ended on the New Mexico 20 as time expired.