Washington Football: Game-by-game predictions for 2017

UCLA is hoping to have a resurgent 2017 season. That is largely due to the return of junior quarterback Josh Rosen, who missed half of last year due to injury. As a result, the Bruins tanked out of bowl eligibility as they finished 4-8. They were just 2-7 in Pac-12 action, and are hoping for a quick turnaround in what is likely Rosen’s last season in Pasadena.

Last year the Bruins played the Huskies, that 2014 team took down Washington 44-30 in Seattle. But Rosen was not on the roster yet, and the few players that remain were not on the field for any meaningful snaps. These two teams will see each other effectively for the first time in this interdivisional encounter.

Like the Huskies, the Bruins lost five defensive starters, several of whom were high draft choices. They have a lot more question marks overall, though, and winning in Seattle will be a much tougher proposition than it was three years ago. UCLA, though, has the team to at least keep things close.

Prediction: Washington 28, UCLA 20 (8-0, 5-0 Pac-12)

The home crowd will be silenced for stretches as the Bruins take an early lead and perhaps even hold it into the half. But the tank will run out of fumes by the end of the third quarter. That’s when Washington, coming off its bye week, will claw its way back to take their first lead of the game at 21-20. Lavon Coleman will add an insurance touchdown at the end of a long drive late in the tense contest. Thus Washington will remain unbeaten through two-thirds of the season.