By SHAWN BERMAN
Staff Writer
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Last Thursday night, the No. 11 UCLA Bruins went marching into Tempe and pulled out a huge Pac-12 conference win, beating the No. 15 Arizona State Sun Devils, 62-27.
Despite hyperextending his non-throwing elbow in the previous game against Texas, quarterback Brett Hundley had himself a huge night, reestablishing himself as a Heisman candidate.
Hundley completed 18 of his 23 passes, throwing for 355 yards and 4 touchdowns (tying a career-high).
The Arizona native also had 72 rushing yards to go along with a 1-yard rushing touchdown, arguably making the best performance of his college career. It is clear, when healthy, that Hundley may be the most dynamic quarterback in the nation.
During his postgame interview with Fox Sports 1 Hundley said, “It’s nothing that I did. It’s what the team did. The offensive line did a great job and I give them all the credit.”
The offensive line was a bit of a question mark for The Bruins, as they surrendered 11 sacks in just 3 games. However, they did their job and gave Hundley plenty of time to make all the right plays.
The Bruins defensive line basically shut down Arizona State’s running back D.J. Foster, only giving up 30 yards to the back. Coming into the game, Foster was ninth in the FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) in both rushing yards (510) and yards per carry (9.4).
Hundley also credited his receivers for “balling out.”
Led by Jordan Payton and Thomas Durate, the two combined for nine receptions and nearly 250 yards. Payton also had a touchdown.
Another Bruin that had a big night was safety Ishmael Adams. Adams took the air out of Tempe and changed the momentum of the game with an impressive pick-six before the first half ended and a 100-yard kick return to start the third quarter.
There was one bright spot for The Sun Devils though. Redshirt junior Jaelen Rose led The Sun Devils with 12 catches for 146 yards. Rose was kept out of the end zone, as Arizona State’s backup quarterback, Mike Bercovici, struggled to put together consistent drives.
Just how good of a win was this for UCLA? Look at it this way: The Sun Devils ran almost 100 plays and had 583 yards of total offense and still lost by 35 points.
When asked what this win will do for The Bruins in the polls, head coach Jim Mora told the media, “none of that crap matters until the end of the season.”
This dominating performance will definitely quiet the critics for a while. In fact, The Bruins may even be the best team in the Pac-12 right now (sorry, Oregon) and will definitely be a team to watch come playoff time. The Bruins look to improve to 5-0 when they take on Utah in a Pac-12 South game on October 4.