Published September 18, 2005 12:05 am -
Ugly loss
John Shinn
The Norman Transcript
PASADENA, Calif. — Oklahoma’s trend of hitting on about half a cylinder continued and the sputtering result was a 41-24 loss to UCLA Saturday afternoon in the Rose Bowl.
The Sooners were plagued by six fumbles and a muffed punt.
Four fell into UCLA’s hands, resulting in 21 points and were the reason the Sooners fell to 1-2 for the first time since 1997.
“They took it away and we gave it away,” OU coach Bob Stoops said. “You’re not going to win when you turn the ball over and put the ball on the ground like we did. It’s just poor football. Until we can be responsible with the ball, it’s impossible to win.”
Unlike in its previous two games, OU was able to piece together a passing game. Rhett Bomar, who played every snap for the second straight game, was 20-for-29 through the air for 241 yards. He also ran for 28 yards on 16 carries.
But five of No. 21 OU’s fumbles came from his hands.
“Our offense did not have their best day of production,” UCLA coach Karl Dorrell said, “but we did capitalize on our opportunities when we needed to.”
UCLA didn’t have a to deal with a mixed bag of good and bad from its quarterback. Drew Olson was nearly flawless, going 28-for-38 for 314 yards and three touchdowns.
“He played like it was a championship-style game,” Dorrell said of Olson.
The Bruins, who improved to 3-0 for first time since 1998, also got 93 all-purpose yards from tailback Maurice Drew.
Despite the turnovers, the Sooners might have been able to salvage a win if they could have gotten Adrian Peterson on track. He rushed for a career-low 58 yards on 23 carries.
“Our defense? What a performance,” Dorrell said. “They needed to stop 28 (Peterson), and we did for the most part.”
The Sooners opened up their offense for the first time this season. On their fourth play from scrimmage, Bomar flipped the ball to wide receiver Travis Wilson on a reverse. Wilson took the toss and motored 56 yards down the sideline for a 56-yard touchdown.
It turned into a short-lived advantage.
A special teams miscue put the Bruins right back in the game. OU’s Lindy Holmes tried to make a sliding catch on a punt but muffed the attempt. UCLA Michael Norris pounced on the ball at the Sooner 19.