A pack of wolves howling beneath a full moon would be enough to send a chill down the spine of even the bravest trick-or-treater this Halloween weekend.
Thankfully for the Bruins, they won’t have to venture into the dark alleyways of medieval Europe or desolate Yorkshire moors to confront the beasts hungrily hunting their way through the night.
No. 7 UCLA (7-0, 5-0 Big Ten) will look to survive the frights and scares of Halloween weekend and keep its undefeated record intact when it welcomes Nevada (3-4, 2-2 Mountain West) to the Rose Bowl on Saturday afternoon.
The Wolf Pack have yet to defeat a team with a winning record this season – including a 20-7 home loss to Football Championship Subdivision Montana State in September and a 31-17 defeat against Football Bowl Subdivision newcomer North Dakota State earlier this month.
And for much of this season, Reno has resembled something of a house of horrors.
After opening the campaign with a 49-14 demolition of Western Kentucky, the Wolf Pack dropped three consecutive contests, including a seven-point loss at Middle Tennessee and a double-overtime defeat to Air Force. Injuries have only added to this nightmare, with starting quarterback Carter Jones sidelined by an arm injury and Nevada forced to turn to third-stringer Luke Duncan in last week’s matchup against San Jose State.
Duncan, who began his collegiate career at UCLA, is hardly an unfamiliar face to the Bruins.
“He’s a good player,” said defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler on Wednesday. “He wouldn’t have been recruited here if he wasn’t a good player. Strong arm, does a really good job of staying patient in his reads and throwing the ball aggressively on the hashes.”
Yet even the most frightening of horror stories offer the occasional glimmer of hope.
Behind 178 yards and two touchdowns from Duncan, the Wolf Pack enter Saturday fresh off a 28-13 victory against the Spartans – a game in which Nevada held San Jose State to just 65 rushing yards on 30 attempts. The effort was hardly an isolated bright spot, as the Wolf Pack rank sixth nationally in passing defense with 153.9 passing yards per game.
“They play really hard – really in the back end what you’re talking about is mixing up a lot of different looks,” said offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy on Wednesday. “They have some good pressures where they bring two to a side. The big thing from the back end standpoint is how they mix things up and kind of try to confuse quarterbacks.”
And don’t be surprised if the Wolf Pack still has some fangs in other areas. Running back Dominic Kelley has emerged as Nevada’s most productive offensive weapon, rushing for 582 yards and five touchdowns, while fellow back Herschel Turner has provided another dangerous option out of the backfield. On the defensive side, linebacker EJ Smith has been a tackling machine, tied for fourth nationally with 76 total tackles.
To counter the Wolf Pack’s stampede into the Rose Bowl, Hitschler’s unit enters Saturday ranked 11th nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 15.3 points per game, and ranked 10th in total defense at 272.9 yards per contest. The Bruins have also forced 22 turnovers – 12 interceptions and 10 fumble recoveries – the second-most in the country.
But the creatures haunting the Rose Bowl aren’t confined to the defensive side of the football. Nevada coach Jeff Choate has already offered his own assessment of the monsters lurking in UCLA’s offensive trenches, describing the Bruins’ offensive linemen as “creatures.”
UCLA’s offensive line has earned that monstrous description, helping pave the way for one of the nation’s most productive rushing attacks. The Bruins average 233 yards per game on the ground – the ninth-best in the FBS – while their offensive front has surrendered just 10 sacks through seven contests.
At the head of it all are UCLA’s running backs who have spent the season feasting on opposing defensive lines. Fifth-year Wayne Knight has continued to establish himself as one of the nation’s most prolific scorers through 627 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on the season. The James Madison transfer has found the end zone in all seven games this season, while fellow fifth-year Anthony Woods has added 459 yards and six touchdowns of his own.
After being held to 140 rushing yards against Oregon and 120 against Wisconsin, the Bruins rediscovered their ground-game dominance against Michigan State, piling up 245 yards and three rushing touchdowns in a 28-10 victory. Woods led the charge with 112 yards on 14 carries, while Knight and senior running back Jaivian Thomas also found the end zone.
And against a Nevada defense allowing 166.4 rushing yards per game, the Bruins could have another opportunity to unleash their three-headed monster. Paired with senior quarterback Ty Dieffenbach – who has completed 43 of 70 passes for 505 yards, two touchdowns and one interception following senior quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s injury – Kennedy has a steady hand to trust to lead this Bruin tower of terror to victory, even against another terrifying pass defense.
“I don’t even know what we’re ranked,” said coach Bob Chesney of the team’s status. “I really don’t care what we’re ranked. If you pay attention to that number, it will go away. If you pay attention to what got you here, it could get better.”
The Wolf Pack may arrive in Pasadena hoping to write a Halloween horror story of their own.
But if the Bruins’ defense keeps haunting opposing quarterbacks and their three-headed rushing monster continues to feast, Nevada might discover that the most frightening creatures in the Rose Bowl aren’t wearing silver and blue.
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