Dieffenbach Hits Mizell for Two 75-Yard Scores as UCLA Beats Minnesota 34-20 to Reach 9-0

The Bruins' first 9-0 start since 1998 keeps them alone atop the Big Ten, with Illinois next Friday at the Rose Bowl and USC looming Nov. 28.

By Herald Staff · Nov. 7, 2026, 5:30 PM ET

Aerial view of the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, its oval bowl of red and white seats and green field framed by palm trees and eucalyptus, with the San Gabriel Mountains rising behind under a hazy sky. — The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, where unbeaten UCLA returns Friday, Nov. 13, to face Illinois and closes the regular season against USC on Nov. 28. Photo: Stephen Kallin (cropped) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (license).

MINNEAPOLIS — For three quarters on a 44-degree morning in Minnesota, UCLA looked like a team that might finally trip. Then Ty Dieffenbach and Aidan Mizell needed exactly two snaps to settle it. The pair connected on 75-yard touchdown passes on consecutive one-play possessions in the fourth quarter, and the No. 5 Bruins pulled away for a 34-20 win at Huntington Bank Stadium on Saturday to stay perfect, according to the Associated Press.

The win moves UCLA to 9-0 overall and 6-0 in the Big Ten, the first time the Bruins have opened 9-0 since 1998, the school said in its game recap. They remain the only unbeaten team in the conference.

Two Snaps, 150 Yards

Minnesota (5-4, 3-3) had just tied the game 17-17 with 12:50 to play when Drake Lindsey threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to tight end George Rohl, as Bruin Report Online detailed. On the very next snap, Dieffenbach found Mizell streaking over the middle for a 75-yard score and a 24-17 lead.

The Gophers answered with a 38-yard Luke Drzewiecki field goal to cut it to 24-20 with 7:31 left. Dieffenbach went right back to Mizell, who again got behind the secondary for another 75-yard touchdown. Two plays later, cornerback Scooter Jackson intercepted Lindsey, and a Mateen Bhaghani field goal set the final margin.

Dieffenbach finished 8 of 16 for a career-high 303 yards and three touchdowns, overcoming an interception and a lost fumble. Mizell, a transfer from Florida, had career highs with 150 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Dieffenbach took over the starting job about a month ago after an injury to Nico Iamaleava, the AP noted.

Knight Keeps Rolling

Running back Wayne Knight ran for 109 yards, his fifth 100-yard game of the season, and scored his 15th touchdown of the year on a first-quarter run that put UCLA up 10-0. His 31-yard burst around the right edge in the third quarter set up Dieffenbach's 27-yard touchdown pass to Noah Fox-Flores for a 17-10 lead.

The defense held Minnesota to 296 total yards and 91 rushing. Linebacker Jalen Woods had a game-high 11 tackles, tying his career best, and nearly two dozen Bruins were credited with at least one tackle, the school said.

It was not always clean. UCLA was stopped on fourth-and-2 at the Minnesota 27 late in the first half, and Dieffenbach's interception with 55 seconds left led to a field goal that tied the game 10-10 at the break. After UCLA retook the lead, a blocked punt by Troy Leigber gave the Bruins the ball at the Minnesota 20, but a holding penalty wiped out a touchdown and Dieffenbach fumbled two plays later.

Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck twice sent Drzewiecki out for 56-yard field goal tries, and both sailed wide right. The first miss, in the opening quarter, ended his FBS-best streak of 26 straight made field goals, according to the AP game story published by Minnesota Athletics. UCLA took advantage both times, driving for touchdowns after each miss.

The Playoff Picture and the Road Home

UCLA was eighth in the College Football Playoff committee's first rankings released this week, and the AP said Saturday's result should strengthen its case. The early 9 a.m. Pacific kickoff, the cold and a Minnesota team with upset potential made this one of the toughest stops left on the schedule, the AP wrote.

The Bruins come back to the Rose Bowl on Friday, Nov. 13, for a 6 p.m. kickoff against Illinois, then travel to Michigan on Nov. 21 before closing the regular season against USC at the Rose Bowl on Nov. 28, according to UCLA's schedule.

Across town, USC was idle Saturday on its second bye week. The Trojans are 7-2 after beating then-No. 2 Ohio State on Halloween at the Coliseum, but debuted at No. 20 in the playoff rankings, USA Today reported. USC plays at Indiana next Saturday, setting up a crosstown finale that could carry playoff stakes for both schools.

Original reporting by The Los Angeles Herald, drawing on the Associated Press, UCLA Athletics, Minnesota Athletics, Bruin Report Online and USA Today, as linked above.