UCLA vs. Cal Week 13: Social Media Reactions to Another Runaway Victory For the Bruins
The Bruins have finished the regular season 8-4, and fans were chattering all day and all night about what that means for this year's team and the future of the program as a whole.
Before things got there, though, UCLA football (8-4, 6-3 Pac-12) faced off against Cal (4-7, 3-5) at the Rose Bowl on Senior Day. The Bruins would eventually come away with a 42-14 victory, overcoming a back-and-forth opening to the night and running away with yet another November blowout.
Things started off slow, with a few chunk plays getting UCLA downfield for a field goal after getting a stop on the other side of the ball.
The Bruins picked off quarterback Chase Garbers not long after, with cornerback Jay Shaw being the beneficiary of the blunder. The turnover led to UCLA's first of five touchdowns, this one coming on a short strike from quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson to receiver Kyle Philips.
Without the interception by Shaw, though, the Bruins aren't in that spot, and people were appreciative of the senior's second pick of the season coming in such a big early moment.
The Bruins' good fortune turned on a dime, however, and after the Golden Bears answered with a long touchdown drive, things took a turn for the worse.
Receiver Kazmeir Allen was lined up in the end zone of the ensuing kickoff, and he bobbled the ball away and faceplanted trying to recover it. Cal capitalized on the short field with another touchdown, and UCLA was suddenly down 14-10 midway through the second quarter.
That's when the Bruins stole the momentum right back, scoring on five of their next six meaningful drives while not allowing another point the rest of the night.
Allen redeemed himself by sneaking into the end zone on an 8-yard end around towards the end of the first half to give UCLA its lead back. Early in the third quarter, Thompson-Robinson found tight end Greg Dulcich in the end zone for arguably their best-ever connection, at least according to Bruin nation.
From there, the Bruins went up by as many as 21. UCLA fans didn't seem as willing to watch their team run up the score like they did against USC, and they were more so ready to wrap things up early and start prepping for what's to come.
When the game went final, a lot of fans were happy to see UCLA take home another win, but several members of the media and more jaded followers took a different approach to taking in the win.
The game also may have been Thompson-Robinson's final one in the Rose Bowl, and he ended up throwing three touchdowns with no picks and rushing for over 100 yards. He says he hasn't made a decision on his future just yet, but fans still took some time to reflect on Thompson-Robinson's growth over the past four years and the impressions he's left while climbing up the program leaderboards.
But regardless of who the opponent was, what the final score ended up being and who may or may not be returning next fall, the celebration in the locker room remained the same.
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