Oregon State football: 5 takeaways from the Beavers' big win against UCLA

Oregon State’s football team beat UCLA 36-24 at home Saturday at Reser Stadium.

With the victory, the No. 15 Beavers are 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Pac-12 this season.

The No. 18 Bruins are now 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the conference.

Oregon State has its bye week next week, then returns to action Oct. 28 at Arizona.

Here are five takeaways from the Beavers’ win against UCLA.

1: Strong quarterback play from DJ Uiagalelei

DJ Uiagalelei had his second good game in a row against UCLA.

Uiagalelei was 14 of 24 (58.3%) for 266 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Uiagalelei is getting the passing game going at the right time, just beyond the midway point of the season.

Aidan Chiles continues to look strong, and the rotation of getting him into each game to build up his reps before he could take over at starting quarterback is good.

2: Beavers’ rushing attack holds up well against UCLA

UCLA had the conference’s No. 1 defense overall coming into the game, and No. 1 against the run, holding teams to 64.6 yards.

The Beavers on Saturday managed to get 133 yards on the ground, averaging 5 yards per carry.

Damien Martinez had 15 carries for 90 yards, while Deshaun Fenwick had nine carries for 52 yards.

3: Jack Velling continues strong season

Oregon State tight end Jack Velling had three catches for 83 yards and two touchdowns.

Velling has had a great season so far. He has scored seven touchdowns this season, which leads the team.

Silas Bolden had one touchdown Saturday, giving him six overall this season.

Since he’s difficult to defend, expect him to continue to be a strong option for Uiagalelei in the passing game moving forward.

4: Beavers’ defense has struggled, but not in key situations

Oregon State was outgained by UCLA, 453 total yards to 415.

UCLA had more first downs, 27 to 18.

But the Beavers forced three turnovers, all interceptions.

Oregon State also applied pressure to UCLA quarterback Dante Moore, getting five sacks.

The Beavers held UCLA to 8 of 17 on third downs, and 3 of 5 on fourth downs.

And the important thing is the defense helped the Beavers get the win.

5: Overall impressions

This was a big win for Oregon State. It was another win against a ranked opponent.

The Beavers are 2-1 against teams that were ranked when they played — lost at Washington State, beat Utah and UCLA at home.

At 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Pac-12, they are right in the mix for the conference title game.

The Beavers remain unbeaten at home at 4-0.

It’s easier to battle for a conference title if you take care of business in every home game.

Statesman Journal reporter Pete Martini covers college and high school sports. He can be reached at pmartini@StatesmanJournal.com.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Takeaways from Oregon State Beavers football's big win over UCLA