It’s a Family Thing for UCLA

TUCSON —  And the band played on.

The longest winning streak in UCLA football history continued Saturday night, and so did the rest of the music. Lacking bodies but loaded on the depth chart in the pride department, the Bruins claimed a huge victory over Arizona, then were met by the school band en route to the locker room in one cramped corner of Arizona Stadium, exiting from view to a rendition of “Movin’ On Up.”

George and Wheezy would have been proud. The 14th consecutive victory, and fourth in a row this season, came with a dominating fourth quarter and a prediction disguised as a serenade. Down went the Wildcats and up went the Bruins.

Sunday, making official what had become apparent by about 11 o’clock the night before, UCLA moved from No. 3 to No. 2 in the rankings--its highest standing since 1988--thanks to the emotion-driven 52-28 victory over Arizona before 58,738 and Nebraska’s loss at Texas A&M.; Oregon, the opponent Saturday at the Rose Bowl, is No. 11.

Not to be overlooked is how the weekend started, the events that transpired about 24 hours before Keith Brown, playing about 90 minutes from his native Phoenix, rushed for two touchdowns and backup DeShaun Foster gained 118 yards in 20 carries. The regular scheduled Friday night team meeting that was so intense it may eventually be remembered as one of the defining moments of the season.

“Guys were crying,” Coach Bob Toledo said. “I was crying. It was very emotional.”

“Really,” guard Andy Meyers said, “what it was was coming together as a family.”

The Bruins who gathered at the team hotel were aware of the skeptics who questioned their spot in the rankings and their chances against Arizona at a time when many players were battling injury and Jermaine Lewis was lost to suspension--and as they acknowledged that most of the points had foundation. So they talked it out.

Toledo called the defensive linemen up to talk about what they want from the season, about how the Bruins must come together amid the distractions. By the end of the night, most everyone had spoken. Even freshmen.

By about 11:15 the next night, moments after the victory that gave UCLA the longest active winning streak in the nation, Ryan Roques was standing near midfield and removing the safety belt so he could step off the roller coaster.

“This was a really big game for us,” he said. “We knew this game would be like the turning point of the season. If we lose it, we’d be down. If we win it, we knew we’d be in the driver’s seat. It’s a real emotional victory, especially to come out and win by this much.

“Emotionally, it just takes us to another level. We bonded so much at the team meeting. I’ve never been closer to a college team than I was [Friday] night.”

Said center Shawn Stuart: “We felt challenged as a team and as a family. And if there’s one thing you can say about us, it’s that we’re a close team and a close family.”

And then there’s the other thing you can say:

They’re the team to beat in the Pacific 10 Conference more than ever.

Clearing the Arizona hurdle--by scoring 28 unanswered points over the final 15:20 to turn a 28-24 deficit into a run-away victory--was critical because it might be the toughest circumstances the Bruins (4-0 overall and 2-0 in the conference) face all season.

Now, Lewis may have his suspension lifted as soon as today. The freshmen defensive linemen, Ken Kocher and Anthony Fletcher, are making a greater impact as playing time increases. And among what figures to be the three toughest games of the season, only Washington is away from the Rose Bowl.

Oregon appears poised to present a serious challenge, to scoreboard operators and defenses, but the Ducks begin a stretch of at UCLA, home to USC, at Arizona and home to Washington. Cal, the only other team undefeated in conference play, heads into a Washington-UCLA back-to-back, at least getting the Bruins in Berkeley.

UCLA, meanwhile, has six remaining games, with the greatest chances for trouble this week, at Seattle and against USC. Rather, it has six remaining games scheduled. The uncertainty over a trip to Miami looms larger than ever because of the potential impact on the national championship race, but it also appears unlikely to be resolved by today, the informal deadline Bruin Athletic Director Pete Dalis had set, because his Miami counterpart is dealing with a pressing family matter. The two have been unable to talk at length.