Wayne Cook (American football)

Wayne Cook (born April 13, 1971)

Three days before the 1993 season opener, Cook was named the starter over Fien and Walker.^[10] The Bruins began the season 0–2 for the first time since 1971,^[11] losing the season opener against California that ended with a Cook interception at the Cal 28-yard line with 15 seconds remaining.^[6][10][11] The following week, he threw for a season-low 134 yards in a one-point loss to No. 8 Nebraska.^[6][11][12] However, UCLA emerged as a Rose Bowl contender,^[2] winning seven in a row,^[10] with Cook tying the single-game school record of four touchdown passes and becoming the first Bruin to reach the mark in consecutive games.^[a][15] He was out injured when they lost 9–3 to Arizona State.^[10] Cook was hurt the previous week when Washington State's DeWayne Patterson was offside and flattened him,^[10] injuring his right kidney and sending him to the hospital.^[8][10] The Bruins had scored 322 points in its first nine games with Cook before being held to a field goal in the loss without him.^[16] He returned the following week and threw for a touchdown and ran for another in a 27–21 win over USC, snapping a 10-game losing streak in their crosstown rivalry when the Rose Bowl was at stake for both teams.^[17] Cook became the first quarterback in eight years to lead UCLA to the Rose Bowl since Matt Stevens in 1985.^[6]

The Bruins lost 21–16 to Wisconsin in the 1994 Rose Bowl. On first and 10 from the Wisconsin 18-yard line with 15 seconds left in the game and no timeouts remaining, Cook ran the ball for three yards but was tackled and time expired.^[10] The play was intended to be a pass into the end zone, or spiking the ball and stopping the clock if it was not open. However, Cook said he "saw an opening and my natural instinct took over which was to run the ball. It was the wrong play." He finished 28 of 43 passing for 288 yards and a touchdown.^[18][19] The Bruins committed six turnovers, with Cook losing two fumbles and throwing an interception.^[19] They finished the season 8–4, and Cook completed 165 passes in 297 attempts for 2,067 yards, 18 touchdowns and just four interceptions.^[20] UCLA head coach Terry Donahue said that "what's been the most impressive about Wayne Cook is his touchdown-to-interception ratio".^[21] Fifteen of his scoring strikes were to All-American receiver J. J. Stokes,^[22] including a 95-yard pass against Washington that was the longest play in UCLA history.^[b] Cook received honorable mention for the All-Pac-10 team.^[24][25]

UCLA was hampered by injuries in 1994, and lost six straight games.^[26] Fans were calling for Cook to be benched midseason.^[26] With Stokes back healthy,^[27] the Bruins recovered to win their next two games against Stanford and Arizona State, scoring a total of 90 points, more than in their entire losing streak. Cook threw for a career-high 380 yards and again tied the school record with four touchdowns to beat Arizona State 59–23.^[26] In their season finale, UCLA upset USC 31–19, their fourth straight win against their rivals. The loss denied the Trojans a berth in the Rose Bowl, while Cook became the first Bruins quarterback in 35 years to defeat the Trojans in consecutive seasons.^[28] In three straight wins to end the season, he was 52 of 72 passing for 894 yards and eight touchdowns.^[27]

Cook finished his career with 352 completions on 612 attempts (57.3%) for 4,753 yards. At the time, his 34 touchdown passes ranked third in UCLA history behind Tom Ramsey (50) and Troy Aikman (41).^[7] He had a 13–10 record as a starter.^[29]

Professional career

On the final day of the