Recap: Gordon's big night wasted by Cougs' second half meltdown

RECAP: UCLA at Washington State

Martin Stadium, Pullman, WA

Sept. 21, 2019

Washington State hosted UCLA for a Week 4 matchup in the Pac-12 opener for both teams. The Cougars were looking to protect their national ranking, while the Bruins were aiming for its first win of the season. Here is a recap of what happened:

FIRST QUARTER: WSU got the ball first. Anthony Gordon was intercepted by UCLA LB Josh Woods on a short pass over the middle on WSU’s third snap. UCLA quickly converted the turnover into seven points as QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson found Joshua Kelley alone on the left side. He caught the pass and strolled into the end zone for the first score of the game less than two minutes into the game. SCORE: UCLA 7, WSU 0. Drive: 3 plays, 29 yards. How would WSU respond? Gordon completed three straight passes before a face mask penalty on UCLA moved the ball to the UCLA 37. The Cougs moved close to the red zone on a 14-yard pass to Winston for 14 yards. On second down, Gordon connected with Martin over the middle to the UCLA 4. On second down, Gordon sidearmed a pass to Winston in the end zone for his 14th career TD reception. SCORE: WSU 7, UCLA 7. Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards. Gordon was 6-for-8 passing for 60 yards on the drive. UCLA crossed midfield with a couple of first downs before DTR found Asiasi for 15 yards. UCLA penetrated the red zone on a 4-yard run. DTR missed an open receiver on third down and the Bruins settled for a 31-yard field goal with 4:49 left 1Q. SCORE: UCLA 10, WSU 7. Drive: 13 plays, 62 yards. On the second snap of the ensuing series, Gordon lofted a deep pass to Patmon down the right sideline for a 35-yard gain to the UCLA 34. WSU gambled on fourth-and-3 from the 27 but Gordon’s soft pass fell incomplete as Arconado didn’t see the pass coming. UCLA kept the ball on the ground but punted on the final snap of the first quarter. Gordon was 10-of-15 for 110 yards passing in 1Q.

END OF FIRST QUARTER: UCLA 10, Washington State 7.

SECOND QUARTER: On third down, Gordon found Arconado in the middle of the field between four UCLA defenders for 22 yds and a key first down. Another 22-yard pass to Arconado set the stage for Gordon’s perfectly thrown 28 yard pass to Winston down the right side. Winston beat his defender by a step and Gordon dropped the pass right into his arms for Winston’s 6th receiving TD of the season in 4 games. SCORE: WSU 14, UCLA 10. Drive: 5 plays, 78 yards. Gordon was 13-19 passing for 182 yards + 2 TD after the drive. UCLA moved near midfield with a 32-yard completion. But a false start penalty and a short run produced a punt and WSU started at the 12 with 10:12 left 2Q. Borghi was flagged for a illegal block, pushing WSU back to the 10, setting up 3rd and 13. Borghi made amends by ripping through the UCLA defense for 56 yards, the longest run of his career, to the UCLA 34. It was a classic Borghi run as he deked several UCLA defender along the way. However, Gordon’s pass went in and out of the arms of Patmon and the ball was intercepted by UCLA. But the Cougs defense quickly took the ball back on Skyler Thomas’ INT. He returned the pick 11 yards to the UCLA 14. Two plays later, Gordon flipped a pass to Harris and he raced around the left side for the touchdown with 8:14 left 2Q. SCORE: WSU 21, UCLA 10. Drive: 2 plays, 14 yards. UCLA returned the kickoff 100 yards for a TD for a stunning change in momentum. SCORE: WSU 21, UCLA 17. On 3rd-and-2, Gordon scrambled for 17 yards to the UCLA 35. Borghi ran for 12 yards on a delayed draw. Gordon completed a pass to Martin, who fought his way to the 2. On third down, Winston ran a quick slant and Gordon found him for the short TD throw. It was Winston’s 3rd TD of the night and Gordon’s 4th TD throw. SCORE: WSU 28, UCLA 17. Drive: 8 plays, 60 yards. The Cougs defense forced a 3-and-out to give the WSU offense plenty of time to score again. The UCLA punter boomed a 59-yard punt and WSU got the ball at the 10 with 2:47 left 2Q. Gordon threw a pass to Fisher, who utilized his blazing speed to race past the UCLA defenders for a 58-yard gain to the UCLA 21. On third and goal from the 7, Gordon lofted a pass to Martin in the left corner of the end zone. Martin leaped high to catch the pass and got his toe down before tumbling out of bounds, giving Gordon 5 TD passes in the 1H. SCORE: WSU 35, UCLA 17. UCLA completed a Hail Mary at the end of the half but the Bruins WR was tackled a yard short of the end zone.

HALFTIME: Washington State 35, UCLA 17.

