UCLA 52-38 Purdue (Sep 19, 2026) Final Score

Team pages: Purdue · UCLA

Purdue1-238

UCLA3-052Final

Sat, Sep 19 · Rose Bowl, Pasadena, Calif. · Crowd 30,916BTN

UCLA beat Purdue 52-38.

We had UCLA favored. It won.

Next: Purdue lost to Notre Dame 49-10, Sat Sep 26

Next: UCLA beat Maryland 54-3, Sat Sep 26

Top comment in the game thread

that roughing the passer was an insanely soft call

Q4 13:42 · r/CFB game thread · Sat, Sep 19

How it swung

The turning point: Browne 30-yd TD pass to Burhenn, Purdue goes ahead 28-24 (Q3, 13:01). UCLA went from 83% to 68% to win.

Before kickoff, our ratings gave UCLA an 86% chance, and the closing betting line (UCLA was a 13.5-point favorite) put it at 86%.

Favored the whole way: UCLA never fell below 67%.

Purdue never had better than a 32% chance.

75-yard TD pass

Purdue · Q1 11:45

FinalUCLA 52-38 PurdueUCLA wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.

The play that swung it

1Q3 13:01Browne 30-yd TD pass to Burhenn, Purdue goes ahead 28-24UCLA 83% → 68% (−15)

The play that swung it

1Q3 13:01Browne 30-yd TD pass to Burhenn, Purdue goes ahead 28-24Purdue 17% → 32% (+15)

What fans said, play by play

The line in bold above each quote is written by our model from the thread’s comments and the play-by-play.

Q2 2:12Purdue ties UCLA 21-21 with a touchdown pass from Browne to TownsendPURDUE TIED A B1G GAME AT A SCORE OTHER THAN 0-0!!!!!!r/CFB game thread
Q3 5:50Purdue executes a fake punt, Drennan completes a 47-yard pass to Harrisin this house, we believe: kevin kane is netanyahu they should kick off on the west coast at 10am local time fake punts are awesome ryan browne is actually good we need to tackle…r/CFB game thread
Q4 13:42Fans call roughing the passer penalty on Browne pass softok it seems like that roughing call was soft BUT a lot of you clearly didn't see the emotional tone the defender wielded toward browne, which frankly was manipulative and…r/CFB game threadQuoted at the top of the page.
Q4 9:10Fans mock broadcast camera work as Wayne Knight rushes 47 yardsWayne knight first round pickr/CFB game thread
Q4 6:07Browne throws interception to Pleasant after driving into triple coverageWell that sucks. Maybe if Browne didn't need to put up Heisman numbers to keep us in a game that one wouldn't have been rushedr/CFB game thread

UCLA’s chance to win after every play.

How to read this chart

Starts from the pregame line (UCLA -13.5), at 90% for UCLA (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores. Outlined diamonds mark rare plays. Under the scores, r/CFB comments per minute from fans with a UCLA or Purdue flair (465 and 815); both sides share one scale, regulation only. A gold diamond marks a play fans were reacting to.

Watch the plays

The bar and the arrow show UCLA’s chance to win after each play; the logo is the team the play helped.

Every drive

UCLA scored on 8 of its 12 drives; Purdue on 6 of its 12.

UCLA’s drives are teal, Purdue’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.

From Purdue’s side

Purdue’s best moment: Browne 30-yd TD pass to Burhenn, Purdue goes ahead 28-24 (Q3 13:01). It lifted Purdue’s win chance by 15 points.

How Purdue fans took it: “Alright, I'm calling it because it's late. GG, Bruins. Y'all are a pleasant people to share a gamethread with.” r/CFB game thread

“Browne is throwing absolute dots”

A Purdue fan

How fans reacted

Steady

The loudest stretch came in the fourth quarter.

Jump to the loudest stretch

The jump was steady; the crowd was steady.

Two crowds, one game

The words each side’s fans used far more than the other side, from the game thread.

UCLA fans

knight“Rushing TDs: UCLA Football 2024 - 4 UCLA Football 2025 - 8 Wayne Knight in 2.7 games - 8”

Purdue fans

kane“Odom hitched his wagon to rehiring Kane and they can leave together at this point. This is just awful.”

Both sets of fans kept coming back to: now, back, maybe, far.

What it cost

UCLA’s chance to make the playoff rose from 14% to 16%.

Make the playoff

Purdue · lost0% → 0%

UCLA · won14% → ▲16%

Win the conference

Purdue · lost0% → 0%

UCLA · won11% → ▲13%

Before the game (September 19, 2026) → after this result, in our model.

Box score

UCLA 52, Purdue 38

UCLA covered −13.5 by 0.5. The total, 90, went over 53.5.

