We want to come out on top. This is what this team is showing: the desire to fight and the desire to win. When we don’t come out on top, it’s like taking a stab to the heart. – BYU receiver Mitchell Juergens
PROVO — Inside the visitors' locker room at the historic Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, Saturday night, BYU players and coaches agonized over what had just transpired.
The Cougars appeared to be on the cusp of pulling off a huge upset on the road against a top-10 team — until it slipped from their grasp. BYU led UCLA for much of the night before dropping a heartbreaking 24-23 decision in a game that went down to the final minute.
Suddenly, the Cougars could relate to what Nebraska and Boise State had felt the previous two weeks when BYU defeated both in the waning seconds.
“It’s hard to put into words, just like it was hard to put into words with those victories,” wide receiver Mitchell Juergens said when asked to describe the highs and lows of the first three games this season. “We want to come out on top. This is what this team is showing: the desire to fight and the desire to win. When we don’t come out on top, it’s like taking a stab to the heart."
At the same time, there were positive signs after a strong showing against the Bruins that could be a harbinger of good things to come the rest of the season. While the Cougars struggled at times in all phases of the game, they plan to fix their mistakes and improve.
Fortunately for BYU, it has a chance to redeem itself by facing another storied program — Michigan — at another storied venue — The Big House — Saturday (10 a.m., MT, ABC or ESPN).
The Bruins took their first lead of the game with 3:21 remaining. BYU still had a chance to rally and marched into UCLA territory. But on fourth-and-7 from the Bruin 42-yard line, freshman quarterback Tanner Mangum threw an interception to linebacker Myles Jack with 58 seconds left.
“I’m very proud of our guys for giving us a chance right in the end,” said BYU offensive coordinator Robert Anae. “The first two games we won on the last one (drive), and it really felt great. Now you lose right at the end, and we’re on the other side of the coin.”
“No one likes to lose in this fashion,” Juergens said. “We had so much confidence coming into that last drive, knowing that, hey, we had done this in the past. To come up short takes it out of you. This is something we have to learn from. We’ve got to bounce back. But what I’ve seen in the locker room is a lot of guys picking each other up and supporting each other. We’re ready for Michigan.”
The Wolverines (2-1) beat UNLV 28-7 at home last Saturday.
Though disappointed with the outcome, Mangum said his team can learn from the bitter setback.
“It hurts. You never want to come out on the losing side. You do everything you can to win," he said. "When it doesn’t happen, it definitely hurts. But we can’t keep our heads down. We’ve got to keep our heads up and go on to the next week. UCLA was a very good team, and they came out on top. They deserve the credit. Now it’s up to us to bounce back and keep our heads up and stay positive so we can bounce back next week.”
With its first defeat of the season, BYU (2-1) dropped out of the coaches’ poll but remained in The Associated Press Top 25 poll, tied at No. 22 with Wisconsin.
UCLA (3-0) moved up one spot to No. 9.
BYU’s defense surrendered 296 yards rushing to UCLA, including 219 yards to running back Paul Perkins. It also intercepted Bruin freshman quarterback Josh Rosen three times, all in the first half.
Offensively, the Cougars feel they left some points on the field at the Rose Bowl.
“We have things we need to improve on. We had three field goals,” Juergens said. “(Placekicker) Trevor (Samson) played an amazing game, and he was really consistent. But if we can turn those field goals into touchdowns, this game isn’t close. That’s one thing we need to work on — finishing those drives with touchdowns instead of field goals.”
Juergens added the UCLA loss "gives us motivation. We know we need to fight for four quarters and not take any drives off and we’ll be alright.”
Anae emphasized that the offense is breaking in a freshman quarterback and is a work in progress.
“The more we get everybody together without hesitation here or there, we’ll turn into an offensive machine,” Anae said. “Right now, we’re just starting down that road.”
Mangum, who made his first road start Saturday, completed 30-of-47 passes for 244 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. He said that the offense has “a lot of things to work on.”
Mangum added that while the Cougars lost the game, they haven’t lost their confidence.
“It’s still the same. We’re obviously bummed that we lost. That’s a given. But we can be confident in knowing that we fought hard," he said. "We were that close. There’s no need to lose confidence. We’ve just got to bounce back and focus on Michigan now. We’ll get better from this. We’ll learn from it. This doesn’t hurt our confidence. If anything, it builds it, knowing that we can do some big things as a team.”
While the dream of an undefeated season ended in Pasadena, California, Juergens said there’s still plenty to play for.
“Just because we’re not undefeated doesn’t mean this is a bad season. It’s one loss. We have the entire season ahead of us," he said. "We hope that BYU Nation continues to have our back and supports us because we’re going to see special things. Just because we lost one game it doesn’t mean the season’s over. We’re going to fight back. We really have something to prove.”
And there's another shot at a prestigious program awaiting this weekend.
“On to Michigan, on to the Big House,” Mangum said. “It’s a big opportunity. We like the challenge.”