College football

PAC-10: Arizona easily knocks UCLA off its unbeaten perch

TUCSON, Ariz. - The house of cards that UCLA has lived in the past month came crashing down on Saturday night.

Willie Tuitama, an 18-year-old freshman in his second college start, threw for two early touchdowns and Arizona rolled for 519 yards in a 52-14 rout of the previously unbeaten and No. 7 Bruins.

"It was wild out there," Tuitama said, "really crazy."

Arizona, losers of 19 of its previous 21 conference home games, rushed for 320 yards. Mike Bell had 153 yards in 16 attempts, including an 8-yard touchdown run. Gilbert Harris added a career-best 116 yards in 16 attempts, one of them a 17-yarder for a score.

"It was one of those things you dream of," said Bell, a senior who has experienced so many losses. "It was just a blessing for it to finally happen here."

Freshman Mike Thomas caught five passes for 104 yards. He had a 48-yard touchdown catch and a 17-yard touchdown run, both in the first quarter, to help give second-year coach Mike Stoops by far his biggest victory.

UCLA is the highest-ranked team to lose to Arizona since the Wildcats beat No. 1 Washington 16-3 in Tucson on Nov. 7, 1992.

The Bruins had come from behind in the fourth quarter to win in three of their previous four games, including Oct. 29 when they erased a 21-point deficit against Stanford. That wasn't going to happen this time, not with the Wildcats up 52-7 after three quarters.

EUGENE, Ore. - Brady Leaf's first career touchdown pass was a winning one.

Leaf threw a 4-yard score to James Finley in overtime for Oregon, which played its first game without starter Kellen Clemens, out for the season with a broken ankle.

Dennis Dixon started, but Leaf led the Ducks to victory in a game played in constant rain and unpredictable winds.

"They told me I'd get a series here or there, maybe, so I just prepared myself to play," said Leaf, who got the word as regulation ended that he would play in overtime.

California's Tom Schneider missed a rushed, 53-yard field goal as time ran out in the fourth quarter.

Leaf, the younger brother of former Washington State star Ryan Leaf, completed 9-of-13 passes for 93 yards and Dixon was 15-for-26 for 139 yards and a score.

In the fourth quarter, Cal trailed 20-10 but rallied. Schneider hit a 45-yard field goal and Marshawn Lynch, who gained 189 yards on 25 carries, had a 52-yard touchdown run to tie it at 20.

OREGON ST. 18, WASH. 10: Yvenson Bernard ran for 122 yards on 35 carries and Alexis Serna kicked six field goals in windy and rainy conditions for the visiting Beavers. Serna tied a 21-year-old Pac-10 record with his field goals. UCLA's John Lee hit six in a game against San Diego State in 1984.

ARIZONA ST. 27, WASH. ST. 24: Rudy Carpenter threw two touchdowns and Rudy Burgess threw another for the visiting Sun Devils. The Sun Devils built a 24-10 halftime lead after Carpenter threw a 10-yard touchdown to Terry Richardson and a 5-yarder to Zach Miller.

[Last modified November 6, 2005, 02:02:18]