1987 UCLA Bruins football team

1987 UCLA Bruins football
1987 UCLA Bruins football
Pac-10 co-champion; Aloha Bowl champion
Aloha Bowl, W 20–16 vs. Florida
Conference	Pacific-10 Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 11
AP	No. 9
Record	10–2 (7–1 Pac-10)
Head coach	Terry Donahue (12th season);
Offensive coordinator	Steve Axman (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinators	Bob Field (6th season); Tom Hayes (6th season);
Home stadium	Rose Bowl

1987 Pacific-10 Conference football standings
	Conf.					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 9 +	7	–	1	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
No. 18 USC +	7	–	1	–	0	8	–	4	–	0
Washington	4	–	3	–	1	7	–	4	–	1
No. 20 Arizona State	3	–	3	–	1	7	–	4	–	1
Oregon	4	–	4	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Stanford	4	–	4	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
Arizona	2	–	3	–	3	4	–	4	–	3
California	2	–	3	–	2	3	–	6	–	2
Washington State	1	–	5	–	1	3	–	7	–	1
Oregon State	0	–	7	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1987 UCLA Bruins football team was an American football team that represented the University of California, Los Angeles during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their 12th year under head coach Terry Donahue, the Bruins compiled a 10–2 record (7–1 Pac-10), finished in a tie for first place in the Pacific-10 Conference, and were ranked No. 9 in the final AP poll. The team's two losses were against No. 2-ranked Nebraska and USC. The Bruins went on to defeat Florida in the 1987 Aloha Bowl.^[1]

UCLA's offensive leaders in 1987 were quarterback Troy Aikman with 2,527 passing yards, running back Gaston Green with 1,098 rushing yards, and wide receiver Flipper Anderson with 903 receiving yards.^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	San Diego State*	No. 3	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	PPV	W 47–14	54,287	^[3]
September 12	at No. 2 Nebraska*	No. 3	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	ESPN	L 33–42	76,313	^[4]
September 19	Fresno State*	No. 13	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA		W 17–0	49,264	^[5]
September 26	Arizona	No. 13	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA		W 34–24	55,823	^[6]
October 3	at Stanford	No. 11	Stanford Stadium Stanford, CA	ABC	W 49–0	57,500	^[7]
October 17	No. 16 Oregon	No. 9	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	PPV	W 41–10	53,320	^[8]
October 24	California	No. 8	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	ABC	W 42–18	51,107	^[9]
October 31	at Arizona State	No. 7	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, AZ	ABC	W 31–23	70,754	^[10]
November 7	at Oregon State	No. 7	Parker Stadium Corvallis, OR		W 52–17	20,104	^[11]
November 14	Washington	No. 5	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA	ABC	W 47–14	70,332	^[12]
November 21	at USC	No. 5	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA (Victory Bell)	ABC	L 13–17	92,516	^[13]
December 25	vs. Florida*	No. 10	Aloha Stadium Halawa, HI (Aloha Bowl)	ABC	W 20–16	24,839	^[14]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	3 (1)	3 (1)	13	13	11	11	9	8	7	7	5	5	11	10	10	9
Coaches	4	3 (1)	15 т	13	11	11	9	8	7	7	5	5	10	11	10	11

^[15]

Game summaries

San Diego State

San Diego State at No. 3 UCLA

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Aztecs	0	7	0	7	14
• No. 3 Bruins	14	17	10	6	47

Date: September 5
Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
Game attendance: 54,287

^[16]

at No. 2 Nebraska

No. 3 UCLA at No. 2 Nebraska

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 3 Bruins	7	3	7	16	33
• No. 2 Cornhuskers	0	14	14	14	42

Date: September 12
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Game attendance: 76,313

^[17]

Fresno State

San Diego State at No. 13 UCLA

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	0	0	0	0
• No. 13 Bruins	7	3	7	0	17

Date: September 19
Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
Game attendance: 49,264

^[18]

Arizona

^[19]

at Stanford

^[20]

No. 16 Oregon

No. 16 Oregon at No. 9 UCLA

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 16 Ducks	0	7	3	0	10
• No. 9 Bruins	7	10	7	17	41

Date: October 17
Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
Game attendance: 53,320

^[21]

