D6 THURSDAY, AUGUST 29, 2019 LATIMES.COM/SPORTS
A look at five games to watch during Week 1 of the college
football season.
No. 14 Utah (0-0) at
Brigham Young (0-0)Tonight, 7:15 PDT, ESPNWhat better to get the first full weekend of college football off
to a good start than a bloodthirsty rivalry? Utah is the better
team, but the game is in Provo, so anything could happen.
The Cougars blew a 20-0 lead last season in the regular-sea-
son finale against the Utes before falling 35-27. Utah was
without quarterback Tyler Huntley and running back Zack
Moss because of injury, but the fact that BYU came so close
to the upset means it will have confidence going into this one.
Northwestern (0-0) at
No. 24 Stanford (0-0)Saturday, 1 p.m. PDT, Ch. 11In 2015, Stanford lost at Northwestern 16-6 in the first part of
this home-and-home series. That loss kept the Cardinal out
of the College Football Playoff. Stanford finished the year in
the Top 5 with a 12-2 record and a Rose Bowl win over Iowa.
It’s payback time for Stanford, but is this team good enough
to put Northwestern down with ease? The Cardinal have a
veteran quarterback in K.J. Costello, which should give them
the edge, even though the Wildcats’ Hunter Johnson — a
transfer from Clemson — was a highly rated prospect.
Boise State (0-0) vs.
Florida State (0-0)Saturday, 4 p.m. PDT, ESPNAfter this game in Jacksonville, Fla., one of these programs is
going to feel closer to being back to standard than it actually
is. Of course, that is what the first week of the season is all
about, right? If Boise State wins against Florida State, it will
feel like a giant killer again and carry aspirations to represent
the Group of Five in a New Year’s Six bowl. If the Seminoles
win in their first game with Kendal Briles as offensive coordi-
nator, they will feel like a team that can at least dream of com-
peting with Clemson and Florida.
No. 16 Auburn (0-0) vs.
No. 11 Oregon (0-0)Saturday, 4:30 p.m. PDT, Ch. 7The game of the weekend, to be played in Arlington, Texas, is
a rematch of the 2010 national championship game, won by
Cam Newton’s Auburn squad. This is the second straight
year the Tigers open with a high-profile Pac-12 opponent, as
the Tigers beat Washington last year 21-16. For the Ducks to
fare better than the Huskies, they will need senior quarter-
back Justin Herbert to outperform Auburn’s true freshman
quarterback Bo Nix, who was rated as one of the top
prospects nationally and beat out redshirt freshman Joey
Gatewood in fall camp.
Houston (0-0) at
No. 4 Oklahoma (0-0)Sunday, 4:30 p.m. PDT, Ch. 7The Sooners are heavy favorites, but that doesn’t mean it
won’t be one of the most entertaining games of the weekend.
Houston features dynamic dual-threat quarterback D’Eriq
King in his first game being directed by new head coach Dana
Holgorsen. Holgorsen knows Oklahoma well from his time at
West Virginia. The big question is how former Alabama quar-
teback Jalen Hurts fares running Lincoln Riley’s prolific
offense in his Sooners debut.
GAMES TO WATCH
By J. Brady McCollough
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
TODAY
Favorite Line (O/U) Underdog
at Cincinnati 3 (57^1 ⁄ 2 ) UCLA
at Clemson 37 (60^1 ⁄ 2 ) Georgia Tech
at Tulane 21 ⁄ 2 (58) Florida Int.
at Texas A&M 331 ⁄ 2 (57^1 ⁄ 2 ) Texas State
at Arizona St. 241 ⁄ 2 (59^1 ⁄ 2 ) Kent St
Utah 61 ⁄ 2 (48) at BYU
FRIDAY
at Army 211 ⁄ 2 (48) Rice
at Wake Forest 31 ⁄ 2 (60) Utah St
Wisconsin 121 ⁄ 2 (59^1 ⁄ 2 ) at South Florida
at Michigan State 23 (47) Tulsa
at Rutgers 151 ⁄ 2 (55^1 ⁄ 2 ) Massachussets
Colorado 131 ⁄ 2 (55^1 ⁄ 2 ) Colorado St.
