LOS ANGELES_Stanford quarterback Ryan Burns lofted a pass into the air, toward the corner of the end zone, and it felt like more than a game hung in the balance.
The Cardinal's nearly decade-long mastery of UCLA was suddenly on wobbly footing. Bruins Coach Jim Mora appeared to be closing in on what would be the signature victory of his five seasons on the job.
For more than 59 minutes Saturday at the Rose Bowl, UCLA's defense had been stout, holding the Cardinal to a trio of field goals to preserve a lead. Then came the outcome all too familiar for the Bruins.
Stanford receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside leaped to snag the ball with both hands and planted his right foot in the end zone before tumbling out of bounds. UCLA cornerback Nate Meadors signaled incomplete with his arms, but his opinion didn't count.
The eight-yard touchdown catch by Arcega-Whiteside's with 24 seconds left lifted seventh-ranked Stanford ultimately to a 22-13 victory that extended the Cardinal's winning streak to nine games over the Bruins.
As if the late score couldn't provide a sufficiently cruel ending for UCLA (2-2 overall, 0-1 Pac-12 Conference ), the Cardinal (3-0, 2-0) waylaid Bruins quarterback Josh Rosen on the game's final play. Rosen fumbled and Stanford defensive end Solomon Thomas scooped up the ball and raced 42 yards for a touchdown.
While jubilant Cardinal players mobbed each other in front of their cheering section, Rosen sat crouched in dejection.
"It stinks when you lose like that and you played so courageously on defense," said Mora, who dropped to 0-6 against the Cardinal.
UCLA held All-American running back Christian McCaffrey to 165 total yards and no touchdowns and it still wasn't enough.
There were plenty of regrets for the Bruins. Receiver Ishmael Adams dropped a catch that would have provided a first down, turning his head to look at his surroundings before the ball arrived. Defensive back Marcus Rios gave Stanford 15 bonus yards on its final scoring drive when he tried to sidestep McCaffrey after McCaffrey had signaled for a fair catch but made contact.
Rosen completed 18 of 27 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown, but the Bruins couldn't generate enough first downs while holding a 13-9 lead in the final minutes.
UCLA's running game couldn't get the push it needed, gaining only 77 yards and 2.3 yards per carry.
Stanford needed a touchdown to win after J.J. Molson's 35-yard field goal had given the Bruins a 13-9 lead with 6:32 left in the game. The Cardinal's points to that point had all come on Conrad Ukropina field goals.
A UCLA drive late in the third quarter with the Bruins holding a 10-6 lead was scuttled by Adams' drop. Rosen was then sacked by defensive tackle Harrison Phillips on fourth down for a nine-yard loss.
UCLA's 10-3 halftime lead came largely as the result of the two turnovers forced by its defense. Linebacker Kenny Young snagged an interception and safety Tahan Goodman waylaid Stanford receiver Francis Owusu with a helmet-to-helmet hit that did not draw a targeting penalty but forced a fumble recovered by UCLA's Adarius Pickett.
The Bruins eventually reached the Cardinal eight-yard line after Pickett's recovery before Rosen's third-down pass intended for Caleb Wilson was broken up when cornerback Obi Eboh appeared to make early contact with Wilson, prompting Rosen to signal for a pass-interference penalty that never came. Molson then had to kick a 27-yard field goal that put UCLA ahead, 10-3.
There was a redemption thread running through the first quarter for the Bruins.
Young held McCaffrey when McCaffrey was lined up as a slot receiver on third down, wiping out a sack by defensive end Deon Hollins and giving Stanford a first down. A couple of plays later, Young grabbed a Burns pass and returned it 40 yards to give the Bruins the ball at the Cardinal's 26.
Rosen then failed to see tight end Nate Iese streaking open toward the end zone, instead completing a short pass to Soso Jamabo. But later in the drive, on third and five, Rosen found Iese over the middle for a 10-yard touchdown pass that gave UCLA a 7-3 lead.
