UCLA Football builds 2021 resume, Top 25 credentials in big win over LSU

UCLA football secured a signature non-conference win for its 2021 season after taking down LSU at the Rose Bowl. Could they be Pac-12 contenders this year?

Entering his fourth season leading UCLA football, Chip Kelly found himself at a crossroads. Kelly won just 10 games over his first three seasons in Los Angeles, and time was running out on the promised hope of a Bruins turnaround. 2021 was always going to be the season where Kelly either showed his cards or found himself out of a job.

Through two games, Kelly has generated a promising start that has fortified the promise that seasoned the buzz throughout the season. After a decisive 44-10 takedown of Hawaii in Week 0, the Bruins turned around and faced an LSU team only two years removed from an undefeated College Football Playoff championship season.

As 1.5-point underdogs on its home turf, UCLA football came out at the Rose Bowl and dominated the Bayou Bengals in a decisive 38-27 victory. The win will likely push the Bruins into the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2017 when they crept in at No. 25 for a single week in September before ducking out just as quickly.

UCLA football looks different

This year’s UCLA team looks built to last. The defense proved especially formidable, holding LSU under 400 total yards of offense and forcing a Max Johnson interception on the opening drive of the second half that quickly turned into seven points in the other direction.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson threw the ball just 16 times, but he finished with 260 yards and three touchdowns on his nine attempts. Michigan transfer Zach Charbonnet continued his strong start to the season at his new home, needing just 11 carries to rush for 117 yards and a score.

It was a statement win not just for UCLA but for the Pac-12 as a conference. Without a College Football Playoff qualifier since 2017, the Pac-12 has struggled to remain relevant in the national picture in recent years. Losses in intersectional showdowns have stymied momentum built by western teams.

This win was exactly what the Pac-12 needed to bolster its chances of reaching the Playoff in 2021. Whether it is UCLA or not remains to be seen, but Chip Kelly’s squad showed that it has a strong offense that combined a commitment to the ground game with the legitimate threat of Thompson-Robinson using his arm on every play.

A wide-open Pac-12 South race could align for the Bruins, but at the very least the league gained a lot of respect from this prime-time spectacle.