Saturday Blitz
Fansided

UCLA football will be serious Pac-12 title contender in 2021

By Connor Muldowney

Dec 19, 2020; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) sets to throws a pass in the first half of the game against the Stanford Cardinal at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 19, 2020; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) sets to throws a pass in the first half of the game against the Stanford Cardinal at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next
Dec 12, 2020; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins defensive back Quentin Lake (37) celebrates after intercepting a pass in the first quarter against the Southern California Trojans at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 12, 2020; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins defensive back Quentin Lake (37) celebrates after intercepting a pass in the first quarter against the Southern California Trojans at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

How will UCLA football fare in 2021?

As stated earlier, the 2021 schedule is going to be absolutely brutal for the Bruins, so any bowl berth would be a huge victory for Chip Kelly and a step in the right direction.

How will the Bruins’ season play out?

  • Game 1: Hawaii (W) — Usually this would seem like a high-scoring affair, but I think UCLA’s defense will have a solid start to the year and the Bruins will win this one by three touchdowns.
  • Game 2: LSU (L) — When you think of LSU vs. UCLA, you’d probably just assume the Tigers win in blowout fashion, but the Bruins will nearly pull off this upset.
  • Game 3: Fresno State (W) — Fresno State might be improved this season, but UCLA will be able to take it to the Bulldogs in Week 3.
  • Game 4: at Stanford (W) — Winning at Stanford isn’t an easy task, but the Bruins will find a way here in their first road game of the season.
  • Game 5: Arizona State (W) — A lot has gone on with Arizona State off the field this season and that’ll be hanging over the Sun Devils’ program like a dark cloud.
  • Game 6: at Arizona (W) — Yeah, this one’s not going to be close.
  • Game 7: at Washington (L) — Sitting just one win from bowl eligibility, UCLA will be entering the beef of its schedule and Washington isn’t going to roll over.
  • Game 8: Oregon (L) — Although this one’s at home, the Bruins will fail to reach bowl eligibility here in an exciting battle.
  • Game 9: at Utah (L) — Will the tough battles ever end?
  • Game 10: Colorado (W) — Yes, the tough games end here as the Bruins exact revenge over an average Colorado team that takes a step back in 2021. UCLA is bowl-bound.
  • Game 11: at USC (L) — Clay Helton is also fighting for his job and this is a rivalry game, but Kedon Slovis will be too much here.
  • Game 12: Cal (W) — UCLA won’t be content with just six wins and a bowl berth as the Bruins take it to Cal in the season finale, winning by a couple of touchdowns.

Final record: 7-5, 5-4 Pac-12

After going just 10-21 in his first three years with UCLA, Kelly is going to find some success in 2021, building off his solid 2020 campaign. He’ll earn another year with the program and recruiting will see an uptick.

Don’t look now, but UCLA may be a problem in the Pac-12 for the next handful of years.

Next. Way-too-early preseason Top 25 projections for 2021. dark

Home/UCLA Bruins