UCLA beats Rutgers for their first Big Ten Conference Win

It took a while, but the UCLA Bruins football team finally has something to celebrate in the Big Ten Conference. The Bruins traveled to Piscataway, New Jersey to end their five-game losing streak and get their first win in the Big Ten Conference, defeating the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 35-32 in a Saturday afternoon east coast matchup last weekend.

UCLA quarterback Ethans Garbers completed 32 of 38 passes for 383 and four touchdowns, while also adding a 49-yard touchdown run in a signature performance. The passing yardage and touchdown passes were career highs. Three of Garbers touchdown passes went to three different running backs, and he completed passes to eight different receivers.

Garbers did an excellent job of getting the ball out quickly in the game. He completed the longest pass of his career with a 67-yard touchdown pass to running back Keegan Jones. Garbers completion percentage of 84% was the fifth-highest completion percentage by a Bruin quarterback since 1980.

For his performance, Garbers was selected as the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week in Week 8 of the season. The win improved the UCLA record for the season to 2-5 and Rutgers fell to 4-3 for the season with the loss. UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster was proud that his players never quit during the five-game losing streak.

"My players are resilient, and they continue to show that each game," Foster said. "Ethan (Garbers) came out and played a really good game. I think these are all career highs for him: completions, attempts, touchdowns and yards. So that was really huge. All three running backs scored a touchdown, and they are receiving. I was just fired up with the way they played."

Garbers was asked about the post-game celebration in the end zone with the UCLA fans at SHI Stadium. "I didn't see my parents, I'm sure I'll see them after the game, but, no, I was just sharing it with my teammates and with Coach Foster because, I mean, this one was definitely for him. And, you know, we just love playing for that guy. And it just finally good to see that all our hard work come to fruition."

When asked about the post-game celebration in the locker room, Garbers added that it was, "Pretty loud. Loud music. You know, we were jumping up and down, having a good time, spraying water everywhere, doing our fight song. It felt good to do that, for sure."

The Bruins have a bye in Week 9 but will return to action in Week 10 on Saturday, November 2 to play the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The game will be played at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska, starting at 12:30 pm locally and will be televised on the Big Ten Network (BTN).

The Cornhuskers are 5-2 on the season and will face 4th ranked Ohio State this weekend in Columbus, Ohio. Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule, in his second season as the Cornhusker head coach, was a young defensive line coach on the 2001 UCLA football team. The Bruins went 7-4 in 2001, beating Alabama and Ohio State in non-conference matchups. UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster was an All-American running back on that team.

In Week 11, the Bruins will return home to the Rose Bowl for a Friday Night, November 8 matchup with the Iowa Hawkeyes. The starting time for the game is 6:00 pm locally and the game will be televised nationally on FOX.