Victory Bell stays with UCLA
Listen to this articleAl comienzo de la temporada el récord de 9-3 se veía muy bien y cualquier equipo de la universidad podria ser un buen candidato para un prestigioso juego de tazón. En el caso de # 22 UCLA Bruins no es así, ya que sus tres derrotas fueron contra rivales de la conferencia: # 13 Stanford, # 3 Oregon y # 17 Arizona State.
Así que ganar o perder, el partido contra los USC Trojans no tuvo un impacto en la postemporada de UCLA. Lo que era más importante en este juego para los Bruins y los Trojans, era una mucho más grande, y fue ganar el título de la Victoriosa campana.
Cada año, los dos equipos juegan el último partido de la temporada contra ambos, intercalando campos locales: el Rose Bowl en un año y el Coliseo de Los Ángeles el próximo. Los Bruins de UCLA y los USC Trojans son rivales locales y el juego de la Victoria es el partido más importante de la temporada.
No importa si un equipo u otro está compitiendo por el campeonato nacional. No importa si uno o los dos equipos están pegaditos en las conferencias. El último partido mas importante de la temporada es cuando UCLA y USC se enfrentan.
Así que fue una gran razón los # 22 UCLA Bruins entraron en el Coliseo para enfrentar a los # 23 USC Trojans. Este fue el momento de cambiar la trayectoria de la rivalidad.
En este momento los Trojans están pasando por un período de transición con el entrenador Ed Orgeron. USC despidió a Carril Kifflin a principios de la temporada y nadie se espero que USC iba a llegar al # 23 en la encuesta BCS.
El entrenador de UCLA Jim Mora saltó a una rápida ventaja en este partido de una clásica rivalidad local entre los Bruins y los Trojans de USC.
El entrenador Mora tiene que estar satisfecho con su mariscal de campo Brett Hundley quién demostró que puede pasar el balón, manejar el balón en jugadas de carrera y correr yardas de largo y touchdowns. Hundley comenzó el tercer trimestre del juedo con dos touchdowns. Muchos se preguntan si Hundley podría ser un contendiente para el Trofeo Heisman?
Los Trojans tienen algunos puntos brillantes en su juego ofensivo. El mariscal de campo Cody Kessler y el corredor Javorious Allen jugaron bien, Allen corrió 123 yardas con un touchdown en 20 acarreos. Kessler pasó 174 yardas con un touchdown, un tiro de 22 yardas de Xavier Grimble en el tercer trimestre, pero eso fue todo lo que pudieron lograr los Trojans el sábado.
Esta fue una gran victoria para los Bruins, siendo esta la primera vez que han ganado en el histórico Coliseo de Los Ángeles, desde 1997. Los Bruins ganaron la victoria de la campana de nuevo en el Rose Bowl.
UCLA salió victorioso con 35-14
(Photo is screen shot from Youtube)
ENGLISH
At first, a 9-3 record for the season looks pretty good and would make any college team a contender for a prestigious bowl game. Not so in the case of #22 UCLA Bruins. Their three losses were to conference rivals: #13 Stanford, #3 Oregon and #17 Arizona State.
So winning or losing, the game against the USC Trojans wouldn’t have an impact on UCLA’s post season. What was on the line for the Bruins and Trojans was a much bigger, far more important title: the Victory Bell.
Every year the two teams play the last game of the season against each other, trading home fields each year: the Rose Bowl one year, the Los Angeles Coliseum the next. But it’s not like either team has to travel far — the UCLA Bruins and the USC Trojans are cross-town rivals and the Victory game is the biggest game on their schedules.
Doesn’t matter if one team or the other is vying for the national championship. Doesn’t matter if one or both teams are scraping the conference floor. The last game, when UCLA and USC face off, that is the most important game of the season.
This year it was on USC’s home turf, the Los Angeles Coliseum, just 14 miles from UCLA’s home field, the Rose Bowl. It’s a 23-minute ride through Los Angeles if the traffic is just at its normal congestion.
- The schools themselves are just 12 miles apart.
Another statistic the Bruins haven’t beaten the Trojans on their home field since 1997 while the Trojans have won in the Rose Bowl several times in these past 16 years. You might think these school rivalries are overblown, but ask any USC or UCLA Alum about that fact and listen to their answers. Well, take a few steps back from the UCLA Alum when you ask, just for safety’s sake.
So, it was with great purpose the #22 UCLA Bruins marched into the Coliseum to face the #23 USC Trojans. It was time to change the trajectory of the rivalry.
Right now the Trojans are going through a transition period with interim head coach Ed Orgeron. They fired Lane Kifflin earlier in the season so no one really expected USC to be good enough to rate #23 on the BCS poll. In fact, winning this game would most likely have assured him of the head coaching job permanently.
Coach Jim Mora’s UCLA Bruins jumped out to a quick lead in this classic match-up. They scored two touchdowns before USC got on the board. Coach Mora has to be pleased with his quarterback Brett Hundley. He can pass the ball, handle the ball on running plays and run for long yards and touchdowns. Hundley started the 3rd quarter running in two TD’s. Could Hundley still be a contender for the Heisman Trophy? That’s the question.
The Trojans had some bright spots in their offensive game. Quarterback Cody Kessler and running back Javorious Allen had decent games, Allen rushing for 123 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries. Kessler passed for 174 yards and one touchdown, a 22-yard throw to Xavier Grimble in the third quarter, but that was all the scoring the Trojans could accomplish Saturday.
This was a big win for the Bruins, the first time they have won in historic L.A. Coliseum, since 1997. More importantly, they get to take the Victory Bell back to the Rose Bowl and keep the frame in Bruin Blue.
The final score was 35-14, UCLA Bruins.
Claudia is of Peruvian and Italian descent, having been born in a small town, in the North of Peru, South America. She was raised by her grandmother from an early age, living in poverty until Claudia’s mother brought her to America. She landed in Miami, FL and started her new life, playing high school basketball and eventually becoming a United States citizen. Claudia completed her education at Florida International University with a BA in Broadcast Journalism and became a model to supplement her income. Since graduating from FIU Claudia has worked with many of the Spanish Language broadcasting companies, including Telemundo, Univision and most recently Spanish Language channels on SiriusXM satellite radio and PasTV Deportes in Venezuela.She encourages you to follow her on Twitter and Facebook. Her content appears here under a shared content agreement with her Spanish television clients.