PASADENA — For the sixth time this season, Bob Chensey invented a new way to win.

UCLA football lost the rushing and turnover battle. Penalty flags disrupted the flow. A backup quarterback started for an offense that faced 20 total third downs.

None of it mattered. Not with Chesney pushing the buttons.

No. 12 UCLA defeated Wisconsin 17-7 on Saturday at the Rose Bowl, an ugly victory under the beautiful San Gabriel Mountains.

“Regardless of the situation we’re in, we absolutely are always excited to attack and play this game with a passion and a joy,” Chesney said in the postgame press conference. “That’s very different.”

After the win, UCLA remains the only undefeated team among the Big Ten and SEC. With five teams in the top 8 of the Associated Press Top 25 losing on Saturday, UCLA will at least jump into the top 10.

Chesney continued the historic start to his tenure as the first-ever first-year UCLA head coach to start with six wins.

Aggravation replaced his usual composure on the sideline as he complained to officials and his players about the eight penalties UCLA (6-0, 4-0 Big Ten) committed, many of which erased positive plays.

But the Bruins showed composure in overcoming those penalties to keep possessions alive. They converted 13 of those 20 third downs. Each of their three scores came on drives of 90 or more yards.

For the first time in 2026, UCLA’s defense failed to force a turnover. The unit was still stellar. They held Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph to six completions on 16 attempts for 66 yards. He was effective on the ground, rushing for 71 yards, but the Badgers (4-2, 2-1) committed 10 penalties, regularly pushing themselves out of field-goal range.

“I love what our defense did today,” Chesney said.

UCLA quarterback Ty Dieffenbach continued to step up, completing 22 of 33 passes for 264 yards. Wide receiver Semaj Morgan was his favorite target, with five catches for 84 yards. Running back Wayne Knight’s string of 100-yard games ended, but he still found the end zone for his Big Ten-leading 11th touchdown.

Knight’s score capped a 91-yard march, on which UCLA converted four third downs. The Bruins also added a field goal on a drive that began at their own 10-yard line and included three more third-down conversions, taking a 10-0 lead into halftime.

“We knew they were going to play a lot of man on third downs,” Dieffenbach said. “Our guys went out there and made plays.”

After a first half defined by success on third down, UCLA tried a trick play on a third-and-13 on its first possession of the second half. Morgan chucked a ball into double coverage and it was deflected and intercepted by Wisconsin’s Marvin Burks Jr.

The Badgers capitalized, rushing the ball in creative ways on 10 of their next 11 plays to go 60 yards for a touchdown. Joseph capped off the drive with a 4-yard run for the score, cutting the margin to 10-7 midway through the third quarter.

Both teams then traded stops. Wisconsin pinned UCLA again to begin the fourth quarter, and after two penalties, the Bruins started from their own 3-yard line.

Dieffenbach wasn’t phased. He placed the ball in a gap in Wisconsin’s zone as Landon Ellis broke free down the right sideline to help the Bruins emerge from the shadow of their end zone. Then he delivered a 33-yard strike in the seam to Morgan, who took a lick from Badgers’ safety Matt Jung. Jung was penalized for targeting, as the Bruins advanced into the red zone.

“He came through in the clutch,” Chesney said of Dieffenbach. “Ultimately put a 97-yard drive together and we needed it at that moment.”

After Dieffenbach’s two completions, Anthony Woods broke off a 14-yard run, UCLA’s longest to that point, and then punched in a 3-yard touchdown.

With 11:36 remaining, Wisconsin had time to erase the 10-point deficit. The Badgers gained 27 yards over the next six plays, making their way into UCLA’s territory. But on a fourth-and-2 from the 48-yard line, linebacker Samuel Omosigho stuffed Darrion Dupree to seal the game.

He and fellow linebacker Jalen Woods were crucial in stymying the Badgers, combining for 13 tackles. Defensive end Scott Taylor added a tackle for loss, and fought past Wisconsin’s offensive line to sack Joseph and pry the ball free in the first half. The Badgers recovered that fumble and fell on another that Omosigho forced later.

“We would have loved to jump on one of those fumbles,” Taylor said, “But I think it just came down to fundamentals. … We played really sound football.”

Saturday’s win wasn’t the rushing barrage at Cal or the second-half breakout against San Diego State. The offense didn’t touch 500 yards as it did when torching Purdue. The defense didn’t force any turnovers after getting a combined 12 out of Maryland and Oregon.

No. This was a gritty win.

An experience any team with College Football Playoff aspirations needs to endure. The Bruins are certainly that, and have a path to the postseason. They face Michigan State at the Rose Bowl next Saturday at 12:30 p.m., and have a remaining schedule that includes just one currently-ranked team in No. 19 USC.