BYU Cougars Football: Five most important games in 2015

Nov 28, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins wide receiver Thomas Duarte (18), quarterback Brett Hundley (17) and wide receiver Devin Fuller (7) celebrate a touchdown in the first half of the game against the Stanford Cardinal at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

4. September 19 At UCLA

Seriously what did Bronco Mendenhall do to upset the football gods? In back to back weeks Mendenhall faces Jim Harbaugh and Jim Mora. Two of the least likable coaches in football. For Mendenhall this is a chance for him to prove he is one of the best coaches in the country. Mendenhall is constantly overlooked mostly because of a lack of huge consistent success against big power five schools. Mendenhall has four chances to prove he and BYU can compete against power five schools.

UCLA is many experts sleeper pick to make the playoffs. The pre-season 13th best team in the country is returning a ton of talent from a team that went 10-3 and won a bowl game in 2014. BYU has the advantage at quarterback at the very least with Hill. UCLA will be starting freshman Josh Rosen the highly recruited five-star recruit.

This game will likely come down to which teams defense can win the turnover battle. If BYU can control the ball and win the turnover battle this game is very winnable. The trenches are an area of concern for BYU. UCLA has an excellent offensive line and defensive line. BYU has the talent to match up those lines but lacks depth to rotate as often as UCLA will.

BYU will need to come out early and put Rosen in a position where the team needs him to win the game for UCLA. If they can do that I really like their chances here and improve on their overall record against UCLA of 3-7.

Next: Nebraska