EAST LANSING, Mich. — The sheet of paper greeted every UCLA player as he stepped into his row and took his seat on the team plane.

On it, in large block letters, was printed six words and a challenge from their interim coach: “ARE YOU A ONE-HIT WONDER?”

A week after upsetting Penn State, the Bruins answered emphatically.

Hell, no!

These guys had another triumph in them. A big one.

In an encore that was every bit the success of its smash debut under a makeshift coaching staff, UCLA continued its stunning transformation from winless team to … Big Ten powerhouse? College Football Playoff contender? Sports comeback story of the year?

There seems no limit to what this team might be able to accomplish given the continued rise on display Saturday during a 38-13 victory over Michigan State at Spartan Stadium.

UCLA’s offense, led by playcaller Jerry Neuheisel, rolled off 38 consecutive points after the Bruins (2-4 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) spotted the Spartans (3-3, 0-3) an early touchdown.

The Bruins’ defense, run by de facto defensive coordinator Kevin Coyle, forced a fumble, stopped the Spartans on all four fourth-down attempts and held them to 253 yards of offense. Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles was knocked out of the game early in the third quarter after spinning into a vicious hit from defensive tackle Keanu Williams.

Orchestrating it all was interim coach Tim Skipper, who has his team playing with a focus and vitality that were clearly missing under DeShaun Foster. The sheet of paper left on players’ seats was just one of the motivational messages he’s used to revive a once lifeless team.

“It was just a little reminder, that’s all it really was,” Skipper said. “It’s kind of like Santa Claus — you don’t know how the presents got there, but they got there.”

Skipper could now be considered a more attractive candidate for UCLA’s coaching vacancy than Michigan State’s Jonathan Smith, the Pasadena native whose name has appeared on many preliminary lists for the job. How is this the same team that started the season 0-4?

“In my mind,” Skipper said, “I’ve kind of blocked out everything until I’ve been sitting in this seat and I just see us getting better every single day, that’s my whole entire goal, just get better every single day, and that’s all I’m really worried about.”

Things were going so well for the Bruins that UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond came over to where a Times reporter was sitting in the press box late in the third quarter to discuss the changes he had made in the coaching staff that helped spark the team’s turnaround.

There’s no debating that this is a different team than the one that couldn’t win a game under Foster. UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava said players had rediscovered their joy.

“I think just getting back to childhood memories and when we used to play this, when we was younger, and just going out there and having fun with it,” Iamaleava said after passing for 180 yards and three touchdowns. “We were uptight the first four games, and I feel like we went out there and let our hair flow and we were playing for fun.”

Once struggling to reach double digits in points, UCLA’s offense is now humming. A new star emerged Saturday when running back Jalen Berger scored three touchdowns and ran for a season-high 89 yards against his former team, one score coming on a run and the other two on catches.

On a rare day in which he did not need to spark UCLA’s offense with his legs because his team rolled up 238 rushing yards, Iamaleava was nearly flawless with his arm. He completed 16 of 24 passes without an interception while running just six times for three yards.

The Bruins’ 24-7 halftime lead meant they had scored more points in a game and a half with Neuheisel calling plays (66) than they did in their previous four games combined (57).

“The plays coach Jerry has been putting us in have been great, just putting us in great positions to go out there and be successful,” Iamaleava said. “And then everything’s clicking right now. O-line is doing a great job getting our run game open. And then the receivers are doing a great job getting open on the field.”

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava celebrates with wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer during the first half Saturday against Michigan State.

(Raj Mehta / Getty Images)

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Their attacking, disciplined defense forced another turnover and stifled Michigan State after allowing the Spartans to score a touchdown on their opening drive.

UCLA’s special teams chipped in as well, in a scene that seemed familiar to those who had watched the Bruins play Northwestern but somehow caught Michigan State by surprise. With the Bruins lined up to punt early in the second quarter, Cole Martin took the snap and ran for 20 yards and a first down. The play was nearly identical to his fake punt against the Wildcats two weeks earlier.

“Very similar,” Skipper said, “but it went the opposite way — same formation, different direction.”

UCLA converted the trickery into points after Iamaleava connected with Berger for a three-yard touchdown catch.

After Bruins edge rusher Devin Aupiu forced a fumble from Chiles that defensive tackle Siale Taupaki recovered, the Bruins got the ball back at the Spartans’ 32-yard line. Iamaleava later found wide receiver Titus Mokiao-Atimalala cutting across the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown that extended UCLA’s lead to 24-7.

Every bounce went the Bruins’ way except for a Mateen Bhaghani field-goal attempt that ricocheted off the left upright late in the second quarter.

UCLA’s 24 consecutive points made its halftime advantage seem far greater, prompting Michigan State fans to serenade their team with boos heading into the locker room on what was shaping up as a not-so-festive homecoming.

“Best part really is just the togetherness we have in the locker room,” Martin said. “We came together. We’ve never altered. We’ve always stayed together. Nobody’s quit on one another. And that was really the best part for me, just knowing that whatever we go through, we’re going to have each other at the end of the day.”

A week after they shocked the college football world, the big story was the Bruins. Once more.

Joe Flacco will once again wear a different uniform when he takes the field Sunday. Just a few days ago, the Cleveland Browns traded the veteran quarterback to the in-state rival Cincinnati Bengals.

Cincinnati received Flacco and a sixth-round draft pick in next year’s draft, while Cleveland picked up a fifth-round pick in the trade, multiple outlets reported Tuesday. 

