During the game on Saturday, where the No. 21 UCLA Bruins faced off against the No. 13 Oregon Ducks, the referees appeared to overlook a significant late hit on UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
The Bruins managed to secure a surprising 17-15 victory, but the play in question occurred when Oregon defenders Bear Alexander and Jerry Mixon brought Iamaleava to the ground.
As they tackled him, one camera angle highlighted Alexander throwing a rough shot to Iamaleava’s face after he was already down. The punch connected sharply, jolting Iamaleava’s helmet.
Mixon seemed to be attempting to punch the ball out but, thankfully, his hit missed. It looked less like a dirty tactic and more like an instinctive move to dislodge the football.
While perhaps Alexander intended to go for the ball, it certainly came off as a poorly timed aggressive act if that was the case. The play went unflagged, leading to viewer frustration, especially since commentators failed to address it during the numerous replays shown.
After the incident, Iamaleava appeared to recover well. However, he did leave the game with what seemed to be a leg injury in the second quarter, missing the rest of the game.
Regardless of being without their starting quarterback for half the match, UCLA pulled off an unexpected win against the Ducks, improving their record to 5-0 while leaving Oregon at 3-2.