California

^[22]

at Arizona State

^[23]

at Oregon State

UCLA had 618 yards of total offense, evenly split with 315 yards passing and 303 yards rushing. Flipper Anderson caught 7 passes for 154 yards and 2 touchdowns in the blowout win over the Beavers.^[24]

Washington

Washington at No. 3 UCLA

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	0	14	0	0	14
• No. 5 Bruins	13	3	17	14	47

Date: November 14
Location: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
Game attendance: 70,332
Television network: ABC

^[25]

at USC

No. 5 UCLA at USC

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 5 Bruins	7	3	3	0	13
• Trojans	0	0	3	14	17

Date: November 21
Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA
Game attendance: 92,516
Television network: ABC

USC clinched a berth in the Rose Bowl with the win.^[26]

vs. Florida (Aloha Bowl)

No. 10 UCLA vs. Florida

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
• No. 10 Bruins	3	7	7	3	20
Gators	7	3	0	6	16

Date: December 25
Location: Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
Game attendance: 24,839
Referee: Mike Pereira
TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson and Bob Griese

^[27]

Roster

1987 UCLA Bruins football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
QB	`8`	Troy Aikman	Jr
WR	`83`	Flipper Anderson	Sr
TE	`81`	Charles Arbuckle	So
RB	`21`	Eric Ball	Jr
QB		Ron Caragher	So
WR	`9`	Mike Farr	So
RB	`44`	Gaston Green	Sr
WR	`4`	Reggie Moore	Fr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
CB	`2`	Darryl Henley	Jr
S	`3`	James Washington	Sr
LB		Ben Hummel	Sr
DB	`31`	Carnell Lake	Jr
LB	`41`	Ken Norton Jr.	Sr
LB	`7`	Chance Johnson
DB	`23`	Marcus Turner	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`25`	Alfredo Velasco	So

Head coach

Terry Donahue

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Steve Axman – Offensive coordinator

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

1988 NFL draft

The following players were selected in the 1988 NFL draft following the season.

Player	Position	Round	Pick	Franchise
Gaston Green	Running back	1	14	Los Angeles Rams
Ken Norton Jr.	Linebacker	2	41	Dallas Cowboys
Flipper Anderson	Wide receiver	2	46	Los Angeles Rams
David Richards	Guard	4	98	San Diego Chargers
Dennis Price	Defensive back	5	131	Los Angeles Raiders
James Washington	Defensive back	5	137	Los Angeles Rams
James Primus	Running back	9	222	Atlanta Falcons
Mel Farr	Running back	9	248	Denver Broncos
Paco Craig	Wide receiver	10	254	Detroit Lions
Ben Hummel	Linebacker	12	317	Dallas Cowboys

^[28]

References

^ "1987 UCLA Bruins Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2015.
^ "1987 UCLA Bruins Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2015.
^ Curt Holbreich (September 6, 1987). "Todd Santos, going big time, has tough time". The Los Angeles Times. p. III-12. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Nebraska's QB Taylor sinks UCLA". The Wichita Eagle-Beacon. September 13, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA struggles to shake Fresno St. 17–0". The Idaho Statesman. September 20, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Donahue scolds, Wildcats fold". The Camarillo Daily News. September 27, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA deals Stanford most lopsided beating in 10 years". The San Francisco Examiner. October 4, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA uses punt decoy to gun down Ducks 41–10". Tri-City Herald. October 18, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "As usual, UCLA beats Cal". The Sacramento Bee. October 25, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA wins, and Cooper says it's over". The Courier-Journal. November 1, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Bruins make believers of Beavers". The Columbian. November 8, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA routs Washington, and gears up for the Trojan wars". The Enterprise. November 15, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Trojans heist Bruins' bouquet". Ventura County Star. November 22, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA bowls over Florida, 20–16". The Honolulu Advertiser. December 26, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UCLA 1987 AP Football Rankings". collegepollarchive.com. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "In Aikman Debut, Bruins Leave Aztecs in Ruins". Los Angeles Times. September 6, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Nebraska Air Show Taylor-Made to Beat UCLA". Los Angeles Times. September 13, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Fresno State Makes UCLA Work for a 17-0 Victory". Los Angeles Times. September 20, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "UCLA 34, Arizona 24". Santa Cruz Sentinel. September 27, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "USC, UCLA Go Similar Routes in Their Routs". Los Angeles Times. October 4, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Trojans Stay in Run for Roses as Bruins Sneak Into the Lead". Los Angeles Times. October 18, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Green Scores Three Touchdowns to Lead UCLA Over Cal, 42-18". Los Angeles Times. October 25, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "UCLA Throws Arizona State for 31-23 Loss". Los Angeles Times. November 1, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Flipper Puts On Show for Bruins, but He Calls It Another Day at Office". Los Angeles Times. November 8, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "UCLA Rolls Into Showdown With 47-14 Win". Los Angeles Times. November 15, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Trojans Go for Juggler, Beat UCLA, 17-13". Los Angeles Times. November 22, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "Bruins Give Donahue a Nice Christmas Gift". Los Angeles Times. December 26, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
^ "1988 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.

