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1972 UCLA Bruins football team

The 1972 UCLA Bruins football team represented University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the 1972 NCAA University Division football season. Members of the Pacific-8 Conference, the Bruins were led by second-year head coach Pepper Rodgers and played their home games at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

1972 UCLA Bruins football
ConferencePacific-8 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. T–17
APNo. 15
Record8–3 (5–2 Pac-8)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorHomer Smith (1st season)
Offensive schemeWishbone
Home stadiumLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Seasons
← 1971
1973 →
1972 Pacific-8 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 USC $ 7 – 0 – 0 12 – 0 – 0
No. 15 UCLA 5 – 2 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
No. 19 Washington State 4 – 3 – 0 7 – 4 – 0
Washington 4 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 0
California 3 – 4 – 0 3 – 8 – 0
Oregon 2 – 5 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Stanford 2 – 5 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Oregon State 1 – 6 – 0 2 – 9 – 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The new quarterback this season was Mark Harmon, a junior college transfer and son of Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon.[1][2] In his first game for the Bruins, Harmon led the wishbone offense and gained a late night upset of top-ranked Nebraska at the Coliseum. An 18-point underdog, UCLA was never behind; Nebraska had five turnovers but fought back to tie the score before halftime at ten and again early in the fourth quarter at seventeen. In their final drive, Harmon drove UCLA into field goal range and Efrén Herrera made a 29-yarder in the final half minute for the 20–17 win.[1][2] It halted the two-time defending national champion Huskers' unbeaten streak at 32 games and vaulted the previously unranked Bruins (2–7–1 in 1971) to eighth in the AP Poll, as Nebraska slid to tenth.[3]

Two weeks later, the Bruins lost at home to Michigan, but then won six straight and improved to 8–1 overall. An upset loss to Washington at Husky Stadium in Seattle and an expected one to top-ranked rival USC in the Coliseum ended UCLA's season at 8–3.[4][5] The Pac-8 runner-up at 5–2, they were ranked fifteenth in the final AP poll;[6] the conference did not allow a second bowl team until the 1975 season.

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 9No. 1 Nebraska*
W 20–1767,702[1][2]
September 16at Pittsburgh*No. 8
W 38–2824,315[7]
September 23No. 12 Michigan*No. 6
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
L 9–2657,129[8]
September 29OregonNo. 15
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 65–2030,309[9][10]
October 7Arizona*No. 14
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 42–3127,321[11]
October 14at Oregon StateNo. 14
W 37–723,109[12]
October 21at CaliforniaNo. 11
W 49–1333,000[13]
October 28Washington StateNo. 9
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 35–2029,950[14]
November 4StanfordNo. 8
  • Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
  • Los Angeles, CA
W 28–2347,276[15]
November 11at WashingtonNo. 8
L 21–3059,500[16]
November 18vs. No. 1 USCNo. 14
L 7–2459,151[4]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

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1972 UCLA Bruins football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
G 65 Brian Goodman Sr
QB 7 Mark Harmon Jr
WR 82 Brad Lyman Sr
RB 32 James McAlister Jr
QB 15 John Sciarra Fr
RB 21 Rob Scribner Sr
OT 74 Bruce Walton Sr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB 20 Jimmy Allen Jr
FS 24 Jim Bright Jr
DB 29 Alan Ellis Sr
DB 22 Mike Fryer Jr
DE 92 Fred McNeill Jr
DE 90 Cal Peterson Jr
DT 66 Bill Sandifer Jr
LB 8 Jack Jorgensen So
LB 56 Terry Tautolo Fr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P 44 Bruce Barnes So
K 1 Efrén Herrera Jr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

Awards and honors

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  • All-Conference First Team: Bruce Barnes (P), Allan Ellis (DB), Kermit Johnson (RB), Steve Klosterman (OG), James McAlister (RB), Fred McNeill (DE), Bruce Walton (OT)[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Jenkins, Dan (September 18, 1972). "Young Harmon makes his mark". Sports Illustrated. p. 32.
  2. ^ a b c "Bruins upend Cornhuskers on Herrera's field goal, 20-17". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. September 10, 1972. p. 3C.
  3. ^ "USC vaults into lead; UCLA 8th". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. September 10, 1972. p. 1C.
  4. ^ a b "Trojans roll past Bruins, 24-7". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 19, 1972. p. 5B.
  5. ^ 2013 UCLA Football Media Guide, UCLA, 2013
  6. ^ Nissenson, Herschel (January 3, 1973). "It's official: Trojans No. 1 grid team". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). Associated Press. p. 48.
  7. ^ "Bruins use strong start to down Pitt, 38-28". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). New York Times news service. September 17, 1972. p. 1B.
  8. ^ "Michigan grinds out victory over Bruins". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. September 24, 1972. p. 2B.
  9. ^ Cawood, Neil (September 30, 1972). "Bruins roll past defenseless Webfoots, 65-20". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). p. 1B.
  10. ^ "UCLA swamps Ducks". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 30, 1972. p. 14.
  11. ^ "UCLA explodes for 2 late TDs to whip Arizona 42–31". The Tacoma News Tribune. October 8, 1972. Retrieved October 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "It's 37-7 for Bruins". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. October 15, 1972. p. 2, sports.
  13. ^ "Johnson paces Bruins, 49-13". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 22, 1972. p. 4C.
  14. ^ "Bruins stay perfect in Pacific-8 chase". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. October 29, 1972. p. 4C.
  15. ^ "Bruins rally, trip Stanford". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 5, 1972. p. 5D.
  16. ^ "Huskies surprise UCLA". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 12, 1972. p. 2C.
  17. ^ 1975 UCLA Media Guide, UCLA Athletic News Bureau, 1975
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