No. 24 — UCLA Bruins
That’s right, it’s the UCLA Bruins who are the third Pac-12 team to be ranked inside the Top-25, not the USC Trojans, per USAT. This is a stark contrast from ESPN, who had the Trojans ranked all the way up at No. 12 in their preseason polls. Apparently, USC’s lack of an established offensive and defensive line may be to blame, though they have arguably as strong of weapons as anyone in the nation. Regardless, the Bruins are flying under the radar a bit this year, with Dorian Thompson-Robinson coming back for a potentially great final year of college under Chip Kelly. Here’s USAT’s take:
Chip Kelly’s slow build of the Bruins hasn’t produced dramatic results each year but he has the program in contention to make a run for the Pac-12 title. Dorian Thompson-Robinson passed on the NFL and will be one of the top quarterbacks in the country. Running back Zach Charbonnet gives the offense balance. The biggest upgrades are needed on defense, especially in the secondary where UCLA struggled in its four losses. The transfer portal addressed some of the needs. There’s still uncertainty how it will shake out in the fall.
[mm-video type=video id=01g2ee3xrx7gsr0g4qqn playlist_id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g2ee3xrx7gsr0g4qqn/01g2ee3xrx7gsr0g4qqn-61d3ce739b16f0e6238fe01b52c1973e.jpg]
[listicle id=23974]