Rose Bowl
1994
Wisconsin 21
UCLA 16
PASADENA,
Calif. (AP) - Wisconsin's next trip to the Rose Bowl shouldn't take 31
years.
The ninth ranked Badgers beat No 14 UCLA 21-16 yesterday, only the second bowl victory in the school's 104-year history.
“I just feel that from now on, we'll be able to compete with anybody." Said coach Barry Alvarez, whose first team at Wisconsin, in 1990, went 1-10.
"A victory like this gives our team a lot of credibility. This gives us a shot at getting some of the top recruits in the country"
The Badgers, who were winless in three previous trips to the Rose Bowl, got some unwilling help from the Bruins, who gained 500 yards but self-destructed with six turnovers. Brent Moss ran for 158 yards and scored on two short runs in the first half for the Badgers, and Darrell Bevell scrambled for a 21-yard touchdown early in the final quarter to give Wisconsin a 21-10 lead.
The Bruins scored again, but their comeback ended at the Wisconsin 15-yard line.
"The coaching staff stressed turnovers," Wisconsin linebacker Yusef Burgess said "They were the key to the defensive plan of the game."
The Bruins lost five fumbles and an interception as they were beaten for the first time in four Rose Bowls under coach Terry Donahue. The defeat also ended Donahue's eight-game winning streak in bowl games.
A crowd of 101,237, with at least three-fourths of the fans wearing Wisconsin's red and white, watched the 80th edition of the Rose Bowl.
"We knew that it was going to be our home field, that's what I told the kids," Alvarez said, forgetting for the moment that UCLA plays its home games at the Rose Bowl. "The fans were great. They filled the stadium and some of them still didn't get in."
"It felt like we were at a neutral site," UCLA quarterback Wayne Cook said. "But we got down early in the game."
Moss, who carried 36 times, has rushed for more than 100 yards in his last 11 games.
"I felt I was successful because I am a physical running back who stays low and level," Moss said "Winning the Rose Bowl player of the game is something I will never forget."
Tackle Carlos Fowler and nose guard Lamark Shackerford led the Badgers' defense that held UCLA to a field goal until the fourth quarter.
The Bruins, themselves making their first appearance m the Rose Bowl in eight years, trailed from late in the first quarter, but narrowed the difference to 21-16 on a five-yard pass from Cook to Mike Nguyen with 3.38 remaining. Cook threw incomplete on the two-point conversion try.
In the closing minutes, the Bruins went from their own 38-yard line, but they had no timeouts remaining and time ran out as Cook scrambled for three yards to the Badgers' 15.
"I should have thrown the ball into the ground and stopped the clock," Cook said "But I was thinking about trying to hit a quick pass, let him get out of bounds and get closer. But, nobody was open, so my reaction was just to run . . It was a mistake on my part.”
For
Alvarez and Wisconsin, the Rose Bowl victory capped a most unusual
season. The Badgers, who have gone from Big Ten doormat to co-champion
in four years under Alvarez, survived an upset loss to Minnesota, a
stampede of students onto the field at Madison that injured 70 people
after their victory over Michigan, and a trip to Tokyo where they beat
Michigan State 41-20 to tie for the conference title and earn the Rose
Bowl trip.
The Badgers seemed in control for most of the Rose Bowl, but UCLA pulled within 14-10 on Ricky Davis' run 52 seconds into the final quarter.
However Davis fumbled the next time the Bruins had the ball and Mike Thompson recovered at the UCLA 34. Bevell ran for his touchdown four plays later.
The game was marred by fighting. Following some mild skirmishes earlier in the game a fight in the third quarter led to the ejection of two players from each team- UCLA safeties Marvin Goodwin and Donovan Gallatin, and Wisconsin's leading receiver, Lee DeRamus and fullback Mark Montgomery.
The Bruins were able to move the ball against the Badgers, but were unable to overcome their own mistakes. Cook who missed some practice last week because of the flu and had some difficulty talking, was 28-for-43 for 288 yards with one interception. He also lost two fumbles both in Wisconsin territory.
UCLA wide receiver, J.J. Stokes had a Rose Bowl and school record 14 catches for 176 yards, another Rose Bowl record.
The Badgers turned a fumble by Stokes into a 14-3 lead 5:04 before halftime, with Moss barely making it across the goal line on third down.
Moss rushed for 158 yards.
J.J. Stokes hammered by Badgers. Stokes set a Rose Bowl record for receiving.
Bevell scores winning TD.
Attendance- 101,237
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
UCLA- FG Merten 27
UW- Moss 3 run (Schnetsky kick)
Second Quarter
UW- Moss 1 run (Schnetsky kick)
Fourth Quarter
UCLA- Davis 12 run (Merten kick)
UW- Bevell 21 run (Schnetsky kick)
UCLA- Nguyen 5 pass from Cook (pass failed)
Individual Statistics
Rushing
UW- Moss 36-158, Fletcher 7-64, Bevell 1-21, Montgomery 2-7
UCLA- Davis 13-88, Hicks 8-67, Washington 4-39, Millner 3-12, Cook 11-11
Passing
UW- Bevell 10-20-96
UCLA- Cook 28-43-288
Receiving
UW- Dawkins 4-33, Fletcher 2-29, London 2-20
UCLA- Stokes 14-176, Allen 4-32, Jordan 3-34, Washington 3-8, Nguyen
2-26
