BYU fights the good fight

PASADENA, Calif. — If nothing else, even in defeat, BYU proved it can compete with the upper-echelon of the Pacific-10 Conference.

Playing on the road in front of 72,986 fans, the Cougars put up a good fight before falling to No. 13 UCLA, 27-17. In its two previous games, BYU had outscored Pac-10 opponents Oregon and Arizona by a combined score of 58-15. And the Cougars had their chances to knock off the Bruins, who upset then-No. 2 USC at the Rose Bowl at the end of the 2006 season.

UCLA coach Karl Dorrell praised BYU's effort.

"I knew this team was a very good football team," he said. "You don't win 11 games in a row and not have the attitude and poise that it takes to come back in victories. My hat is off to (BYU coach) Bronco (Mendenhall) and his team. They played hard."

"BYU just had an 11-game winning streak," said UCLA quarterback Ben Olson, who redshirted at BYU in 2002 before transferring to UCLA. "They're going to do a lot of good things in their conference. I think you're going to hear a lot from them. That was a good win. It's not like we beat a I-AA team. They're a good team. They play hard and they have a great defense. They did a good job and you have to give them credit."

TIGHT END POWER: BYU's tight end trio of Dennis Pitta, Andrew George and Vic So'oto combined to catch nine passes for 147 yards. Pitta hauled in five receptions for 66 yards; George had three catches for 62 yards; and So'oto caught one pass for 19 yards, but fumbled on the play, resulting in a turnover.

STREAK-BREAKERS: Saturday wasn't the first time UCLA has halted a prolonged BYU winning streak.

Not only did the Bruins snap the Cougars' 11-game winning streak, but they also halted BYU's school-record 25-game winning streak on Sept. 7, 1985, with a 27-24 triumph in Provo. It marked the Cougars' first defeat since Sept. 10, 1983 and their first after claiming the 1984 national championship.

Going into Saturday's game, the Cougars owned the second-longest active winning streak at 11. Boise State boasted the nation's top streak at 14 games, but the Broncos fell to Washington, 24-10.

Meanwhile, UCLA continued a little streak of its own: the Bruins have now won seven in a row over BYU, dating back to 1985. The Cougars won in their first meeting, 37-35, at the Rose Bowl in 1983 and haven't beaten UCLA since.