Purdue 11 (58^1 ⁄ 2 ) at Nevada
Oklahoma St. 14 (72) at Oregon St.
SATURDAY
at Ohio State 271 ⁄ 2 (63^1 ⁄ 2 ) Florida Atlantic
at Nebraska 36 (66) South Alabama
at NC State 17 (53^1 ⁄ 2 ) East Carolina
at Illinois 18 (60^1 ⁄ 2 ) Akron
Indiana 17 (60) Ball State
at Kentucky 12 (62) Toledo
Mississippi St. 20 (60) Louisiana-Lafayette
at Memphis 51 ⁄ 2 (66^1 ⁄ 2 ) Mississippi
at Tennessee 26 (57^1 ⁄ 2 ) Georgia St
E. Michigan 6 (53^1 ⁄ 2 ) at Coastal Caro.
South Carolina 101 ⁄ 2 (63^1 ⁄ 2 ) North Carolina
Alabama 331 ⁄ 2 (57) Duke
at Stanford 61 ⁄ 2 (47^1 ⁄ 2 ) Northwestern
Virginia Tech 5 (58) at Boston College
Syracuse 19 (68) at Liberty
Florida St 41 ⁄ 2 (51^1 ⁄ 2 ) Boise St
at Arkansas St. 3 (56) SMU
at Michigan 341 ⁄ 2 (54) Middle Tenn.
at Iowa 211 ⁄ 2 (47) Miami (Ohio)
at LSU 271 ⁄ 2 (52^1 ⁄ 2 ) Georgia Southern
Georgia 21 (58) at Vanderbilt
Virginia 21 ⁄ 2 (46^1 ⁄ 2 ) at Pittsburgh
Missouri 171 ⁄ 2 (55^1 ⁄ 2 ) at Wyoming
Auburn 31 ⁄ 2 (56) Oregon
at Texas 201 ⁄ 2 (54^1 ⁄ 2 ) Louisiana Tech
at Washington St. 31 (64^1 ⁄ 2 ) New Mexico St
at USC 131 ⁄ 2 (52^1 ⁄ 2 ) Fresno St
SUNDAY
at Oklahoma 23 (79^1 ⁄ 2 ) Houston
MONDAY
Notre Dame 19 (54^1 ⁄ 2 ) at LouisvilleODDS
National college football writer J. Brady McCollough takes
aim at 10 potentially competitive matchups on this week-
end’s schedule:
8 UCLA at Cincinnati: Cincinnati 27-24
The schedule-makers did the young Bruins no favors with
this opener.
8 Utah at Brigham Young: Utah 31-16
The Holy War will go to the Utes for the ninth straight time
thanks to the running of Zack Moss.
8 Utah State at Wake Forest: Wake Forest 30-24
The Demon Deacons will be a team to watch in the ACC
with Jamie Newman at quarterback.
8 Mississippi at Memphis: Memphis 41-35
The Rebels will play their first game with Rich Rodriguez as
offensive coordinator. His expertise won’t be enough.
8 Northwestern at Stanford: Stanford 20-17
A low-scoring game will be won late on the leg of Stanford
kicker Jet Toner.
8 Virginia Tech at Boston College: Boston College 24-20
The Eagles will grind the clock behind talented running
back AJ Dillon and trust their defense.
8 Boise State vs. Florida State: Florida State 28-23
The Seminoles’ skill wins out with Boise State starting a
freshman quarterback.
8 Auburn vs. Oregon: Auburn 27-21
The Tigers’ defense will hold Oregon long enough for fresh-
man quarterback Bo Nix to find his sea legs.
8 Virginia at Pittsburgh: Virginia 29-21
The Cavaliers are trying to take the next step this year, and
they survive a tricky ACC opener.
8 Fresno State at USC: USC 38-17
Things may start slowly for the Trojans in the Air Raid, but
they will eventually overwhelm Fresno State.
