The recent struggles of the University of Michigan and Ohio State football teams, and the fact that defending national champion Indiana is a far cry from the powerhouse it was last year, has the college football world salivating over the prospect of snapping the BIG10’s string of three straight CFP titles.
However, an uninvited guest has now crashed this party. UCLA has climbed to the top of the BIG10 standings and (with Utah) is one of only two remaining unbeatens among Power 4 teams. The Bruins were nowhere to be found in the pre-season AP rankings. In fact, they didn’t receive a single vote.
Their first appearance in the Top 25 came in week five, debuting at No. 23. The Bruins have been ascending ever since and are presently eighth in the CFP projections.
UCLA’s success comes in direct contrast to the relative decline of the BIG10’s last three national champs. Michigan, who won it all in 2023, is reeling from a humiliating home loss to in-state rival Michigan State. Afterwards, offensive coordinator Jason Beck was fired.
“The results have not matched our desired outcome,” Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham said in a statement announcing Beck’s dismissal, reflecting on his obvious disappointment in a 5-4 season. “I felt that a change in leadership was required for our offense.”
Ohio State, national champs in 2024, was overwhelmed by Oregon on its home field last weekend. Not to be outdone by the wobbling Wolverines, the Buckeyes – pre-season No. 1 – have fired special teams coordinator Robby Discher.
“I’ve got to evaluate everything, figure out with the staff the things that we’re just coming up short on and figure out how to adjust those things,” head coach Ryan Day told ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg after the loss to Oregon. “There needs to be accountability for all of it and then we go from there.”
And what of Indiana, which took a buzzsaw to the 2025 playoffs enroute to its first national championship? True, the Hoosiers have cut through the first nine games of their schedule this year with just one loss. However, since starting conference play, five of their six games have been one-score affairs. That includes a 19-15 loss to now-reeling Ohio State on Oct. 17.
Which brings us back to UCLA, whose remaining three regular-season games come against teams with a combined 18-9 record. It’s more than 20 years since a west coast team won a national championship. But first-year head coach Bob Chesney is steering away from the playoff buzz now circling overhead.
“No thoughts on that. We don’t watch. Just totally neutral on whatever they might say. That’s not what we’re here for,” Chesney said in his post-game press conference following the most recent win over Minnesota. “We’re here to focus on being the best that we possibly can be. We gotta win our football games and we did that today.”
Next up for the Bruins is Illinois (6-3) followed by a date with Michigan. Then comes the rivalry game against Southern Cal (7-2), presently ranked 15th.
If the BIG10 Conference were to win another national championship this season, it would match the Southeastern Conference’s run of four straight from 2019-22. That included LSU, Alabama and Georgia (back-to-back in 2021-22).
UCLA Has BIG10 Poised for Potential 4th Straight CFP Championship