The goal was to arrive here and be relevant. UCLA wanted to face Utah as an equal, or something close to that.
Mission accomplished. Even after a loss to Washington State last week nearly relegated the Bruins to spoiler, they come to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday one game behind Pac-12 Conference South co-leaders Utah and USC.
A reprieve came when Utah came up short in a double-overtime loss to Arizona. The No. 13 Utes are 8-2 overall, 5-2 in conference play. UCLA is 7-3 overall, 4-3 in Pac-12 action.