UCLA Football: 3 bold predictions for Utah matchup in Week 9

UCLA football is riding a two-game winning streak and the Bruins will be hosting No. 23 Utah for a big Week 9 matchup. It’s time to get bold.

Chip Kelly took over at UCLA (2-5) with the intention of bringing the Bruins back to relevancy. Jim Mora had just struggled with a roller-coaster tenure in Los Angeles and Kelly was expected to bring the program back from the brink and his offense would accompany him.

After an 0-5 start, UCLA has won two straight over Cal and Arizona and looks to be on the right track, welcoming No. 23 Utah (5-2) to town on Friday night. The Utes have won three straight, including victories over UCLA and Stanford.

Let’s get bold ahead of this Friday night edition of Pac-12 After Dark.

3. Joshua Kelley has best game of the year

Three games into his first year with the UCLA Bruins after transferring over from UC Davis, Joshua Kelley’s role in the offense seemed to be nothing more than just depth.

In fact, he rushed 11 total times for 27 yards in those first three contests, and then everything changed. The offense started to pick up again under Chip Kelly and the junior running back thrived in the role of starter. He has seen his carries expand in each of the past four games, finishing with a career-best 31 in Week 8 against Arizona — not something UCLA fans are used to.

On those 31 touches, he rushed for 136 yards, his fourth consecutive 100-yard game. He’s going to top 100 yet again versus Utah and he’ll actually break his career-high of 157 yards which he accounted for against the Cal Golden Bears in Week 7.

We will see Kelley torch an elite run defense for at least 160 yards and two scores.