BRUINS LEAVE CAL IN RUINS : UCLA 38, CAL 29.

Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer

The play is called ``R change, Fresno right.''

It's a simple screen pass, designed to gain first-down yardage with the potential for more. A lot more.

And when UCLA tailback Skip Hicks grabbed Cade McNown's fourth-quarter pass on ``R change, Fresno right,'' he turned, looked downfield, and saw one of the prettiest sights of all.

``I saw two defenders, and two of my big linemen,'' Hicks said. ``I'll take that any day.''

He took it 63 yards, to be precise, outrunning several Cal players who chased hopelessly from behind, whisking down the right sideline and into the Bears' end zone for the biggest touchdown of a 38-29 UCLA victory Saturday night, before 54,000 at Memorial Stadium.

``(The Bears) were looking for a run, and our guys did a great job blocking downfield,'' Hicks said. ``It was a perfect play.''

It was a perfect night for Hicks, who gained 146 yards rushing, 113 receiving, scored four touchdowns, ran with aggression - he lowered his shoulder more times Saturday than in the previous six games combined - and did not fumble.

His effort, combined with a suddenly opportunistic defense that had seven sacks and forced four turnovers, helped the Bruins to what they believe is a watershed victory - on the road, in a stadium where they had not won since 1988, over a Top-25 opponent and following two consecutive defeats.

With three of their final four games at home - starting with last-place Stanford on Saturday - the Bruins (3-4, 2-2) are thinking postseason. To be sure, there are no more Tennessees, Michigans or Arizona States on their schedule.

``In the locker room, our pregame speech was, `If we win, it's an opportunity to go to a bowl game and have a winning season,' '' cornerback Andy Colbert said.

``We thought, `If we lost, we'd be looking in the face of being a sorry team with nothing more to play for.' ''

It's a measure of Hicks' vast talent that UCLA's fortunes rest so heavily on his shoulders.

When he is good, they are good: the second half at Oregon, the first against Arizona State. But the converse is equally true. When he is bad - either running passively or fumbling - so are they: witness the second half against ASU, or the Washington game.

Either way, good or bad, he is the story on this team.

``He's our big-play guy,'' coach Bob Toledo said. ``He's the one guy who can take it to the house. I sensed that he was running hard early in the game. He was almost obsessed about playing. He wanted to get some of that bad publicity behind him.''

Several factors aided Hicks' cause Saturday evening.

Cal's running backs coach, Wayne Moses, was his mentor for three years at UCLA, and the pupil clearly intended to show off in his master's new home.

And while Hicks did not admit it afterward, his pride must have stung after Toledo held an open competition for the No. 1 tailback spot - his spot - in practice this week.

``That didn't really bother me,'' he said. ``I think the live scrimmaging helped me get into the flow, but I've learned to put what people say and write out of my head.

``My main motivation was to have fun. That's what has been missing for me. People have been stressing this and that, but I just wanted to have fun.''

His attitude mirrored the four-hour game: 67 points, 993 yards total offense, seven turnovers, 15 penalties and eight sacks.

``It was kind of a wide-open game, a lot of offense,'' said Cal coach Steve Mariucci, whose team rushed for just 79 yards and was forced to throw during the fourth quarter after UCLA jumped to a 38-21 lead.

The Bruins took the second-half kickoff and moved 75 yards for a touchdown in just seven plays, one of their best drives of the season.

It featured two passes from McNown to Jim McElroy. With the Bears' defense spread thin to stop the UCLA air game, Hicks took a handoff at the Cal 34, raced through a hole at right tackle, then left Cal safety David Burnside on the grass after an excellent head fake. Hicks' sudden touchdown gave UCLA a 17-14 lead.

McNown's first mistake of the game cost the Bruins on their next drive. A perfectly executed stop-and-go pass to Derek Ayers gave UCLA a first down at the Cal 6. But instead of sending Hicks off tackle - a play the Bears never could stop - McNown tried a fade pass to Ayers in the left corner of the end zone. The ball was underthrown, and cornerback Kevin Devine intercepted.

The Bruins had the ball back four plays later, as Colbert knocked the ball loose from receiver Bobby Shaw after a short pass, and Weldon Forde recovered. With six minutes left in the quarter, Hicks rumbled into the end zone for a 24-14 lead.

Cal provided a three-play riposte, with Pat Barnes finding Na'il Benjamin on a 25-yard touchdown pass.

With a tenuous lead - the kind of lead they wasted two weeks ago against Arizona State - the Bruins faced a second-and-17 dilemma at their own 37.

``That screen pass is a feast or famine thing,'' McNown said. ``But they are the type of plays that a good team will turn into a big play.''

NOTEBOOK

Back to basics: Following two straight defeats, with his team teetering on the edge of a losing season, UCLA coach Bob Toledo could have tried something drastic in practice this week.

Instead, he went back to the basics.

Frustrated by his team's poor tackling and lack of toughness, Toledo added several full-contact periods to the usual practice routine. His goals were twofold: determine his starting tailback, and force the defense to react to what the coaches call ``sudden change'' situations - having to take the field unexpectedly, after a turnover by the offense.

``I think the scrimmaging helped a lot,'' linebacker Phillip Ward said. ``We showed the same intensity on the practice field as we did in the game.

``We didn't need any motivational talks. Basically, this was gut-check time, do or die.''

Battle of the brothers: In the game within the game - between Cal's Kato Serwanga and UCLA's Wasswa Serwanga - the edge went to Kato. But only slightly.

He had five tackles and a superb interception. Wasswa had four tackles and a sack in his best game as a Bruin.

Record books: Skip Hicks became the third Bruin to twice rush for four touchdowns in a game. The others are Eric Ball and Freeman McNeil. However, Hicks, who also rushed for four touchdowns against Oregon, is the first to do it twice in a single season.

Cal quarterback Pat Barnes threw for a school-record 435 yards. His 57 attempts tied a school record.

Injury update Cal linebacker Sekou Sanyika was carried off the field on a stretcher with a few seconds remaining. Coach Steve Mariucci said Sanyika had movement in his arms and legs and was talking. ``His upper-back, lower-neck area was tender and sore,'' Mariucci said.

By the numbers: Cal tight end Tony Gonzalez had six receptions for 125 yards. . . . UCLA quarterback Cade McNown completed 10 of 13 passes in the second half after hitting just 6 of 15 in the first.

The Hero

UCLA tailback Skip Hicks, who had 146 yards rushing, 113 receiving and scored four touchdowns. His 259 all-purpose yards was 54 percent of UCLA's total offense.

The Goat

Cal receiver Bobby Shaw. Despite 12 catches, Shaw dropped several passes and had the ball stripped by Andy Colbert, leading to a touchdown that gave UCLA a 24-14 lead.

Stat of the Game

UCLA sacked Cal quarterback Pat Barnes seven times for 37 yards. Several sacks came on third-down attempts.

Quote of the Game

``We came to play, with a purpose.''

- UCLA coach Bob Toledo

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

Photo: UCLA's Skip Hicks eludes Cal free safety Marqui s Smith for a 63-yard touchdown run. It was one of four TDs Hicks scored Saturday.

Associated Press 

Box: NOTEBOOK (see text)