For McCullough’s predictions for the College Football Play-
off, Power Five Conference championship games, New
Year’s bowl game pairings and game-by-game predictions
for all Power Five schools and projected conference stand-
ings, visit latimes.com/sports
PICK ’EM
veiled in 2018 wasn’t just a
one-year blunder.
UCLA is coming off a
three-year stretch in which
its 4-8, 6-7, 3-9 records read
like a Powerball jackpot but
are in fact its darkest period
since Bill Barnes closed his
coaching tenure with a third
consecutive losing season in
1964.
Kelly was hired to reverse
the downturn that started
under predecessor Jim
Mora, but his early rebuild-
ing efforts yielded a 3-9
record that gave the Bruins
their fewest wins in a season
since going 3-7-1 in 1989.
Playing a school-record
21 true freshmen led to grow-
ing pains that their coach
hopes will result in signifi-
cant second-year gains.
“Teams that have experi-
ence, that’s the one thing
you can’t teach,” Kelly said.
“It’s a matter of throwing
them in the mix and letting
them sort through all those
situations. But then, when
they get to those situations
again, they have tangible ev-
idence on how to execute it
one way as opposed to an-
other way because they’ve
been in it before. So I think
that will be beneficial to us.”Officially, UCLA has 18
starters back, the second-
most in the Pac-12 Confer-
ence. But one could easily
bump that figure up to 19
because sophomore
quarterback Dorian
Thompson-Robinson start-
ed seven games last season
after relieving the injured
Wilton Speight before half-
time of the opener against
Cincinnati.
The situation facing
Thompson-Robinson that
day in his college debut illus-
trated the challenges facing
his team.
Christaphany Murray
started at center as a true
freshman, making him the
first UCLA player to do so
since 1982.
Running back Joshua
Kelley was a month away
from becoming a break-
through star. The offensive
play calls were purposefully
bland to compensate for
Thompson-Robinson’s new-
ness.
“I was young, inexperi-
enced, didn’t really know
the offense, had three weeks
under my belt with this
team and stuff like that,”
Thompson-Robinson re-
called of a performance that
ended in a 26-17 defeat. “Andlooking now, it’s a lot differ-
ent, this whole team is a lot
different, the attitude is dif-
ferent and everything about
it.”
Speed is everywhere.
Running backs Kazmeir
Allen and Keegan Jones
were high school state sprint
champions, and there’s
some debate as to whether
they’re the fastest players on
the team. Cornerback Dar-
nay Holmes and receiver
Jaylen Erwin are also among
those in the mix for that des-
ignation.
The team remains ex-
ceedingly young, with 64
freshmen and 23 sopho-
mores on the 119-man roster,
but unlike last season
there’s at least some experi-
ence at almost every posi-
tion.
“That first year, it was
kind of cloudy for some of the
things,” said Murray, who
moved to guard later in the
season upon the return of
center Boss Tagaloa from a
suspension, “and now it’s
like I know what I need to
do.”
Most Bruins are now in
the know. The projected
starting lineup against
the Bearcats includes five
seniors, eight juniors andeight sophomores, not to
mention 31-year-old gradu-
ate transfer punter Wade
Lees.
Left tackle Sean Rhyan is
likely the only true freshman
who will start, though Jones
and linebacker Carl Jones
(no relation) are other true
freshmen who could con-
tribute.
The players aren’t the
only ones with something to
prove. Kelly must satisfy a
portion of the fan base vacil-
lating about whether the
Bruins hired the “Oregon
Chip” who went 46-7 in four
seasons with the Ducks or
the “NFL Chip” who flamed
out after four seasons at
football’s highest level.
Beating the team that
handed Kelly his first loss at
UCLA would be a good start.
Junior safety Quentin Lake
said payback for last sea-
son’s loss to the Bearcats at
the Rose Bowl was “manda-
tory,” though it would be just
the first shush in a season in-
tended to quiet the doubt-
ers.
