Washington Huskies wallop UCLA in a statement road victory

PASADENA, Calif. — In the end, the grass didn’t matter.

Neither did UW’s dismal 1-9 record at the Rose Bowl since 1997. Or UCLA’s College Football Playoff-tested quarterback. Or Washington’s road struggles under coach Jedd Fisch. Or the host of injured Huskies — including junior right tackle Drew Azzopardi, senior cornerback Tacario Davis and junior center Landen Hatchett — who did not play.

Any thoughts of a final Rose Bowl scare for UW during what might be UCLA’s final home game in front of the picturesque San Gabriel Mountains were wiped out before the two teams even emerged from halftime.

Led by a commanding performance by its defense, Washington pummeled UCLA 48-14 on Saturday night in front of an announced crowd of 38,201 fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. It’s UW’s fifth conference win of the season, ensuring the Huskies will end the 2025 season with more Big Ten victories than they managed during last season’s conference debut.

Williams was 17-for-26 passing for 213 yards, throwing two touchdowns and an interception. He added 56 yards rushing on six carries and scored two touchdowns — his first multiscore game as a rusher since Oct. 10. Sophomore running back Adam Mohammed had 21 carries for 108 yards, reaching triple digit yards for the first time in his career, while freshman wideout Dezmen Roebuck had six catches for 95 yards and a touchdown.

Senior running back Jonah Coleman (knee) and junior wide receiver Denzel Boston (ankle) played a handful of snaps, but generally ceded the workload to Mohammed and Roebuck. Coleman did find the end zone in the fourth quarter on one of his four carries.

Neither team generated much offensively throughout the first half. The Huskies (8-3, 5-3 Big Ten) punted their first two possessions away (their only punts of the game), while the Bruins turned the ball over on downs during its first drive after sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s pass intended for wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer on fourth-and-4 from the UW 33-yard line was broken up by a perfectly timed hit by safety Makell Esteen.

So Washington’s defense took matters into its own hands. During the first play of UCLA’s second drive, UW redshirt freshman defensive back Rahshawn Clark knocked the ball out of receiver Mikey Matthews’ hands after a screen pass. True freshman cornerback Dylan Robinson — who started in place of senior cornerback Tacario Davis — recovered on UCLA’s 20-yard line, setting up a 36-yard field goal by senior kicker Grady Gross to give UW a 3-0 lead.

And after forcing UCLA to go three-and-out on its responding drive, Washington finally reached the end zone when sophomore quarterback Demond Williams Jr. kept the ball on a read-option run before slaloming through the Bruin defense for a 25-yard touchdown run. His fifth rushing score of the season capped an eight-play, 65-yard drive for the Huskies, and gave them a 10-0 lead.

Washington’s defense continued to keep the pressure on in the second half. Sixth-year defensive lineman Deshawn Lynch registered his team-leading 7th pass breakup on the first play of UCLA’s fourth drive, then ended it by forcing Iamaleava to fumble on his own 45-yard line. Lynch recovered the ball, too, capping an impressive individual drive.

UW’s offense, however, continued to misfire. Williams, who was 8-for-15 passing for 55 yards during the first half, wasn’t able to lead Washington back to the end zone. He missed sophomore receiver Audric Harris, who played in his fifth game of the season and burned a potential redshirt, on deep passes several times, though Harris was able to draw a defensive pass interference to help set up a 22-yard field goal by Gross.

And Williams threw his lone interception when he missed freshman Dezmen Roebuck on a slant and the ball sailed straight to UCLA defensive back Cole Martin, who returned it 27 yards — the longest gain the Bruins (3-8, 3-5) managed in the first half.

The Husky defense managed to force the Bruins to kick a field goal on fourth-and-14 after an illegal offensive formation call wiped out a first down. UCLA then attempted one of the worst fake field goals of the season, when holder Cash Peterman’s blind pitch sailed out of the reach of kicker Mateen Bhaghani. UW safety Alex McLaughlin corralled the loose ball before returning it 59 yards for the touchdown, the Northern Arizona transfer’s second score of the season, and a 20-0 lead.

Washington continued to pour on the points in the second half. Williams rushed for an 11-yard score on the Huskies’ first drive of the second half, and Iamaleava, coming off a concussion that held him out a week ago, exited the game with 8:55 remaining in the third quarter after being sacked by junior defensive tackle Bryce Butler.

The Huskies added a touchdown when Williams connected on an 18-yard pass to Roebuck, but UCLA finally put points on the board when quarterback Luke Duncan connected with Matthews for a 37-yard touchdown. Washington responded with a 1-yard touchdown run by Coleman to restore its 34-point lead. A late fumble by Roebuck on a punt return allowed UCLA to score its second touchdown of the game, but Williams found sophomore tight end Decker DeGraaf for a 24-yard touchdown with 7:14 remaining to make it 48-14.