With a new coach in town, there have been some departures from the UCLA football program. Collin Schlee and Dante Moore are some of them, as well as Kyle Ford. However, it wasn’t a mass exodus like we have seen from other programs, and UCLA brought in some talent in the transfer portal.
Brandon Marcello of 247Sports ranked the net ratings of all 18 Big Ten Conference teams and UCLA was 15th on the list.
DeShaun Foster had to hold the roster together after Chip Kelly left to become the offensive coordinator at Ohio State, and did a good job for the most part. Most notably Foster convinced Jay Toia, who was ranked as the No. 3 defensive lineman in the 247Sports rankings, to return to UCLA after briefly entering the portal. The Bruins lost quarterbacks Dante Moore and Colin Schlee, and losing defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn alongside defensive back John Humphrey to crosstown USC hurts. Adding 13-game starter Alani Makihele from UNLV helps at right tackle and so does Houston offensive lineman Reuben Unije. How receiver Rico Flores (Notre Dame) fits into the system will be fascinating to watch develop.
Michigan, Maryland, and Northwestern are the only teams below UCLA on this list, but Ohio State and Purdue are at the top.