Joel Klatt explains why UCLA can make the College Football Playoff
Joel Klatt believes UCLA can set up a truly special season with a win over Oregon State this weekend.
The 18th-ranked Bruins (4-1, 1-1 Pac-12) head to Corvallis to face the 15th-ranked Beavers (5-1, 2-1 Pac-12) on Saturday for a 5 p.m. PT kick on FOX. Coming off a win over then-No. 13 Washington State, UCLA can solidify itself as a real threat in the Pac-12 title race if it can knock off the Beavs.
And, given the Pac-12 schedule this season, Klatt believes a win for UCLA this weekend opens the door to a College Football Playoff run.
“Is it likely? Probably not, but it’s a team that just beat Washington State — and handled Washington State,” the FOX Sports analyst said on his podcast this week. “If you guys haven’t seen Dante Moore play, you need to see him play. He’s a very talented true freshman, learning on the job at quarterback.”
Klatt referenced the pick-six against Utah that was a huge force in the 14-7 loss. Moore threw a pick-six against Washington State last week, too.
“And yet the defense (and) their ability to run the football allowed them to continue to have success,” Klatt said.
That’s the big point right there. UCLA has the best defense in the country by efficiency, giving up 3.7 yards per play. The group is top-10 in a host of other important categories. And the Bruins can run the football well, ranking 23rd in rushing efficiency.
“They’ve got a really, really good defense,” Klatt said. “This is the one thing that all of these offenses in the Pac-12 — how are they going to react if they don’t go out there and score 40 points?”
UCLA misses both Oregon and Washington this season. It plays Colorado at home. USC is at the L.A. Coliseum.
“If they can get past Oregon State this week in Corvallis, all of the sudden their schedule is way easier than the rest of the Pac-12,” Klatt said. “They could absolutely beat SC. I think that the toughest remaining game for UCLA is this weekend.
“If UCLA wins this weekend, watch out. … If they go to Vegas and beat this week’s winner (in) Oregon-Washington — let’s say one of those teams goes — and they go in there and beat them, UCLA’s going to the Playoff. Now it’s about can your quarterback get better? Can your run game get continue to get better? Chip Kelly has quietly built something very good.”
"If they can get past Oregon State this weekend in Corvallis all the sudden their schedule is way easier than the rest of the Pac-12."@JoelKlatt breaks down why he considers UCLA a sleeper team to make the CFP ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/itmffKShNw
— The Joel Klatt Show: A CFB Pod (@JoelKlattShow) October 11, 2023