UCLA football shakes off horrid start to blow out Michigan State, remain unbeaten

UCLA showed up late to its own homecoming.But oh, what an entrance.After looking incredibly flat during the first quarter Saturday afternoon, the ninth-ranked Bruins did exactly what they were supposed to do.They forced turnovers, ran the ball relentlessly and completed a few big passes on the way to a 28-10 victory over Michigan State at the Rose Bowl.After spotting the Spartans an early touchdown, UCLA (7-0 overall, 5-0 Big Ten) rolled off 28 consecutive points in finally resembling the dominant team.The Bruins held Michigan State (2-6, 0-5) to 156 yards of offense, meaning the Spartans nearly managed as much yardage – 112 – on their two fumble recovery returns in the first half as they did running and throwing the ball.Meanwhile, UCLA’s offense piled up 443 yards after quarterback Ty Dieffenbach returned from a midgame injury scare after apparently getting stepped on.That was a good thing because it allowed wide receiver Brian Rowe Jr.to haul in a 63-yard touchdown pass from Dieffenbach after beating a defender and reaching out his arms to snag the ball.

Running backs Anthony Woods (112 yards rushing and a touchdown) and Wayne Knight (56 yards and a touchdown) did the rest of the heavy lifting for the Bruins offense.So, why the lifeless start?Maybe it was the fact that Michigan State was down to its third-string quarterback, a freshman who had never thrown a pass in college.Maybe it was that the Spartans were down to their fourth-string running back, after the third-stringer had to be helped off the field three plays into the game.Whatever the reason, UCLA looked like it was taking a win for granted in the game’s early going.By midway through the third quarter, with their lead up to three touchdowns, that was safe to do.What it meansUCLA avoided a loss that would have been catastrophic to its College Football Playoff hopes while improving to 7-0 for the first time since 2005.Coach Bob Chesney has also won 18 consecutive regular-season games going back to...