Williams (332 yards, 4 TDs) powers No. 19 Utah past UCLA
The Sports Xchange
Oct 22, 2016
Senior running back Joe Williams ran for a school-record 332 yards and four touchdowns two weeks after he unretired from football as No. 19 Utah kept pace in the Pac-12 South with a 52-45 victory over UCLA at the Rose Bowl.
Williams scored on runs of 3, 43, 64 and 55 yards as Utah (7-1, 4-1 Pac-12) stayed tied with Colorado atop the South Division. His last touchdown put the Utes up 52-38 with 10:28 remaining.
Williams retired because of injuries after starting the first two games of the season, but when injuries further ravaged Utah's tailback position, coaches convinced Williams to come back. He ran 34 times for 179 yards against Oregon State last week.
He carried 29 times against UCLA, and his single-game rushing total ranks as fourth-best in conference history.
UCLA (3-5, 1-4) lost its third consecutive game and fourth in the past five.
UCLA redshirt senior quarterback Mike Fafaul, making his second consecutive start for injured Josh Rosen, attempted a school-record 70 passes as the Bruins largely abandoned a struggling ground game. His 13-yard touchdown pass to tight end Austin Roberts brought UCLA within 52-45 with 4:38 left.
The Bruins had a final possession, taking over at their 14 with 40 seconds left and no timeouts, but made little headway before the clock ran out.
Fafaul completed 40 passes, including five for touchdowns -- two to tight end Nate Iese. Fafaul also was intercepted four times -- twice by safety Jordan Fogal, who made his first career start because of an injury to safety Marcus Williams.
It was a wild game from the start, as Utah's Cory Butler-Byrd returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown. The Utes went up 14-0 after their first offensive possession, but UCLA stormed back.
Bruins running back Bolu Olorunfunmi, making his first career start, caught a touchdown pass and ran for a 7-yard score to cap a 21-point blitz in a 5:09 span of the first quarter. His second touchdown came after UCLA defensive lineman Takkarist McKinley sacked Utah's Troy Williams and ripped the ball out off his hands at the Utah 14.
McKinley had a monster game with five tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles and two pass break-ups.
UCLA ran for 46 yards and has a total of 88 yards on the ground in the past three games.
NOTES: Utah RB Joe Williams shattered the school rushing record, which was 254 by Mike Anderson versus Fresno State in 1999. ... Utah played without 2015 first-team all-conference S Marcus Williams and LB Sunia Tauteoli, who left last week's game with undisclosed injuries. ... UCLA QB Mike Fafaul attempted 37 passes in the first half, the second-most in the country this season for a half. Cal's Davis Webb threw 43 passes in a half against San Diego State. ... UCLA had held six consecutive opponents to fewer than 400 yards, but Utah reached that level in the final minute of the third quarter on RB Joe Williams' 43-yard touchdown run. ... Utah is 3-3 versus UCLA as a member of the Pac-12. ... UCLA has a 13-9 record against ranked teams under coach Jim Mora, but is 0-2 this season.
Oct 22, 2016
Senior running back Joe Williams ran for a school-record 332 yards and four touchdowns two weeks after he unretired from football as No. 19 Utah kept pace in the Pac-12 South with a 52-45 victory over UCLA at the Rose Bowl.
Williams scored on runs of 3, 43, 64 and 55 yards as Utah (7-1, 4-1 Pac-12) stayed tied with Colorado atop the South Division. His last touchdown put the Utes up 52-38 with 10:28 remaining.
Williams retired because of injuries after starting the first two games of the season, but when injuries further ravaged Utah's tailback position, coaches convinced Williams to come back. He ran 34 times for 179 yards against Oregon State last week.
He carried 29 times against UCLA, and his single-game rushing total ranks as fourth-best in conference history.
UCLA (3-5, 1-4) lost its third consecutive game and fourth in the past five.
UCLA redshirt senior quarterback Mike Fafaul, making his second consecutive start for injured Josh Rosen, attempted a school-record 70 passes as the Bruins largely abandoned a struggling ground game. His 13-yard touchdown pass to tight end Austin Roberts brought UCLA within 52-45 with 4:38 left.
The Bruins had a final possession, taking over at their 14 with 40 seconds left and no timeouts, but made little headway before the clock ran out.
Fafaul completed 40 passes, including five for touchdowns -- two to tight end Nate Iese. Fafaul also was intercepted four times -- twice by safety Jordan Fogal, who made his first career start because of an injury to safety Marcus Williams.
It was a wild game from the start, as Utah's Cory Butler-Byrd returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown. The Utes went up 14-0 after their first offensive possession, but UCLA stormed back.
Bruins running back Bolu Olorunfunmi, making his first career start, caught a touchdown pass and ran for a 7-yard score to cap a 21-point blitz in a 5:09 span of the first quarter. His second touchdown came after UCLA defensive lineman Takkarist McKinley sacked Utah's Troy Williams and ripped the ball out off his hands at the Utah 14.
McKinley had a monster game with five tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles and two pass break-ups.
UCLA ran for 46 yards and has a total of 88 yards on the ground in the past three games.
NOTES: Utah RB Joe Williams shattered the school rushing record, which was 254 by Mike Anderson versus Fresno State in 1999. ... Utah played without 2015 first-team all-conference S Marcus Williams and LB Sunia Tauteoli, who left last week's game with undisclosed injuries. ... UCLA QB Mike Fafaul attempted 37 passes in the first half, the second-most in the country this season for a half. Cal's Davis Webb threw 43 passes in a half against San Diego State. ... UCLA had held six consecutive opponents to fewer than 400 yards, but Utah reached that level in the final minute of the third quarter on RB Joe Williams' 43-yard touchdown run. ... Utah is 3-3 versus UCLA as a member of the Pac-12. ... UCLA has a 13-9 record against ranked teams under coach Jim Mora, but is 0-2 this season.
