UCLA vs. Texas: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time and More
"What could have been" seems to be the theme Saturday night when No. 12 UCLA hikes to the Lone Star State for a clash with the Texas Longhorns.
On paper, this was one of the year's best overall matchups. A rejuvenated UCLA squad with a Heisman contender under center encounters a rebuilding Texas program infused with fresh blood at head coach. What could go wrong just two games into the season?
Everything, obviously.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
The Longhorns are a hobbled mess with seemingly little left in the tank already, while the Bruins have done their best fish-out-of-water impression, flopping and wailing in matchups designed to act as warm-ups before the schedule gets serious.
Yet, the encounter remains interesting, at least on some levels.
Grand Expectations…Squashed
After an 8-5 season and the departure of Mack Brown, Charlie Strong was supposed to breathe some life into a hapless program in need of direction on both sides of the football.
Instead, Strong has dealt with issues within the organization, a lack of productivity on the field and an inability to avoid the injury bug.
The Longhorns started the season with a 38-7 win over North Texas, but starting quarterback David Ash suffered a concussion in the process and is out indefinitely. So sophomore Tyrone Swoopes took the reins against BYU the week after—Strong suspended offensive tackles Kennedy Estelle and Desmond Harrison beforehand—and threw for 176 yards, a touchdown and an interception and was sacked three times.
On the flip side, BYU ran up 429 total yards, 248 of which came on the ground, and won the possession battle by nearly 10 minutes. The Longhorns defense allowed its adversary to score on all six of its trips to the red zone.
"It is an embarrassment," Strong said, per The Associated Press, via ESPN.com. "It is an embarrassment to this program and an embarrassment to the university."
UCLA coach Jim Mora understands the feeling all too well.
Preseason favorites to perhaps push for a playoff berth thanks to the presence of Heisman contender Brett Hundley under center, UCLA took to the road and escaped with a 28-20 victory over Virginia to start the season.
There, Hundley was quiet with 242 yards, and the defense gave up 386 total yards. The week after, UCLA returned home and scored a 42-35 win over Memphis, which saw Hundley somewhat get back to form with 396 passing yards and three touchdowns, although his lone interception was returned for a touchdown.
Great, but the team needed to break a fourth-quarter tie at 35 apiece against a team that went 3-9 last season.
“I’ll tell you again, there’s no satisfaction yet in the way that we are playing,” Mora said, via UCLABruins.com.
Hence the whole "Why they play the game" spiel. What was once viewed as a major, season-defining game is now merely a blip on the radar.
The Tale of Intertwined Programs
Interestingly enough, this one has storylines that span the off-field spectrum, too.
It was not too long ago that Mora was making the rounds as a possibility for major programs before he wound up putting ink to paper on an extension with the Bruins.
Texas was, of course, one of the top suitors.
ESPN.com's Chris Low documents the extent of the program's pursuit in great detail, but the highlight is certainly this nugget:
"During those conversations, Texas offered to send a private jet to pick up Mora's parents, and anybody else he wanted, and bring them to all of the Longhorns' games.
"I'm like, 'Is there a bottom to your bucket?'" Mora said he remembers thinking at the time.
"
So Texas wound up spurned. Mora is happy as is for familial reasons as much as football reasons, which is respectable in its own right. Of course, one has to think that Strong, if he didn't already, now understands that he was not the first option.
Call it a layer of much-needed intrigue for a game that features a diminished on-field product to the surprise of most.
When: Saturday, September 13, 8 p.m. ET
Where: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Television: Fox
Live Stream: Fox Sports Go
Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):
- Over/Under: 49.5
- Spread: UCLA (-6)
Team Injury Reports
| Jake Brendel | C | 09/08/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | knee |
| Randall Goforth | CB | 09/07/2014 | is doubtful for Saturday's game against Texas | Doubtful | shoulder |
| Simon Goines | T | 08/08/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | ankle |
| Myles Jack | LB | 09/08/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | ankle |
| John Johnson | DB | 08/03/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | shoulder |
| Steven Manfro | RB | 09/03/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
| Eldridge Massington | WR | 09/09/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | ankle |
| Conor McDermott | T | 09/09/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against Texas | Questionable | shoulder |
| Austin Roberts | WR | 08/15/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | knee |
| David Ash | QB | 09/07/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | concussion |
| Joe Bergeron | RB | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Chevoski Collins | S | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Greg Daniels | TE | 08/14/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| Dominic Espinosa | C | 09/03/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | ankle |
| Kennedy Estelle | T | 09/08/2014 | is suspended indefinitely | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Rami Hammad | G | 08/18/2014 | has decided to transfer | Out | personal |
| Desmond Harrison | T | 09/08/2014 | is suspended indefinitely | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Erik Huhn | S | 09/04/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
| Daje Johnson | WR | 08/04/2014 | is suspended indefinitely | Suspended | disciplinary |
| Montrel Meander | WR | 08/04/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Miles Onyegbule | TE | 08/14/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | knee |
| Jalen Overstreet | RB | 07/25/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Kendall Sanders | WR | 08/04/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Jaxon Shipley | WR | 09/09/2014 | is questionable for Saturday's game against UCLA | Questionable | head |
| Kendall Thompson | LB | 07/25/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | concussion/disciplinary |
| Josh Turner | S | 08/04/2014 | is suspended indefinitely | Suspended | disciplinary |
Injury reports via USA Today.
Prediction
A downtrodden, limping Texas squad against a severely underperforming UCLA team is a combustible recipe.
"Combustible" as in, this one should be a stinker.
UCLA is easily the better team. The defense can play well enough to shut down a shaky sophomore under center, and Mora and his staff have done a good job of mitigating issues along the offensive line by drawing up designed runs and rollouts for Hundley.
Remember, Strong's defense struggled against another mobile quarterback in BYU's Taysom Hill, who threw for 181 yards and added another 99 and three touchdowns on the ground.
As he should be, Hundley is the difference in this matchup. If he can single-handedly make it an entertaining affair remains to be seen.
Prediction: UCLA 38, Texas 24
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
