UCLA QB Ty Dieffenbach rolls in storybook first start, keeps Bruins unbeaten

Five years ago, Ty Dieffenbach was a local kid in the stands at the Rose Bowl, watching the “California Love” light show UCLA stages before the fourth quarter.

On Saturday, he was on the field looking around at the same light show, savoring his unlikely rise to prominence for the Bruins.

“It was special,” Dieffenbach said.

Storybook special.

In the kind of performance that will go down in UCLA lore, the onetime backup quarterback put on a dazzling display to keep UCLA’s unbeaten season rolling.

Dieffenbach’s strong showing during the No. 12 Bruins’ 17-7 victory over Wisconsin also prompted a question: Has his team upgraded at its most important position?

Making the right reads, throwing with precision and continually eluding pressure, Dieffenbach helped his team prevail on a night that the Badgers bottled up the run and dared the Cal Poly transfer to beat them in his first start with the Bruins.

The Calabasas Kid did exactly that.

“Like, what a job,” UCLA coach Bob Chesney said after Dieffenbach made one big play after another. “To stand in there and have the confidence to do what he did; the third-down throws that he was able to make and see the game clean as can be, get us in the right calls, the right protections, it was a really reassuring day for us with him and him I’m sure with himself and him with his teammates.”

While it might sound like an insult to suggest that a backup could be better than veteran starter Nico Iamaleava, Dieffenbach’s performance indicated that, at the very least, his team should be in good hands the rest of the season.

After replacing the injured Iamaleava midgame last week, Dieffenbach starred from the opening drive Saturday.

Dieffenbach finished the game completing 22 of 33 passes for 264 yards with no touchdowns and one end-of-the-half interception, helping the Bruins (6-0 overall, 4-0 Big Ten) become bowl eligible at the season’s midpoint.

Of course, they have far bigger aspirations than that now that they’re the only remaining undefeated team in either the Big Ten or the SEC.

Dieffenbach could lead UCLA to the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history given the kinds of plays he made against the Badgers (4-2, 2-1).

“You just watch him out there,” Chesney said, “how quick he got rid of it, how confidently he got rid of it and his belief in himself and his receivers certainly stood out.”

Facing a third-and-5 in his own territory early in the fourth quarter, Dieffenbach found wide receiver Semaj Morgan streaking over the middle for a 34-yard gain. The Bruins eventually scored on Anthony Woods’ 3-yard run to surge into a 17-7 lead.

That was one of few successful runs for UCLA on a night it was held to a season-low 120 yards on the ground.

But the Bruins’ defense showed up in a big way for a third consecutive game. Highlights included a fourth-down stop midway through the fourth quarter that gave them the ball back with 8:10 left in the game.

The defense held Wisconsin to one touchdown and only 66 passing yards on a day it did not force a turnover for the first time this season.

Showing no jitters, Dieffenbach completed his first five passes, including a 29-yarder to Landon Ellis along the sideline. He exhibited poise in the pocket and continually eluded pressure, using a 360-degree spin move to break away from one defender early in the game.

With Wisconsin clogging the running lanes and daring Dieffenbach to pass, he happily complied while helping the Bruins convert seven of their first eight third-down opportunities. UCLA finished the game converting 13 of 20 chances on third down.

“We knew they were going to play a lot of man on third down,” Dieffenbach said, “which is really good for us for our guys to go out there and make a play, and that’s what happened tonight.”

On third and five at the Wisconsin 22-yard line midway through the second quarter, Dieffenbach connected with tight end Jalen Saint Paul on a 21-yard reception. Operating out of the wildcat on the next play, running back Wayne Knight took the snap, waited a beat for an opening and plowed into the end zone to put the Bruins up 10-0.

But the big story was the quarterback who had multiple sections packed with fans from his hometown, the possibilities endless for someone who has already fulfilled a fantasy.

“Obviously growing up here, you want to go play for UCLA – you don’t want to play for USC where I’m from, so that was a big thing for me,” Dieffenbach said. “But it’s crazy, man, just being here at UCLA, being 30 minutes from home, seeing my family all the time, it’s a dream come true.”