THIRD QUARTER: Thanks to a stop on 3rd and 1, the WSU defense halted a UCLA drive near midfield after 5 running plays. Gordon and the WSU offense got the ball for the first time in the second half at the 20. Borghi was featured early with three straight carries for a first down. Fourth straight rush by Borghi gained 9 yards. Then Borghi caught a pass for 15 yards to the UCLA 35. Moments later, Gordon hit Renard Bell in stride for a 35-yard TD strike with 8:09 left 3Q. It was Gordon’s 6th TD pass of the night. He was 27-of-39 passing for 365 yards after the drive. Score: Washington State 42, UCLA 17. The Cougs defense forced a three-and-out and the punt was field by Winston. He raced through the UCLA coverage unit all the way to the 5-yard line. First play, Gordon hit Patmon at the right pylon for his SEVENTH TD pass of the night, tying the school record for most single game TD passes. Score: Washington State 49, UCLA 17. On 4th and 6, DTR completed a 37-yard pass to a Bruin WR to the WSU 2 after a roughing the passer penalty was enforced. Two plays, DTR sold the inside run, kept the ball and strolled into the end zone. Score: Washington State 49, UCLA 24. The UCLA defense ripped the ball away from Rodrick Fisher for a fumble. The play was reviewed and the call was confirmed. On the first play, DTR threw a TD pass to make it a three-score game. Score: Washington State 49, UCLA 31. Gordon hit Harris for 22 yards to move the ball into UCLA territory. WSU soon faced a 4th-and-4 from the UCLA 43. After a timeout, WSU elected to punt for the first time tonight. First play, DTR hit a receiver on a slant and he raced 94 yards for the TD with 1:38 left 3Q. Score: Washington State 49, UCLA 38. The nightmare for WSU continued as Patmon fumbled and UCLA recovered. The third quarter ended with UCLA riding a wave of momentum. The two teams combined for 5 TDs in the third quarter, the last three by the Bruins.

END THIRD QUARTER: Washington State 49, UCLA 38.

FOURTH QUARTER: Early in the fourth quarter, DTR rolled left before finding a wide-open receiver on the right side of the red zone. The Bruins converted the 2-pointer and suddenly we had a 3-point game. Score: Washington State 49, UCLA 46. After going fumble, punt and fumble in their last 3 possessions, the WSU finally put together a drive. Gordon passed to Winston on a key 3rd-and-1 play for a first down. Gordon then hit Bell on a crossing pattern for 16 yards to the UCLA 33. Then Gordon lofted a TD pass to Winston, who beat his defender for the TD. Gordon’s 8th TD pass set a new school record. Gordon finished the drive 38-of-53 for 486 yards + 8 TD passes. Score: WSU 56, UCLA 46. The UCLA offense continued to have its way with the Cougs defense, driving to the WSU 30 in just 4 plays. WSU called timeout with 8:52 left. DTR scored the TD on a QB keeper from 3 yards out with 8:10 left. Score: WSU 56, UCLA 53. WSU went three-and-out and punted. UCLA returned the punt 69 yards for a touchdown to take the lead in stunning fashion. Score: UCLA 60, WSU 56. The Bruins have scored 43 points in the second half due to woeful defense and special teams play by the Cougars. On 3rd and 10 and the WSU offense looking for somebody to make a play, Max Borghi came through. He turned a short pass from Gordon into a 65-yard catch-and-run down the left sideline for the go-ahead TD. Score: WSU 63, UCLA 60. The Cougars had 716 total yards on offense as Gordon was 40-of-60 for 556 yards, 9 TD. The WSU defense jarred the ball loose from DTR on a run and several WSU players had a chance to fall on the football. But the officials ruled DTR recovered the fumble. The play was reviewed. The call was upheld. UCLA kept the ball. On 3rd and 8, UCLA was called for holding. On 3rd and 18, UCLA completed a pass to the 17. On 4th and 5, DTR’s pass was broken up. Turnover on downs. The 4th down attempt was broken up. George Hicks on the coverage. Dislodged the ball from the UCLA receiver. UCLA had two timeouts. WSU needed one first down to end the game. On 1st down, Winston caught a pass and was ruled down at the WSU 26 for a 14-yard gain, setting up 2nd and 1. He lost the ball but was ruled down. The play was reviewed. The play was called a fumble and UCLA’s ball at the 26. First play, pass complete to the 9. Second play, sack to the 15. Third play, incomplete pass. Fourth play, UCLA ran a screen and the player spun into the end zone for the go-ahead TD with 1:07 left. Score: UCLA 67, Cougs 63. The WSU offense came onto the field knowing they had to score a TD to win the game. On the first play, Gordon was belted from behind by a UCLA defender coming off the edge and fumbled. UCLA recovered to wrap up the victory.

FINAL SCORE: UCLA 67, WASHINGTON STATE 63.