1999: Wisconsin, 38 vs. UCLA, 31

It’s often said that the best defense is a good offense, and it’s also often said that the best offense is a good defense. In fact, writers so routinely quote the cliché liberally and without regard for accuracy, no one’s really sure what’s correct anymore. In the 1999 Rose Bowl Game, Wisconsin freshman cornerback Jamar Fletcher made a pretty strong statement for the latter.

It was the kind of game that made statisticians and the guy at the newspaper desk taking the box score shudder. Wisconsin and UCLA combined for 69 points and a Rose Bowl Game-record 1,035 yards; Wisconsin All-American Ron Dayne rushed for 246 yards, one shy of the Rose Bowl Game record, and had a record-tying four touchdowns; to counter, UCLA All-American Cade McNown passed for two touchdowns on 340 yards, the fourth-best passing day in Rose Bowl Game history; and the Bruins’ 538 yards of total offense set a new mark for the most in Rose Bowl Game history.

And ultimately, it was a defensive touchdown that won the game for the Badgers, 38-31.

The first score of the game was a 54-yard run from Dayne, followed by a McNown touchdown pass, putting the score at 7-7 at the end of the opening quarter. Then another Dayne run in the second from 7 yards out, followed by two UCLA touchdown passes – one from McNown, one from Freddie Mitchell. Another Dayne touchdown run and a Matt Davenport field goal made it 24-21 at half – the 45 combined points in the first half tied the Rose Bowl Game record.

In the second half, Dayne scored his fourth rushing touchdown from 22 yards, and UCLA’s Jermaine Lewis answered with one of his own.

In the fourth quarter, with UCLA at third and nine from its own 26-yard line, McNown threw from the shotgun to DeShaun Foster. But it never reached Foster. Fletcher stepped in, picked it off and went 46 yards down a euphoric Wisconsin sideline for the game-winning score.

However, despite Fletcher’s heroics, all praise went to Player of the Game Dayne as the Badgers hopped on the sizeable back’s shoulders for a Rose Bowl Game -record tying 24 of their 38 points.

“If you take away No. 33 (Dayne), we would have won the game,” said UCLA offensive tackle Kris Farris. “He is great, and he is going to be great for years to come. He is the best running back in the nation.”

“He is what we expected,” said UCLA Head Coach Bob Toledo. “He had an excellent game, scored a lot of touchdowns. He’s hard to bring down, and he’s a great back. There’s no question about it. My hat’s off to him and the coaching staff for giving him the ball like they did.”

Attendance
93,872

Weather
Clear; 74 degrees

Scoring
First Quarter
Wis – Dayne, 54-yard run (Davenport kick good)
UCLA – Lewis, 38-yard pass from McNown (Sailer kick good)

Second Quarter
Wis – Dayne, 7-yard run (Davenport kick good)
UCLA – P rice, 61-yard pass from Mitchell (Sailer kick good)
UCLA – Farmer, 41-yard pass from McNown (Sailer kick good)
Wis – Dayne, 10-yard run (Davenport kick good)
Wis – Davenport, 40-yard field goal

Third Quarter
Wis – Dayne, 22-yard run (Davenport kick good)
UCLA – Lewis, 10-yard run (Sailer kick good)

Fourth Quarter
Wis – Fletcher, 46-yard interception return (Davenport kick good)
UCLA – Sailer, 30-yard field goal

Coaches
Wisconsin: Barry Alvarez
UCLA: Bob Toledo

Fun Fact
In the 1999 Rose Bowl Game, Wisconsin junior running back Ron Dayne, the game’s Most Valuable Player, rushed for 246 yards, one short of the Rose Bowl Game record set by USC’s Charles White in 1980.

Individual Stats
Rushing
Wis: Dayne 27-246; Samuel 13-65; Faulkner 8-32
UCLA: Lewis 10-50; Foster 10-38; McNown 12-15; Farmer 1-8; Price 2-6; Brown 3-3

Passing
Wis: Samuel 9-17-154
UCLA: McNown 19-34-340; Mitchell 1-1-61; Sailer 1-1-17

Receiving
Wis: Davis 3-57; Sigmund 2-38; Martin 2-33; Chambers 2-26
UCLA: Farmer 7-142; Price 3-102; Melsby 3-66; Lewis 2-37; Poli-Dixon 2-15; Grieb 1-20; Abdul Azziz 1-17; Foster 1-13; Neufeld 1-6

Punting
Wis: Stemke 5-206
UCLA: Sailer 3-141