Team totals	Purdue	UCLA
Total yards	488	645
Passing	20 of 31, 425 yds	19 of 32, 276 yds
Rushing	28 for 63 yds	48 for 369 yds
First downs	23	35
Third down	3 of 9	11 of 14
Fourth down	3 of 3	0 of 0
Turnovers	3	0
Penalties	6 for 45 yds	12 for 103 yds
Time of possession	23:50	36:10

Purdue leaders

Passing Ryan Browne 19 of 30, 378 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Fame Ijeboi 17 for 47 yds, 2 TD; Jerrick Gibson 3 for 9 yds
Receiving Xavier Townsend 6 for 162 yds, 2 TD; Asaad Waseem 8 for 149 yds

UCLA leaders

Passing Nico Iamaleava 19 of 31, 276 yds, 3 TD
Rushing Wayne Knight 18 for 177 yds, 2 TD; Anthony Woods 13 for 80 yds, 1 TD
Receiving Semaj Morgan 4 for 72 yds, 2 TD; Brian Rowe Jr. 2 for 65 yds

No rain through the game

66° at kickoff · no rain recorded

The usual here around this date is 79°, with about 7 in 10 games between 70° and 87°.

September game-day temperatures at Rose Bowl

Drag along the chart, or step through the game.

First quarter, 14:49 left8:02 p.m.

Purdue 0, UCLA 0 · UCLA 90% to win

66°

Knight 16-yd run; face mask on Purdue

Where this weather comes from

Measured at Mount Wilson airport, 7.6 miles away. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Before kickoff

Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.

Recent games

Last two games

Purdue · 1-1

Rated 119th in our preseason ratings, 118th now.

1-1 in its last two — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.

L 36-38 vs Wake ForestTop 25 #80 of 668

lost by 2 as a 2.5-point underdog

W 44-19 vs Indiana State #226 of 668

won by 25 as a 35.5-point favorite

Last two games

UCLA · 2-0

Rated 62nd in our preseason ratings, 50th now, up 12 spots.

Two straight wins — but still hunting a ranked opponent.

W 28-10 vs San Diego State #45 of 668

won by 18 as a 13.5-point favorite

W 45-24 @ California #63 of 668

won by 21 as a 2.5-point favorite

Week by week

UCLA

Wk 1Wat California45-24
Wk 2Wvs San Diego State28-10

Purdue

Wk 1Wvs Indiana State44-19
Wk 2Lvs Wake Forest36-38

Power rating by week

UCLA is rated 7.0 points ahead as of week 2. Our power rating by week; higher is better.

Matchups

Biggest mismatch: Purdue’s rushing EPA against UCLA, 58 points

Each row ranks the two sides among all teams. The longer the line, the bigger the mismatch.

UCLA’s EPA/play against Purdue’s defense
UCLA offense, 60th percentile · Purdue defense, 9th
Purdue’s rushing EPA against UCLA’s defense
Purdue offense, 37th percentile · UCLA defense, 95th
UCLA’s explosive plays against Purdue’s defense
UCLA offense, 34th percentile · Purdue defense, 1st

Season profile, all the rows

Season profile

PurdueUCLA

EPA/play, offense

EPA/play, defense

Success rate, offense

Success rate, defense

Explosive-play rate, offense

Explosive-play rate, defense

Rush EPA, offense

Rush EPA, defense

Pass EPA, offense

Pass EPA, defense

The series

UCLA leads the series 3-0-2

5 meetings since 1950 · UCLA has won the last 2

1980UCLA 23-14
1979UCLA 31-21
1960Tie 27-27
1959Tie 0-0
1950UCLA 20-6

Line, fans and home field

The betting line, and the fans

UCLA fans are feeling it more than most fanbases this week (77th among FBS fanbases), in line with the numbers.

UCLA favored by 13.5 · Total 53.5

How games like this usually go

UCLA by 13.5, and it went to form

Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game

The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 385 games since 2025 with a favorite of 7.5 to 14.5 points.

The market

The spread moved 0.5 points toward Purdue.

The books’ cut: 4.2%, the margin built into the odds

Home field

UCLA has had no measurable home edge since 2018 — −0.1 points (±4.0), home against road — 2nd percentile of FBS.

49% at home, 48% on the road against FBS opponents (25-26 home, 21-23 away).

Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -7.7 at home vs. away over 97 games — outside the ±6.3 noise, one of the few buildings where results say more.

Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 1,761 miles to get here.

Where next

Conference standings

Place in the conference, then conference record.

UCLA14th0-0
Purdue6th0-0

Full Big Ten standings

UCLA beats Purdue 52-38