“Last year didn’t go our
way,” redshirt freshman re-
ceiver Kyle Philips said, “so
we’re just super pumped to
get out there and prove ev-
eryone wrong.”CHIP KELLY, who went 3-9 in 2018, says having so many freshmen play last season “will be beneficial to us.”Harry HowGetty ImagesBruins looking for a reboot
[UCLA,from D1]Marquee matchup
UCLA quarterback
Dorian Thompson-Rob-
inson vs. the Cincinnati
defense. It wasn’t a fair fight
when these entities went
head to head last year,
Thompson-Robinson unex-
pectedly making his college
debut before halftime after
an injury to Wilton Speight.
The freshman predictably
struggled against one of the
nation’s top defenses during
the Bruins’ 26-17 loss, but he
should be on at least equal
footing in the rematch. A
year to learn coach Chip
Kelly’s offense and the pres-
ence of four returning start-
ers on the offensive line, not
to mention an established
Joshua Kelley at running
back, could make all the
difference.Getting offensive
8 UCLA(392.6 ypg/24.6
ppg in 2018): The Bruins
averaged 31 points and 475
yards of offense over their
final four games last season,
but three of those games
were started by the since-
departed Speight. Thomp-
son-Robinson could repli-
cate those numbers if he can
show improved touch on
short passes and find a go-to
receiver to replace tight end
Caleb Wilson, who now plays
for the NFL’s Arizona Cardi-
nals.8 Cincinnati(458.5
ypg/34.9 ppg in 2018): The
Bearcats should be able to
absorb the absence of run-
ning backs Tavion Thomas
(suspension) and Charles
McClelland (knee injury)
because they’re stocked at
the position with Michael
Warren II and Gerrid Doaks.
Quarterback Desmond
Ridder also doubles as a
running back because of his
ability to churn out yardage
on the ground.Getting defensive
8 UCLA(444.9 ypg/34.1
ppg in 2018): With almost
everyone returning to the
Bruins defense from a year
ago, the joke about both the
good news and bad news
applying is apt. Ten starters
are back to prove that the
team’s weaker half is no
longer a pushover. The
sophomore-laden defensive
line must stand firm if UCLA
is to make a significant leap
in wins.
8 Cincinnati(303.5
ypg/17.2 ppg in 2018): The
Bearcats generated sacks
galore last season thanks
largely to a stout defensive
line, which has undergone
an almost total makeover.
Likely starters Myjai Sand-
ers, Elijah Ponder and
Jabari Taylor combined for
only one sack last season —
14 fewer than the trio they
are replacing.Something special
UCLA has revamped itsspecial teams with a new
coordinator in Derek Sage
and an experienced punter
in 31-year-old graduate
transfer Wade Lees. The
Bruins’ numerous special-
teams blunders last season
included having 12 men on
the field after a timeout
against Cincinnati, giving
the Bearcats a fourth and
goal at the one-yard line that
they converted into a touch-
down for the game’s final
points.Of note
UCLA’s 64 freshmen (43
true freshmen, 21 redshirts)
represent 53.3% of its roster,
the highest percentage in
the nation. Only Nebraska,
with 78 freshmen, tops the
Bruins’ total number.Injury report
The Bruins will play
without linebacker Tyree
Thompson, who is expected
to miss at least a handful of
games while recovering from
foot surgery. Linebacker
Keisean Lucier-South, the
team’s top returning pass
rusher, must sit out at least
three games while address-
ing academic shortcomings.
Receiver Theo Howard
(wrist) and left tackle Alec
Anderson (leg surgery) are
expected to play but not
start after being slowed by
injuries in training camp. ...
In addition to the sidelined
Thomas and McClelland,
the Bearcats are expected to
be without defensive backs
James Wiggins (knee) and
Arquon Bush (foot).QUARTERBACKDesmond Ridder is a threat with
his legs and his arm for the Bearcats.Marcio Jose SanchezAssociated PressMATCHUPS:
UCLA (0-0) at
Cincinnati (0-0)
Tonight, 4 PDT, Nippert Stadium. TV: ESPN. Radio: 1150.By Ben Bolch