[1] "1987 UCLA Bruins Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2015.

[2] "1987 UCLA Bruins Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2015.

[3] Curt Holbreich (September 6, 1987). "Todd Santos, going big time, has tough time". The Los Angeles Times. p. III-12. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[4] "Nebraska's QB Taylor sinks UCLA". The Wichita Eagle-Beacon. September 13, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[5] "UCLA struggles to shake Fresno St. 17–0". The Idaho Statesman. September 20, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Donahue scolds, Wildcats fold". The Camarillo Daily News. September 27, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "UCLA deals Stanford most lopsided beating in 10 years". The San Francisco Examiner. October 4, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[8] "UCLA uses punt decoy to gun down Ducks 41–10". Tri-City Herald. October 18, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[9] "As usual, UCLA beats Cal". The Sacramento Bee. October 25, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[10] "UCLA wins, and Cooper says it's over". The Courier-Journal. November 1, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[11] "Bruins make believers of Beavers". The Columbian. November 8, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[12] "UCLA routs Washington, and gears up for the Trojan wars". The Enterprise. November 15, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[13] "Trojans heist Bruins' bouquet". Ventura County Star. November 22, 1987. Retrieved May 12, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.

[14] "UCLA bowls over Florida, 20–16". The Honolulu Advertiser. December 26, 1987. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

[15] "UCLA 1987 AP Football Rankings". collegepollarchive.com. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[16] "In Aikman Debut, Bruins Leave Aztecs in Ruins". Los Angeles Times. September 6, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[17] "Nebraska Air Show Taylor-Made to Beat UCLA". Los Angeles Times. September 13, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[18] "Fresno State Makes UCLA Work for a 17-0 Victory". Los Angeles Times. September 20, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[19] "UCLA 34, Arizona 24". Santa Cruz Sentinel. September 27, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.

[20] "USC, UCLA Go Similar Routes in Their Routs". Los Angeles Times. October 4, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[21] "Trojans Stay in Run for Roses as Bruins Sneak Into the Lead". Los Angeles Times. October 18, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[22] "Green Scores Three Touchdowns to Lead UCLA Over Cal, 42-18". Los Angeles Times. October 25, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[23] "UCLA Throws Arizona State for 31-23 Loss". Los Angeles Times. November 1, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[24] "Flipper Puts On Show for Bruins, but He Calls It Another Day at Office". Los Angeles Times. November 8, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[25] "UCLA Rolls Into Showdown With 47-14 Win". Los Angeles Times. November 15, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[26] "Trojans Go for Juggler, Beat UCLA, 17-13". Los Angeles Times. November 22, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[27] "Bruins Give Donahue a Nice Christmas Gift". Los Angeles Times. December 26, 1987. Retrieved October 15, 2023.

[28] "1988 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.

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1	UCLA	Gaston Green 33-yard run (Alfredo Velasco kick)	UCLA 7–0

2	UCLA	Alfredo Velasco 41-yard field goal	UCLA 10–0

3	UCLA	Flipper Anderson 26-yard pass from Troy Aikman (Alfredo Velasco kick)	UCLA 17–0


1	UCLA	Brown 1-yard pass from Aikman (Velasco kick)	UCLA 7–0

2	ORE	Loville 1-yard run (Dennis kick)	Tied 7–7
	UCLA	Anderson 2-yard pass from Aikman (Velasco kick)	UCLA 14–7
	UCLA	Velasco 35-yard field goal	UCLA 17–7

