The No. 7 USC Trojans visit the No. 16 UCLA Bruins on Saturday. In our continued college football odds series, we provide our USC-UCLA prediction, odds and picks. Nonetheless, with a focus on Dorian Thompson-Robinson and other key talents, let’s make our best USC-UCLA bet and picks.
USC (9-1) is riding a three-game win streak, having taken down Arizona, California and Colorado. While having a successful season, it hasn’t played well on the road with a 3-1 road record and having won those games by an average of 5.75 points per game.
UCLA (8-2), on the other hand, is coming off a home loss to Arizona which tanked it from No. 9 to No. 16. It has taken down Utah and Washington, both at home and lost to Oregon 45-30 on the road this season.
Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET at the Rose Bowl on Saturday. Let’s dive into the USC-UCLA prediction.
College Football Odds: USC-UCLA Odds
USC: +2.5 (-110)
UCLA: -2.5 (-110)
Over: 76.5 (-110)
Under: 76.5 (-110)
Dorian Thompson-Robinson a Dual Threat for UCLA
The UCLA offense is spearheaded by two stars, running back Zach Charbonnet and quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
DTR has 20 touchdowns on the season and adds in 7 more on the ground while Charbonnet has found the endzone 13 times. The Bruins attack is one of the best in the nation, sitting 11th in points per game. It has been aided by the efficiency of their two stars as DTR has a 71% completion rate and Charbonnet has a 7.5 yards-per-carry average.
The letdown for this team, which has come into play with both losses, is their defense which sits 71st of 131 FBS programs in points allowed. North Texas linebacker transfer Grayson Murphy is the name to keep an eye on as he has 9 tackles for a loss and 5 sacks on the season. Nonetheless, in both losses, the Bruins have allowed at least 34 points.
USC Road Struggles a Major Concern
The Trojans are going to be a major problem for UCLA, and it is another quarterback-running back duo that spearheads their main attack. USC’s chief weapon is Caleb Williams.
He has 31 passing touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He’s a dynamic, big-play weapon as Williams has just a 63.7% completion rate. He also is a competent rusher as he has 6 touchdowns to go along with his unprecedented passing figures. Williams transferred from Oklahoma, where he had 21 touchdowns and 4 interceptions as a freshman.
The Trojans also have Travis Dye on their side, and he is a dual-threat back, coupling as a capable pass-catching weapon as well. He has 884 rushing yards on 145 carries which equates to a 6.1 yards-per-carry average. He adds 202 receiving yards to that as well.
The Trojans’ attack ranks 3rd in the nation, averaging 42.4 points per game. They have topped that just once on the road though and have been held to under 30 in two of their four road battles. Much like UCLA, which is why this total sits at 76.5, USC struggles defensely, sitting 51st in opponents’ points per game. DL Tuli Tuipulotu is a name to keep an eye on as he has 17.5 tackles for a loss and 11.5 sacks. His numbers have been absolutely fantastic, and he could be the main reason USC wins this battle.
Final USC-UCLA Prediction and Pick
UCLA is 4-3 against the spread (ATS) at home, and USC isn’t the same beast on the road. The Bruins are also 5-2 ATS in conference games while USC is just 4-4. UCLA is also 2-1 ATS this season as an underdog.
While USC has the better defense, the Bruins attack has the same versatility and the concerns for the Trojans’ road performances should loom large.
Best USC-UCLA Bet: UCLA +2.5 (-110) at FanDuel | Playable to +2.0 (-105)
