Tucson, AZ (Sports Network) - Nick Foles threw for 247 yards and a pair of
touchdowns to help lead the Arizona Wildcats to a 27-13 win over the UCLA
Bruins in a Pac-10 Conference clash at Arizona Stadium.
Foles converted 22-of-34 passes on the day, but he was also picked off three
times. The Wildcats (5-2, 3-1 Pac-10), winners of two straight and three of
the last four, also generated 209 yards on the ground as well.
The Bruins (3-4, 0-4), losers of four in a row after opening 2009 with three
straight victories over the likes of San Diego State, Tennessee and Kansas
State, were led by kicker Kai Forbath who scored the only offensive points of
the contest for the squad. Quarterbacks Kevin Craft, Kevin Prince and Richard
Brehaut all combined to hit just 15-of-35 passes for a meager 146 yards.
Arizona jumped out to a 13-0 lead after a period of play as Juron Criner
reeled in a 41-yard TD pass and Nic Grigsby hit the end zone on a six-yard
run, but Alex Zendejas missed the PAT on the second score.
The only points of the second quarter came courtesy of Forbath who knocked
through a lengthy 53-yard field goal, capping an eight-play drive that
consumed a mere 27 yards.
Coming out of the break and trailing by a score of 13-3, UCLA again turned to
Forbath as he made good on a 33-yard field goal, but only because the offense
could move the ball just two yards on that drive.
Foles and Criner combined again at the 8:34 mark of the third, this time on a
25-yard effort, making the score 20-6.
The UCLA defense, sensing that they needed to make something happen, recovered
a fumble and scored 28 yards later when Tony Dye crossed the goal line. The
Bruins forced a total of five turnovers on the day, yet that still wasn't
enough to sway the outcome in their favor.
Nick Booth's six-yard TD run in the final minute of the third quarter finished
up the 14-point win for the home team.
Arizona, which entered the week ranked first in the conference and 14th
nationally with 443.7 ypg in total offense, was right on the mark Saturday
with 456 yards on 81 plays, compared to a meager 211 yards for the visitors.