3	UCLA	Austin 34-yard run (Velasco kick)	UCLA 24–7
3	ORE	Dennis 32-yard field goal	UCLA 24–10

4	UCLA	Velasco 26-yard field goal	UCLA 27–10
	UCLA	Green 1-yard run (Velasco kick)	UCLA 34–10
	UCLA	M. Turner 65-yard interception return (Velasco kick)	UCLA 41–10


1		UCLA	Gaston Green 6-yard run (Alfredo Velasco kick)	UCLA 7–0

2		UCLA	Alfredo Velasco 32-yard field goal	UCLA 10–0

2		UCLA	Alfredo Velasco 38-yard field goal	UCLA 13–0

3		USC	Quin Rodriguez 26-yard field goal	UCLA 13–3

4	14:09	USC	Randy Tanner 6-yard pass from Rodney Peete (Quin Rodriguez kick)	UCLA 13–10

4	7:59	USC	Erik Affholter 33-yard pass from Rodney Peete (Quin Rodriguez kick)	USC 17–13


1	UCLA	Alfredo Velasco 34-yard field goal	UCLA 3–0
1	UF	Stacey Simmons 7-yard pass from Kerwin Bell (Robert McGinty kick)	UF 7–3

2	UF	Robert McGinty 32-yard field goal	UF 10–3
2	UCLA	Brian Brown 1-yard run (Alfredo Velasco kick)	Tied 10–10

3	UCLA	Danny Thompson 5-yard pass from Troy Aikman (Alfredo Velasco kick)	UCLA 17–10

4	UCLA	Alfredo Velasco 32-yard field goal	UCLA 20–10
4	UF	Anthony Williams 14-yard pass from Kerwin Bell (kick blocked)	UCLA 20–16

UCLA Bruins football
Venues	Moore Field (1919–1928) Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (1926–1981) Rose Bowl (1982–present)
Bowls and rivalries	Bowl games California USC: Victory Bell
Culture and lore	Joe Bruin "Sons of Westwood" "Mighty Bruins" Marching band 1967 "Game of the Century" 1998 Miami game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
National championship seasons in bold

Pac-12 Conference football champions
Pacific Coast	Washington (1916) Washington State (1917) California (1918) Oregon & Washington (1919) California (1920) California (1921) California (1922) California (1923) California & Stanford (1924) Washington (1925) Stanford (1926) Idaho, Stanford, & USC (1927) USC (1928) California, Oregon, Stanford, & USC (1929) Washington State (1930) USC (1931) USC (1932) Oregon & Stanford (1933) Stanford (1934) California, Stanford, & UCLA (1935) Washington (1936) California (1937) California & USC (1938) USC (1939) Stanford (1940) Oregon State (1941) UCLA (1942) USC (1943) USC (1944) USC (1945) UCLA (1946) USC (1947) California & Oregon (1948) California (1949) California (1950) Stanford (1951) USC (1952) UCLA (1953) UCLA (1954) UCLA (1955) Oregon State (1956) Oregon & Oregon State (1957) California (1958)
AAWU	UCLA, USC, & Washington (1959) Washington (1960) UCLA (1961) USC (1962) Washington (1963) Oregon State & USC (1964) UCLA (1965) USC (1966) USC (1967)
Pacific-8	USC (1968) USC (1969) Stanford (1970) Stanford (1971) USC (1972) USC (1973) USC (1974) California & UCLA (1975) USC (1976) Washington (1977)
Pacific-10	USC (1978) USC (1979) Washington (1980) Washington (1981) UCLA (1982) UCLA (1983) USC (1984) UCLA (1985) Arizona State (1986) USC & (1987) USC (1988) USC (1989) Washington (1990) Washington (1991) Washington & Stanford (1992) Arizona, UCLA, & USC (1993) Oregon (1994) USC & Washington (1995) Arizona State (1996) UCLA & Washington State (1997) UCLA (1998) Stanford (1999) Oregon, Oregon State, & Washington (2000) Oregon (2001) USC & Washington State (2002) USC (2003) USC (2004) vacated USC (2005) vacated California & USC (2006) Arizona State & USC (2007) USC (2008) Oregon (2009) Oregon (2010)
Pac-12	Oregon (2011) Stanford (2012) Stanford (2013) Oregon (2014) Stanford (2015) Washington (2016) USC (2017) Washington (2018) Oregon (2019) Oregon (2020) Utah (2021) Utah (2022) Washington (2023)
National championships in bold