PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — UCLA knew it was in for a challenge facing the nation's second leading rusher in Iowa's Kaleb Johnson. Not only did the Bruins hold Johnson to his lowest rushing performance of the season, but UCLA's ground game finally got out of first gear.
T.J. Harden had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season and Ethan Garbers threw two touchdown passes as the Bruins rallied for a 20-17 victory on Friday night.
Carson Schwesinger had a pair of interceptions to help UCLA win its third straight. “We went into this week knowing it was a challenge and we were ready for it,” Schwesinger said. Harden had 125 yards on 20 carries, the fourth time the junior has eclipsed the century mark in his career.
His 15-yard gain up the middle after the 2-minute timeout gave UCLA a first down and put the game away. “I knew I had to have a game like this. We saw the opportunity we had to run the ball against them,” Harden said.
“We did a great job of consistently picking up blocks." The Bruins had a 415-265 edge in total yards, including 211-80 rushing. Johnson, who was averaging 142.
1 rushing yards per game, had a season-low 49 yards on 18 carries. “To me, in a nutshell, they ran the ball extremely efficiently, and we didn’t. Really, I think they played in a way they want to play," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.
Quarterback Brendan Sullivan sprained his ankle in the third quarter after taking a hit from UCLA linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo on a pass that was picked .