Bruins kick off Neuheisel era with win

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Sep 1, 2008 | by Wire services

Quarterback Kevin Craft sparked UCLA's offense in the second half Monday night, and Kai Forbath kicked a 42-yard field goal in overtime to lift the Bruins to a 27-24 victory over No. 18 Tennessee in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, making coach Rick Neuheisel's debut a winning one.

The underdog Bruins, who took the lead with 27 seconds left on Ryan Moya's 3-yard touchdown reception, were forced into overtime when the Volunteers' Daniel Lincoln kicked a 47-yard field goal as time expired.

But in overtime, when neither the Bruins nor the Vols were able pick up a first down, Forbath made his kick and then Lincoln missed from 34 yards.

"It was a thrill for me to be on the sidelines," said Neuheisel, a former UCLA quarterback who returned as coach last December after Karl Dorrell was fired following a 6-7 season. "At one point an official said, 'Are you having fun?' I said, 'For an opening act, this is a lot of fun.'

"It's been a hard five years being away from college football. This is what I want to do."

Craft, who threw four interceptions and totaled 66 yards in the opening half of his first game for UCLA, went 18-of-25 for 193 yards and one touchdown in the second half without an interception.

Asked if he considered giving Craft the hook, Neuheisel said, "I told Craft that I threw four interceptions in my first start, but (coach) Terry Donahue waited until the third game before he pulled me."

Following Moya's touchdown that capped a 70-yard drive, the Vols came right back with a quick 27-yard march that ended with Lincoln's tying field goal.

Craft, a junior college transfer who was a third-stringer for the Bruins before injuries pressed him into the starting role, finished 25-of-43 for 259 yards.

"I wasn't nervous at all. I just wasn't in a good rhythm," Craft said. "In the second half, I found it."

Vols quarterback Jonathan Crompton completed 19-of-41 for 189 yards with one interception.

"They were crying about the quarterback situation; I knew darn well they'd be ready for us," Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer said. "We made enough mistakes to fill three or four games."

UCLA lost three starters in the first half -- tailback Khalil Bell with an ankle injury, tight end Logan Paulsen to a fractured foot and wide receiver Marcus Everett to a toe injury.

Fresno State 24, Rutgers 7: Ryan Mathews ran for 163 yards and three touchdowns, Seyi Ajirotutu set up two scores with long receptions, and the Bulldogs made their first trip to the East Coast a successful one with a victory in Piscataway, N.J..

After shaking off a first-half offensive malaise -- can't blame jet lag because the Bulldogs arrived Saturday -- Fresno State got rolling in the second half and went on to its 13th victory over teams in BCS conferences since 2000, second to Utah by one for most in the nation for non-BCS teams.

"I don't think we're a mid-major team," said Bulldogs quarterback Tom Brandstater, who finished with 216 yards passing after a 5-for- 15 first half. "I think we can play with anyone in the country."

Ajirotutu came up with the two biggest plays. The first was a 77- yarder in the third quarter that led to Mathews' first score, a 4- yarder. The second was a 31-yard catch on third-and-23 in the fourth quarter, that put the ball at the 1. Mathews scored two plays later to make it 17-7 with 6:46 left.

The Bulldogs from the Western Athletic Conference will be logging big miles this season, over 18,000 before it's over. For this trip - - a late add to the schedule in April -- the Bulldogs couldn't afford the nonstop charter flight, but the stop in Wichita, Kan., was well worth it considering the result.

Fresno State gets Wisconsin at home in two weeks to go for another win over a BCS team, then travels to Toledo and UCLA.

The first game without Ray Rice wasn't encouraging for the Scarlet Knights of the Big East. While Rutgers' career-rushing leader was preparing for his first NFL game with the Baltimore Ravens, his old school was having a hard time putting points on the board.

"I'd say we were out of synch," Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. "It didn't feel like we ever got into a flow."