UCLA endures injury scare, gets heroic return to stay unbeaten

Detailed summary

After taking a shot in the arm, Ty Dieffenbach delivered one.

Roars accompanied the UCLA quarterback with each step he took as he jogged back from the locker room to the Rose Bowl sideline late in the third quarter Friday night.

It was a heroic return for the veteran who had departed UCLA’s game against Illinois just before halftime with an upper-body injury. The crowd serenaded Dieffenbach with cheers anew once he came onto the field with his team holding a suddenly precarious lead over Illinois.

All Dieffenbach did upon his return was to complete each of his five passes on the next drive, including a beautiful touchdown toss, to help the fourth-ranked Bruins hold on for a 22-14 victory that kept their unbeaten record intact.

The Bruins could exhale only after an Illinois pass fell incomplete over the middle with 43 seconds left.

UCLA had registered another big defensive play only minutes earlier when safety Scooter Jackson came up with an interception – his second of the game – and returned it 41 yards to the Illinois 19-yard line with 2 minutes 42 seconds left.

A short Mateen Bhaghani field goal gave the Bruins a 22-14 lead, necessitating a desperation drive by the Fighting Illini that came up well short.

There were feel-good vibes all around after Dieffenbach escaped injury and UCLA improved to 10-0 for the first time since 1998 – the last season it won a conference championship.

The Bruins, who are 7-0 in Big Ten games, need only one more victory in their final two regular-season games – against Michigan and USC – to clinch an appearance in the conference title game.

What appeared to be the largest crowd of the season also celebrated a defense that intercepted three passes, registered a sack and recorded six tackles for loss while holding the Fighting Illini (6-4, 4-3) to 240 yards of offense.

Opening of the article, excerpted from New York Post. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.