UCLA Bruins Score 37 Consecutive Points to Beat Buffs, 44-20

Down 20-7 near the end of the first half, UCLA scored the next 37 points and held Colorado scoreless in the second half.

UCLA receiver Kyle Philips took a punt 82 yards to the house in the second half against Colorado. (Photo Credit: Jesus Ramirez/uclabruins.com)

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The UCLA Bruins got strong second half offensive and defensive efforts to defeat the Colorado Buffaloes, 44-20.

More than that, it may been a classic case of “If a tree falls in the forest and there is no o e there, does it make a sound?” It was also clear that basketball season in Westwood has begun.

Why? Because tonight's attendance was a paltry 36,573.

So, even though the Bruins put together solid second half efforts on both sides of the ball, it's now clear that Chip Kelly has lost the UCLA fanbase, even though the team is now officially bowl-eligible for the first time* in the Chip Kelly era. (* all FBS teams were bowl-eligible last year, but I'm not counting that as no team had to actually earn it.)

But let's save that discussion for tomorrow's SMQB and focus on the on-field results tonight.

The Bruin offense looked anemic in the first half as UCLA fell behind to the Buffaloes, 20-10 at the half.

After both teams went 3-and-out on their first possession, Colorado moved 70 yards on 12 plays as the Buffs took a 7-0 lead on an Alex Fontenot 1-yard TD run.

UCLA turned the ball over on their next two possessions. Colorado couldn't do anything after DTR threw an interception, but when his fumble on the Bruins’ next possession did lead to a Buffaloes’ field goal that made it 10-0.

But the Bruins responded by driving 64 yards on just three plays. A 47-yard pass to Kyle Philips gave UCLA the ball on the Colorado 17. That was followed by a 15-yars run by Brittain Brown which added an additional yard due to a horse collar tackle. Brown took it in on the next play and the Bruins cut the lead to 10-7.

The Buffs drove 75 yards on their next possession to make it 17-7 and, after a missed field goal attempt by Nicholas Barr-Mira, Cole Becker made a 40-yard field goal for Colorado.

Barr-Mira got another try before the end of the half and this one was good to send the teams to the locker with Colorado up, 20-10.

Not even the fans in attendance knew that the field goal would be the first three of 37 consecutive points by the Bruins.

But that's exactly what happened.

UCLA scored five touchdowns on their first five possessions of the second half. Three of the five came on short runs from Zach Charbonnet. Dorian Thompson-Robinson had a 23-yard run for the second score of the second half.

The final Bruin touchdown of the game cake with 10:10 to go in the game when Philips broke a punt return for 82 yards and a score.

Meanwhile, Colorado was unable to figure out a way to score in the second half and the Bruins took home their sixth win of the season, putting themselves in line to play in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl at Sofi Stadium in December.

Next week, all bets are off as the Bruins head across town to take on the Southern Cal Trojans. Look for the gametime to be announced in the morning.

Go Bruins!!!

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