Getty Max Borghi #21 of the Washington State Cougars carries the ball against Ben Burr-Kirven #25 of the Washington Huskies in the first half at Martin Stadium during the 111th Apple Cup on November 23, 2018 in Pullman, Washington.
The winless UCLA Bruins visit the undefeated Washington State Cougars on Saturday night, as both teams open Pac-12 play.
UCLA has lost three straight games straight up and against the spread to start the season, including last week’s 48-14 home loss against Oklahoma while Washington State is 3-0 after struggling to beat Houston 31-24 last Friday.
While UCLA leads the all-time series 39-21-1, Washington State has won the last two games, including a 27-21 victory on October 15, 2016.
UCLA Bruins (0-3) vs. No. 19 Washington State Cougars (3-0)
Saturday, September 21 at 10:30 PM ET
Martin Stadium
Coverage: ESPN
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Jazz Sports
- UCLA vs. No. 19 Washington State -18
- Over/Under: 58
UCLA Bruins
The Bruins will open @pac12 play Saturday, when they visit Washington State for the first time since 2016. ESPN will provide coverage, beginning at 7:30 p.m., PT.
UCLA gave up 611 yards of total offense against Oklahoma, with Jalen Hurts completing 15 of 20 passes for 289 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 150 yards and one touchdown on 14 carries. Dorian Thompson-Robinson‘s passing game has to improve or it will be a long night for UCLA.
Thompson-Robinson completed just 15 of 26 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions. Demetric Felton ran for 65 yards on five carries and Devin Asiasi caught three passes for 71 yards.
Oklahoma outgained UCLA 611-311, they had 26 first downs to UCLA’s 21 and won the time of possession 31:38 to 28:22.
Washington State Cougars
Martin Stadium will be rocking on Saturday Night as we take on UCLA! #GoCougs #JoinTheHunt
The Washington State air raid offense hasn’t taken a step back now that redshirt senior Anthony Gordon is under center. Gordon completed 36 of 48 passes for 440 yards and three touchdowns with one interception in the 31-24 win against Houston and he ran for 16 yards on seven carries. Max Borghi ran for 40 yards and one touchdown on nine carries and Brandon Arconado caught nine passes for 115 yards.
Gordon has thrown for 420 yards or more in all his three games this season and leads the FBS with 441.3 passing yards per game and 12 passing touchdowns. Washington State outgained Houston 489-367, they had 25 first downs to Houston’s 22 and won the time of possession 32:06 to 27:54.
Trends and Prediction
The UCLA Bruins are:
- 6-14 ATS in their last 20 road games
- 6-19-1 ATS in their last 26 games after allowing more than 450 total yards in their previous game
- 5-16-1 ATS in their last 22 games in September
The Washington State Cougars are:
- 7-0 ATS in their last seven games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game
- 7-1 ATS in their last eight games against a team with a losing record
- 12-3 ATS in their last 15 home games
- 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games in September
- 13-4 ATS in their last 17 home games against a team with a losing road record
Washington State leads the nation with 476.0 passing yards per game and they have six wide receivers with 10 or more receptions through three games. UCLA allows 279.0 passing yards per game, along with a Pac-12-worst 10.5 yards per catch, so this won’t end well.
UCLA averages just 263.3 total yards per game, they have scored just 14 points in each of their first three games and is hard to see them keep up with a Washington State team that can score at will.
Pick: Washington State -18
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