Cal wore their gold jerseys from the Oregon game four weeks earlier in front of a sold-out crowd of 72,516, Cal's second of the year, and just their fifth from opponents besides Stanford since the 1950s. In the first quarter, Cal drove down the field to score on their first possession of the ballgame. A defensive stop against UCLA and then the Bears gave the Bruins possession, and Cowan ran in for a twelve-yard touchdown. Quarterback Nate Longshore took the helm, driving 76 yards on the next possession, the drive capped off by Marshawn Lynch's brilliant 24-yard catch-and-dash through the UCLA defense. The Bruins drove deep in the next drive, but settled for a field goal, which ended the first half scoring.