Minnesota's second-half comeback keeps UCLA winless in the Big Ten

If there was ever a time for UCLA to turn its season around, it would be against Minnesota in the Rose Bowl.

Unfortunately for the Bruins, the return of Ethan Garbers, who missed last week's game against Penn State with an injury, wasn't enough to stop their downward spiral.

In a hard-fought contest, UCLA failed to earn its first Big Ten Conference win in school history, losing 21-17 to Minnesota on its home court Saturday night.

Although the Bruins took a 17-14 lead in the fourth quarter on Garbers' 42-yard connection with J.Michael Sturdivant, they were unable to stave off a Minnesota surge.

The UCLA defense got a stop, but the Bruins' offense was forced to punt quickly and the Golden Gophers scored a touchdown with 27 seconds left. Garbers' final pass was intercepted as time expired to seal UCLA's fifth straight loss.

UCLA coach DeShaun Foster said he had to figure out how to teach his players to play a complete game and avoid late mistakes that have plagued the Bruins.

“We just have to find ways not to shoot ourselves in the foot,” he said. “…This is a terrible loss. This will hurt a little.”

The result was particularly frustrating for UCLA after a strong first half.

Garbers had an outstanding performance on the first drive – he went 4-of-4 passing for 59 yards and led the Bruins to the goal line before Keegan Jones capped the drive with a one-yard touchdown run.

While the Bruins' defense was successful in the first half, the offense struggled early. After the first quarter, the team was ineffective on third down, giving up sacks and Garbers throwing interceptions that limited the Bruins' lead to 10-0 at halftime.

UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers looks to pass in the first half on Saturday in the Rose Bowl.

(Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

In the second half, Minnesota struck with two consecutive shots on goal. A costly pass interference call put the Gophers in the UCLA red zone and on third down, the Bruins allowed a 12-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Elijah Spencer, narrowing the gap.

One of Garbers' second-half interceptions sent Minnesota deep into Bruins territory.

An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty pushed the Gophers into the red zone and another pass interference call in the end zone put Minnesota at the goal line. Darius Taylor then ran in for a touchdown, giving the Golden Gophers a 14-10 lead before the Bruins rallied again in the fourth quarter.

UCLA got the ball at its 11-yard line with 12:38 left in the fourth quarter and Garbers dodged the pressure while steering the team toward the end zone.

Garbers completed passes to TJ Harden and Logan Loya before finding Sturdivant for a 14-yard reception. With 6:54 left, Garbers hit Sturdivant for the 42-yard catch that briefly gave the Bruins the lead.

Sturdivant, a redshirt junior, finished the game with six receptions for 94 yards and the touchdown. Garbers completed 25 of 36 passes for 293 yards, with one touchdown and three interceptions.

Ultimately, the Bruins couldn't keep up with Minnesota's ball movement and efficient tact management, including Golden Gophers coach PJ Fleck calling three timeouts during UCLA's second-to-last drive to give his team enough time to score the game-winning touchdown .