On Friday, Flacco spoke to the media for the first time since his arrival in Cincinnati. At one point during the wide-ranging news conference, the Super Bowl winner revealed what keeps him motivated to continue competing in the NFL.

“You only get a chance to play in the NFL once. I feel like I’ve worked really hard to be a guy that gets to play in the NFL, and I don’t want to take that for granted,” the 40-year-old told reporters. “I still feel like I can play the game at a high level, and I want to be able to look at myself in the mirror when I’m 50 years old and say that I gave it everything I had.”

Flacco was named the Bengals’ starter for the team’s Week 6 matchup with the Green Bay Packers. Flacco reacted to the whirlwind he experienced this week.

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“Crazy business,” Flacco said. “You have to be ready for anything. That’s kind of what it was. Definitely didn’t have this on my list of things that were gonna happen. But, hey, that’s this league. And I’m a player. I think most players would say the same thing. I like to play football. If that’s in Cincinnati right now, then I’m all for it.”

Joe Flacco of the Cleveland Browns looks to throw against the Green Bay Packers at Huntington Bank Field Sept. 21, 2025, in Cleveland.  (Jason Miller/Getty Images)

The Bengals were hoping to solidify their quarterback room after star player Joe Burrow sustained a toe injury in the season opener. Backup Jake Browning struggled when he was thrust into the starting role. Burrow underwent surgery last month but could return to action later this season.

Flacco said he’s been in contact with the injured Burrow.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco throws during the first half against the Detroit Lions Sept. 28 in Detroit.  (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

“I feel like I have a lot to offer a football team,” Flacco added. “I feel like I’ve put in a lot of work to this point. I feel like I’ve worked really hard to be a guy that gets to play in the NFL. I still feel like I can play the game at a high level.”

Flacco went 1-3 in his four starts with the Browns this season. But he did guide an underdog Cleveland team to a dramatic comeback victory over the Green Bay Packers. Flacco will meet the Packers for a second time this season on Sunday.

Dillon Gabriel was named the Browns’ starter entering Week 5. Shedeur Sanders was listed as the backup quarterback on the Browns’ depth chart after Flacco’s move to Cincinnati. The Pittsburgh Steelers host the Browns Sunday.

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Trent Mosley itched and itched, the discomfort of standing on the sideline — not his foot injury that held him out of action since Aug. 22 — weighing on the senior receiver.

The USC commit picked an exceptional time to return. Trailing by six, with 5:06 remaining in the game, Mosley took the snap in the wildcat formation and swerved his way into the end zone for a touchdown.

“It sucked just knowing I couldn’t go out there and help my teammates,” Mosley said. “Now I’m back and we’re getting better.”

The score and the hush of the normally raucous Santa Ana Stadium crowd told the story: For the first time in a long while, the Trinity League is up for grabs. Santa Margarita (5-2, 2-0) played Southern Section stunner on Friday night at Santa Ana Stadium, upsetting Mater Dei 7-6 to set the stage for a thrilling Trinity League finale after the Eagles took down the Monarchs (4-2, 1-1) for the first time since 2013.

“Incredible,” Santa Margarita coach Carson Palmer said. “They’ve been playing like the best defense in the country all year long, every week.”

Palmer pointed to defensive coordinator Steve Fifita, who served as interim head coach during last season and decided to stay on the Eagles’ staff as the catalyst for Santa Margarita’s success. Mater Dei had only 175 yards on offense Friday.

“They’re [Fifita’s] heartbeat on defense,” Palmer said of the group, which includes Fifita’s nephew Dash, a senior linebacker.

Pound-for-pound, the defensive lines of Santa Margarita and Mater Dei wouldn’t budge.

Eagles senior linebacker Vai Manutai would secure a sack — while moments later Monarchs linemen Montana Loilolo and Matamatagi Uiagalelei stormed through for sacks of their own. Monarchs linebacker Shaun Scott forced a fumble and earned 1 1/2 sacks as the Eagles couldn’t break 25 rushing yards.

Mater Dei quarterback Ryan Hopkins never got comfortable — outside of a 10-yard touchdown strike to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt in the first quarter — eventually throwing an interception to Eagles defensive back Davide Morales as the third quarter came to a close.

“We’re right there, but we’re not quite there,” said Mater Dei coach Raul Lara, referring to plays such as Hopkins overthrowing wide receiver Gavin Honore for a potential game-winning touchdown, which instead became a turnover on downs with 2:06 remaining.

Lara continued: “This game of football is a great tool to teach young men life skills. Not everything in life is going to be perfect.”

Quarterback Trace Johnson of Santa Margarita could not get comfortable , tossing two interceptions into the hands of Mater Dei defensive back CJ Lavender Jr.

When Johnson found open space, it was thanks to Mosley.

For a team-high six catches for 51 yards, Mosley — who often lined up next to his brother Grant in the slot — helped set up the game-winning drive after freshman running back Adrian Petero hauled in a 59-yard catch to bring the Eagles into Monarchs’ territory.

Trent Mosley’s punch in and the point after — which was enough to win after a failed two-point conversion after Dixon-Wyatt’s score — now sets up unprecedented territory in recent Trinity League seasons.

Yes, Mater Dei and St. John Bosco (which defeated Orange Lutheran 48-0 Friday) will still be contenders.

But the Eagles, who also hold a win over Corona Centennial, can certainly consider themselves as contenders for the league’s crown — and maybe even Division 1 glory. Santa Margarita plays St. John Bosco on Friday at Trabuco Hills.

“We can go forever,” Trent Mosley said. “The culture we have, the bond we have — I know what we’re capable of.”