SALT LAKE CITY — It was there for the taking. The Utes were in position to knock off the 12th ranked team in the country and earn their first signature win against a Pac-12 opponent.

UCLA executed when it mattered most and the Utes didn't allowing the Bruins to escape Rice-Eccles Stadium with a 34-27 victory.

It has become a recurring theme in Pac-12 games for the Utes; they play hard, earning the respect of their opponents. They keep the game close, but in the end, they don't make enough plays to earn the W.

"We have to keep our heads up, can't feel sorry for ourselves and just keep fighting," head coach Kyle Whittingham said after the game. "That's one thing this team does; they have a lot of toughness, resiliency and the fight until the bitter end. I'm very proud of the effort, but we just have to get better and do things better."

The Utah defense made plays Thursday night and put forth their best performance of the season against the best offense they may see all year.

The Bruins entered the game second in the nation in total offense and third in scoring offense. The Utes held them to 15 points and more than 200 yards under their season average. Additionally, they held them to just three points in the third quarter.

It was the defense that found the end zone in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 24. Pressure on Brett Hundley forced an interception that was returned by Keith McGill for a touchdown.

As good as Utah's defense was the UCLA defense was even better.

Anthony Barr and the Bruins dominated the Utes offensive line. They forced six Utah turnovers, sacked Travis Wilson three times and held the Utes to under 100 yards rushing.

The Utah offense looked good early. Travis Wilson was on target, including one of the best throws you will see all year on the touchdown pass to Sean Fitzgerald. They were getting chunk yardage, including a 54-yard touchdown pass to Dres Anderson.

UCLA made adjustments and the offense wouldn't see the end zone after the first quarter.

You have to give the UCLA defense a lot of credit for forcing six interceptions. You can argue three or four of them were caused by terrific Bruin defense. The ones that weren't come down to poor execution — whether the ball went through the hands of a receiver, poor pass blocking, a wrong route or a bad decision by Wilson — it all comes down to execution. As a group, the offense had too many breakdowns executing the offense.

"We had way too many mental errors, but ultimately they were my fault," Travis Wilson said. "Some were deflected, some were off receiver's hands, but it happens, so we just have to keep on playing."

Despite the six turnovers, the Utes had their chances at the end.

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Turnovers stymie Utes' upset chance vs. No. 12 UCLA

Despite six interceptions by Utah quarterback Travis Wilson, the Utes defense kept the high powered Bruin offense in check, holding them to a season low in points in a 34-27 defeat in Rice-Eccles Stadium.

A great play by Trevor Reilly to knock the ball free allowed Utah to recover an onside kick with two minutes left. But as they approached the red zone, great pressure by the Bruin defense forced another interception — their sixth of the game — and Utah's chances were gone.

"We're a great team as you can see when you're minus five in the turnover margin and you still have a chance to win at the end of the game," receiver Dres Anderson said after the game. "We showed that we have heart, but we have to make sure we make plays at the end."

The most glaring stat in the Utes' 0-2 Pac-12 start is in the turnover margin. The Utes are -7 in those two losses. That is just too much to overcome in just about any league, let alone the Pac-12.

Since joining the Pac-12 in 2011, the Utes are 7-3 in conference play when winning the turnover margin. They have never won a Pac-12 game when losing the turnover margin. Sometimes the game is that simple — you can't turn the ball over like that and expect to win these big games.

Utah is painfully close to turning the corner, yet it's clear they have deficiencies that need to be addressed in order to make progress.

"We just have to keep working," Whittingham said. "We'll watch this film tomorrow and make corrections. Our guys are willing. They have a great work ethic. It is frustrating, but we have to find a way to make a couple more plays. If we can do that, we can find a way to win.

Utah is a program that has accomplished too much to even consider games like this moral victories. They've won big games in the past, including games against then-Pac-10 teams. There is no reason why they shouldn't be doing it now.

It's not for a lack of talent. They hung in there against one of the most talented teams in the country. It's about a lack of execution, especially at key moments in the game, and that needs to get fixed.

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