Whose stock increased the most on Saturday? Easy question! Answer: Nico Iamaleava, the belittled UCLA (and former Tennessee QB). Portrayed as a greedy and overly entitled brat, Iamaleava did the seemingly impossible: Leading woebegone UCLA to a shocking upset over Penn State. The hapless Bruins were 24 point dogs to a Penn State squad many had tabbed as the pre-season favorite to win the Natty.
UCLA had not held a lead all year – even more remarkable because 2 Mountain West teams ( UNLV and New Mexico) and Northwestern were among those who had punked the Westwood boys. So, the shock when UCLA raced off to a 27-7 lead over the Nittany Lions was considerable. Did Iamaleava do it with “pretty boy” passing throws? No, not primarily. While he did throw 2 TD tosses, the Tennessee refugee showed considerable grit by running for 128 yards and 3 TDs.
Iamaleava had considerable help from the game plan. Jerry Neuheisel was newly tabbed as the new OC after Tino Sunseri’s firing earlier in the week. Neuheisel’s game plan was brilliant, aided by a successful onside kick after the Bruins’ first score. This was not the first time “off the bench” for Neuheisel to produce a memorable UCLA upset, as he was pressed into service as a Bruin QB in 2014 and engineered a memorable upset over Texas.
Penn State certainly contributed to this Nittany Lion debacle. Clearly, the heartbreaking Oregon double OT hangover had not been fully dealt with. Plus, the travel from State College to the West Coast is daunting as the nearest significant airport is 90 minutes away in Harrisburg. As brilliant as UCLA’s play calling was, Penn State’s was questionable. Only 8 rushing attempts for Kaytron Allen? Down 42-35, with a climactic 4th and 2, running Drew Allar on an option?
The outcome was stunning and provided major rehabilitation for Iamaleava. Still, perhaps not the biggest surprise on Saturday. That may have been tuning to a game at Wyoming on October 4, only to see a snow-filled field!