BYU vs. UCLA: Score, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

There would be no Tanner Mangum miracle for No. 19 BYU on Saturday night in the Rose Bowl, as the No. 10 UCLA Bruins survived true freshman quarterback Josh Rosen's not-ready-for-prime-time performance to escape with a 24-23 home win over the Cougars.

After two excellent displays to start the season, Rosen struggled mightily against an experienced Cougars defense. He completed 11 of 26 passes for 103 yards, one score and three interceptions, with all of those turnovers coming in a nightmare first half.

CBS Sports' Doug Gottlieb reminded everyone of Rosen's youth compared to many of his opponents during the game: 

"

Josh Rosen is playing against guys old enough to be his dad #BYUvsUCLA

— Doug Gottlieb (@GottliebShow) September 20, 2015"

As a result, UCLA trailed BYU for much of the contest, only taking the 24-23 lead on a three-yard Nate Starks run with just over three minutes left in the game. 

After boosting BYU to wins over Nebraska and Boise State with Hail Mary throws in the first two weeks of the season, the 22-year-old Mangum—like Rosen, a freshman—needed only to get his Cougars into field-goal position to win this one.

He took BYU into UCLA territory but made his one big mistake of the game in the final moments, throwing a pick directly to Bruins linebacker Myles Jack with 58 seconds left, which sealed the win for UCLA.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller praised Jack after the game:

Rosen came into the night with just one interception in his first two games, but he looked shaky from the start. Several throws were well off target, and his interceptions were largely the result of his trying to force passes into coverage when it would have been prudent for him to simply throw the ball away.

Danny Moloshok/Associated Press

Two-way BYU standout Harvey Langi intercepted two of those passes in the first half, with the first killing a UCLA drive that had taken the Bruins just nine yards from paydirt. BYUtv's David Nixon compared Langi—a terrorizing force on defense all game long—to UCLA's own dual-threat player:

"

Myles Jack has nothing on Harvey Langi.

— David Nixon (@D_Nixon) September 20, 2015"

UCLA couldn't have completed the comeback without Paul Perkins, who carried the ball 26 times for 219 yards and one score. Other highlights included a pair of 44-yard runs in the first quarter. Jack Wang of the Los Angeles Daily News noted Perkins picked up career highs early in the final frame: 

Starks added another 81 yards on seven carries, with the vast majority of that line coming on the go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter.

BYU came into the game with the NCAA's 113th-ranked rushing offense but got a standout performance from Adam Hine, who racked up 149 yards rushing and one score on 23 carries.

Mangum ended up with 244 yards passing, one touchdown and one pick, a solid display considering he faced considerable pressure from UCLA's defense for much of the contest. UCLA coach Jim Mora noted his strengths prior to the game.

"He makes plays down the field," he said, according to the Los Angeles Times' Chris Foster. "He's got kind of those Johnny Manziel qualities. He runs around and slings it and they come up with it."

Danny Moloshok/Associated Press

Outside linebacker Deon Hollins was particularly good for UCLA, sacking Mangum once and forcing him into hurried throws several times.

The Bruins' effort on defense was impressive since they lost a key player on BYU's first drive of the game. Inside linebacker and leading tackler Kenny Young drew a 15-yard targeting penalty for leading his shoulder into a grounded Mangum and by rule was subsequently ejected from the game.

Although the hit looked fairly benign, Eric Sondheimer of the Los Angeles Times still felt it was the right call:

BYU scored on that first possession on a seven-yard run from Hine but then struggled to move the ball against an attacking Bruins defense, punting on its next four possessions.

UCLA picked up a field goal early in the second quarter to cut the deficit to four. Perkins' slick running put the Bruins in position to succeed on multiple drives in the first half, but Rosen's turnovers squandered those efforts.

Rosen completed just five of 15 passes for 22 yards in the first half, and BYU headed into the locker room with a 10-3 lead. ESPN 960's Benjamin Criddle tallied Langi's myriad efforts up to that point: 

UCLA went to Perkins early and often in the second half, including five straight handoffs en route to his lone touchdown, which tied the game at 10 apiece.

Mangum found a rhythm in the second half, and with help from some standout runs from Hine, led BYU to a 20-10 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. Here is his touchdown pass, made possible by a fine double move from senior wideout Mitch Mathews, via FS1:

After a couple of big runs from Perkins put UCLA in scoring position, Rosen uncorked his best pass of the game, a 19-yard dime to Jordan Payton in the corner of the end zone to cut the Cougars' lead to 20-17. FS1 provided the highlight: 

BYU would add another field goal, but UCLA would get the last laugh thanks to Stark and an attacking, opportunistic defense.

Danny Moloshok/Associated Press

UCLA moves to 3-0 on the year, while BYU drops to 2-1. After a stellar start from Rosen, the Bruins may now have to reassess their expectations of the young signal-caller. With a deep running back stable that includes Perkins, Starks and freshman Soso Jamabo, UCLA can afford to move toward a more run-centric attack.

Still, Rosen can't afford to have performances like the one he had on Saturday with UCLA's nonconference schedule over and a tough slate coming up against Arizona, Arizona State and Stanford.

Aside from the late interception, Mangum's poise was remarkable in the game. BYU absolutely looks the part of a Top 25 team and should have little trouble cobbling together a winning season. The Cougars' next test comes against the Jim Harbaugh-coached Michigan Wolverines on September 26.