Pac-12 roundup: Arizona State rallies past No. 7 UCLA

Kalen Ballage ran the ball into the teeth of UCLA’s defense in the final minute and refused to go down. One after another, his Arizona State teammates pushed and shoved him away from the Bruins and in for the clinching touchdown.

The Sun Devils knew they could only overcome their disappointing start to the season if they gave a boost to each other – and in Ballage’s case, they really meant it.

Mike Bercovici passed for 273 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score as Arizona State got its season back on track with a 38-23 victory over No. 7 UCLA on Saturday night in Pasadena, California.

Tim White and D.J. Foster caught scoring passes for the Sun Devils, who responded to their dire situation after two September losses with an inspired effort in their second straight win at the Rose Bowl.

“We’re used to this situation, unfortunately,” Bercovici said. “We’ve had some big losses, but what we do is we rebound.”

Arizona State built a 29-10 lead on UCLA heading into the fourth quarter. Thomas Duarte caught his second touchdown pass from Josh Rosen with 9:19 left, trimming the Sun Devils’ lead to 29-23 and getting the Rose Bowl rocking.

But after Matt Haack’s exceptional punt and a defensive stand forced the Bruins to take a safety with 4:16 left, Ballage wrapped it up with a 23-yard TD run with 45 seconds to play, covering most of that distance with UCLA defenders hanging on him.

“We’re happy, but we’re not surprised,” said Ballage, who missed the first three games of the season because of mononucleosis. “We know what this team is capable of.”

(18) Stanford 55, Arizona 17: Christian McCaffrey ran for 156 yards and a touchdown, Remound Wright scored three times and the Cardinal overwhelmed the Wildcats at Stanford, California.

Kevin Hogan threw for 217 yards and two touchdowns to help the Cardinal win their fourth straight after an opening loss to Northwestern.

Barry Sanders added a 65-yard touchdown run for Stanford, which scored 40 or more points in three straight games for the first time in 14 years.

Oregon 41, Colorado 24: Royce Freeman rushed for 163 yards and scored twice, third-string quarterback Taylor Alie tossed a clinching touchdown pass in the fourth quarter and the Ducks defeated the Buffaloes in Boulder, Colorado.

Taj Griffin finished with 110 yards rushing and a score, while receiver Bralon Addison threw a TD pass on a trick play for the Ducks.

It was Oregon’s fifth straight win over Colorado since the Buffaloes joined the Pac-12 in 2011.