Bruins shine in Texas.

After opening the season with two consecutive losses, the UCLA Bruins have bounced back to collect two straight wins. And the victories have come against very good college football teams.

UCLA’s latest win came on the road against the No. 7-ranked Texas Longhorns by a dominating score of 34-12.

“It was a rear-end kicking. This one’s embarrassing for me,” Texas head coach Mack Brown tells reporters after the game. “As a head coach, I’m responsible for everybody in this program, from the trainers to the managers to the walk-ons, to the kids to the coaches – everybody.”

The Bruins are now 2-2, including 2-1 against Top 25 teams. The Longhorns fell to 3-1 for the season.

Westwood’s squad opened the season 0-2 after a season-opening loss to Kansas State and a conference defeat to Stanford. Things have quickly changed now, however.

“The first two weeks, we didn’t exist,” junior strong safety Tony Dye says. “This is our team right now. If we keep rolling like this, we’re going to win the [Pac-10].”

Bruin head coach Rick Neuheisel wants the team to identify the triumph as a potential climax of their early campaign.

“It’s too early in the season to pound our chest and say, ‘We’re here.’ But it will be a fun trip home,” he indicates. “I hope we look back on this and say this was our turning point.” UCLA’s solid ground game and their defense propelled them to the sweet victory.

Sophomore tailback Johnathan Franklin rushed for 118 yards on 19 carries while scoring once, as junior running back Derrick Coleman pounded 94 yards of his own with a touchdown. Moreover, sophomore quarterback Kevin Prince added 50 rushing yards and a score.

Defensively, the Bruins shined throughout the entire game. Junior linebacker Akeem Ayers forced a fumble and recorded an interception, while junior linebacker Sean Westgate registered 11 tackles, including seven solo.

Before the first quarter ended, Texas took a 3-0 edge. Nonetheless, the Bruins fired back with a Prince throw and freshman receiver Ricky Marvray catch for a 7-3 advantage at 11:07 in the second quarter. UCLA never surrendered their lead en route to their impressive display on the day.

The defense only allowed two field goals and a touchdown. UCLA squares off against PAC-10 foe Washington State at the Rose Bowl on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 12:30 p.m.

Trojans blaze through Washington.

A week after only winning by 11 points in Minnesota, the Trojans came out ready to fire against the Washington State Cougars on the road. USC captured a crushing victory by a score of 50-16 to move to 4-0 overall on the year, which includes a 1-0 conference record after beating this conference rival.

“Our goal was to be 4-0, be healthy and not worry about the scores,” USC head coach Lane Kiffin says.

A first-year head coach at USC, Kiffin has been pushing the Trojans to play at their best week after week, and this time it showed enormously on the field.

“This is the closest we have played to a complete game,” Kiffin claims. “If you take out the three first half turnovers, it was a complete game.”

Offensively, all who played excelled, beginning with sophomore quarterback Matt Barkley’s 290 passing yards and three touchdowns. Barkley completed 16 of 25 attempts before backup senior Mitch Mustain entered the affair.

Barkley also threw two interceptions, and he was not pleased.

“I’m happy with how we did as an offense, but those picks definitely tarnish what happened throughout the game.”

Five running backs saw action, but senior Allen Bradford led the unit in rushing with 84 yards. Freshman Dillon Baxter contributed 75 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. Both on the receiving and running end, senior fullback Stanley Havili was on fire. Havili caught five receptions for a total of 107 yards and a touchdown, while collecting 80 yards on the ground with a TD, too.

“We had a complete game for the first time this season,” Havili remarks. “It feels really good to touch the ball.”

The No. 18 Trojans’ next opponent is at home at the Los Angeles Coliseum Saturday, Oct. 2, entertaining the Washington Huskies at 5 p.m.