PASADENA, Calif. - UCLA finally got to be the bully. So what if it did it against the conference dweeb.
The Bruins took out more than a month's worth of frustration against Washington State on Saturday night.
They punished the kittenish Cougars, 28-3, in front of a gathering of 65,469 at the Rose Bowl.
The real action might have been a little south of here along the 110 freeway - at Dodger Stadium and the Coliseum - but Pasadena must have felt like the center of the universe to a UCLA team desperate for good news.
It got it by the boatload, with nary a scare from a team that doesn't look capable of spooking a Chihuahua.
"We definitely made some improvements," quarterback Kevin Craft said. "I know everyone is excited about the win, but we're not completely satisfied."
The Bruins snapped their three-game losing streak to improve to 2-3 (1-1 in the Pac-10). Washington State (1-5) has lost all three of its Pac-10 games and none of them have been competitive.
A loss for UCLA would have practically doomed its hopes of playing in a bowl game at the end of Coach Rick Neuheisel's first year. It also would have been an embarrassment the Bruins would have had difficulty living down.
That never seemed like a possibility, at least once a dreadful first quarter ended. UCLA's offense had an efficient, workmanlike evening, which should not be taken for a revival of the powder-blue glory days.
Washington State had allowed 129 points in its first two Pac-10 games, home losses to Oregon and Cal.
Its defense still had rug burns from being run over by other teams' tailbacks.
The Bruins went a different route, nickel-and-diming the Cougars with short pass plays. Quarterback Kevin Craft had his finest game as a Bruin, completing 23 of his 36 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns.
The Bruins managed just 100 rushing yards, less than half the average of Washington State's previous opponents.
