The 1986 UCLA Bruins football team was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

team that represented the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

during the

1986 NCAA Division I-A football season The 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with 1986 Penn State Nittany Lions football team, Penn State winning the NCAA Division I-A national football championship, national championship. Coached by Joe Paterno, they defeated 1986 Miami Hu ...

. In their 11th year under head coach

Terry Donahue Terrence Michael Donahue (June 24, 1944 – July 4, 2021) was an American football coach and executive. He served as the head coach at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1976 to 1995, compiling a record of 151–74–8. His 15 ...

, the Bruins compiled an 8–3–1 record (5–2–1 Pac-10), finished in a tie for second place in the

Pacific-10 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level for all sports, and its Co ...

, and were ranked No. 14 in the final AP poll. The Bruins went on to defeat BYU in the 1986 Freedom Bowl. On November 1, 1986, UCLA's defense scored three touchdowns against Oregon State. UCLA's offensive leaders in 1986 were quarterback Matt Stevens with 1,869 passing yards, running back Gaston Green with 1,405 rushing yards, and wide receiver

Flipper Anderson Willie Lee "Flipper" Anderson Jr. (born March 7, 1965) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Los Angeles Rams. He played college f ...

with 675 receiving yards.

Schedule

Rankings

Game summaries

At Oklahoma

USC

Vs. BYU (Freedom Bowl)

Personnel

References

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

UCLA Bruins football seasons Freedom Bowl champion seasons

UCLA Bruins football The UCLA Bruins football program represents the University of California, Los Angeles, in college football as members of the Big Ten Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The Bruins play their home games off ...

Long stubs with short prose {{California-sport-team-stub