Stanford saved its best for last in 2014, crushing the No. 8 UCLA Bruins 31-10 with its best performance of the season. Here’s the breakdown of the beatdown:
84.2: Senior quarterback Kevin Hogan’s completion percentage against UCLA
Hogan was simply brilliant on Friday against the Bruins, turning in possibly the best performance of his career at the Rose Bowl. In a stadium in which Hogan has already delivered some memorable moments, the senior from McLean, Virginia passed for 234 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a perfect strike to Michael Rector. In short, Hogan completely outplayed his UCLA counterpart Brett Hundley on Hundley’s senior day.
37: Yards on senior receiver Devon Cajuste’s touchdown grab
While Hogan had an outstanding game on Friday, his receivers certainly did their part in order to help their quarterback to his fourth victory against UCLA. Stanford’s best catch against the Bruins came on first-and-10 at the UCLA 37, when Hogan managed to avoid the pass rush and throw a prayer up for grabs into double coverage. That’s when Cajuste made one of the best plays of the season for the Card, jumping up and catching the pass, all while Bruins linebacker Myles Jack was committing one of the most blatant pass interference violations you’ll see by grabbing Cajuste’s jersey and holding him, while practically giving Cajuste a hug.
5: Number of sacks for Stanford defense of Brett Hundley
While Stanford’s offense turned in its best performance of the season against UCLA, the Cardinal defense also stepped up and delivered three quarters of ferocity against Hundley. After the Bruins’ senior quarterback torched Stanford’s defense on UCLA’s opening drive, the Card clamped down, only allowing 3 points the rest of the way while forcing Hundley into errant throw after errant throw. Hundley finished the game with a forgettable stat line of 17-for-32 for 146 yards. While Stanford’s defensive line and linebackers partied in the backfield to the tune of 5 sacks, Stanford’s secondary delivered a brilliant performance with 4 pass breakups, an interception and a longest reception allowed of only 24 yards.
7: Number of consecutive times Stanford has beaten UCLA
The Cardinal continued their recent dominance of the Bruins, as the Card now have the longest winning streak in the series history between the two California schools. UCLA head coach Jim Mora has now lost his first four games in the rivalry to David Shaw, as the Bruins have continued to struggle in big games. Furthermore, with the blowout loss to Stanford, UCLA was officially eliminated from Pac-12 title contention after beginning the day as the front-runner to represent the Pac-12 South against the Oregon Ducks.
Contact David Cohn at dmcohn ‘at’ stanford.edu.