UCLA was a trendy preseason pick to make it into the first-ever College Football Playoff.
At this rate, however, the Bruins will be lucky to play for the Pac-12 South title later this year.
In what was almost the upset of Week 9, UCLA gave up 17 points in the fourth quarter on the road at Colorado but were saved by quarterback Brett Hundley in double overtime to escape Boulder with a 40-37 win.
Hundley entered the day leading the country in passing percentage but was relatively mediocre through the air against a defense that allowed seven touchdown passes the week prior. He finished the day 24-for-39, with 200 yards passing and a single touchdown.
It was Hundley's legs that helped salvage a win for the Bruins, however. He finished second on the team in rushing with 110 yards and covered the entire distance in the final overtime frame on his way to a touchdown on the ground to seal the victory. It wasn't a pretty outing for the potential early-round draft pick, but at least he walked away a winner.
Tailback Paul Perkins gave UCLA hope that it would end up blowing out Colorado early on when he took his first carry 92 yards to pay dirt on the longest play from scrimmage of the season for the offense. He finished the afternoon with 180 yards and two scores as one of the few bright spots in the effort for the Bruins.
The team's notably iffy offensive line was once again a massive issue for UCLA, but additional injuries might have been a factor.
Sophomore quarterback Sefo Liufau led Colorado to 500 yards of total offense and an impressive fourth-quarter comeback only to fall short in double overtime for the second time this season. Though he threw two interceptions and looked rattled early, the young signal-caller came through in the second half of yet another moral victory for the Buffs.
Star receiver Nelson Spruce was held mostly in check by the UCLA secondary, recording just six catches for 63 yards. Fellow wideout Bryce Bobo did what he could to pick up the slack in one-on-one matchups, recording four catches for 54 yards and two touchdowns.
The win did allow UCLA to become bowl-eligible, but, with division-leading Arizona coming to the Rose Bowl next week, that's not something the team is likely to celebrate on the plane ride back to Los Angeles. Instead, Jim Mora and company might want to focus on fixing the host of issues that have plagued the Bruins all season long.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
