With a victory over Washington State on Saturday, UCLA would have become bowl eligible and kept alive hopes of playing in the Holiday Bowl, which had representatives watching from the Rose Bowl press box.
But instead of putting together a winning performance to show their worthiness, the Bruins self-destructed in a hurry and lost to the Cougars, 31-29, in front of 62,251.
UCLA fell behind early, thanks to Tab Perry's fumble on the opening kickoff, and trailed by as many as 15 points before making a late rally. The Bruins, who had lost running back Maurice Drew and tight end Marcedes Lewis to injuries earlier in the game, had a chance to tie the score with 42 seconds to play, but Drew Olson's two-point conversion pass fell incomplete.
Tom Cable, offensive coordinator, took the blame for UCLA's sluggish start with the ball, but he could have been speaking for the entire team when he said: "There's no explanation for the lack of effort and lack of focus....
"In all fairness to the players, I think that it's a bigger issue. We have to figure out why in the heck we didn't show up to play a game that clinches a bowl game. I don't understand that."
Coach Karl Dorrell said the Bruins (5-4 and 3-3 in the Pacific 10 Conference) did not take Washington State (4-5, 2-4) lightly, but they played that way most of the afternoon.
The Cougars pounded UCLA behind former Pasadena City College running back Jerome Harrison, who rushed for 247 yards and three touchdowns as Washington State ended a four-game losing streak.
Before Saturday, Harrison's personal best had been 117 yards, and he was coming off a dismal 15 yards in 11 carries against USC. He eclipsed his own mark by the middle of the second quarter as he gave UCLA's slow-reacting defense fits all game with his quickness.
Many times, the Bruins had the correct defense called to stop Harrison and often had defenders in position to make a tackle, but they failed to bring him down.
"I should have made a lot of those plays when he got outside," junior safety Jarrad Page said. "I kept coming down into the coverage late and didn't give myself a chance to get outside to make a play. I have to be better than that."
To defensive coordinator Larry Kerr, who coached from the press box for the second week in a row, the problem was with the entire defense.
