UCLA at Memphis – College Football Predictions
The Game
This is a really interesting non-conference match-up as the THE ROSEN ONE and the UCLA Bruins visit Memphis to battle the Tigers at high noon on Saturday. UCLA had an epic comeback win in their opener taking down Texas A&M and followed that up with a blowout win over Hawaii. Memphis struggled with ULM in their opener but pulled out a 37-29 win in some sketchy weather conditions. Get your handicapping hats on, yo ! This should be a fun game to watch.
The Details
UCLA -3 MEMPHIS (71)
MEGALOCKS LINE – UCLA -1
“Vegas” Implied Projected Score: UCLA 37 Memphis 34
Massey Ratings Projected Score: UCLA 34 Memphis 31
The Match-Up
UCLA offense vs Memphis defense
Josh Rosen has done an amazing job so far carrying the offense on his back while throwing for 9 TD (0 INT !) and 68% completions in the first two games. Yes, that was against Texas A&M and Hawaii, but the Memphis defense should not be much more difficult to navigate. The Tigers yielded 425 yards offense to ULM (?) in bad weather and are going to have a hard time getting PENETRATION and stopping the UCLA passing game. The good news for Memphis is that the Bruins still appear to be very one dimensional as their leading rusher after two games only has 63 yards. Assuming the weather is decent we see no reason why UCLA cannot put up 35+.
Memphis offense vs UCLA defense
The Tigers’ rushing attack was lights out vs ULM as they had two RB eclipse the 100-yard mark (Patrick Taylor, Darrell Henderson). The big question mark is what in the SAM HILL is going on at QB ? QB Riley Ferguson was lights out last season but really struggled in week one. Yes, there were some tough weather conditions to deal with, BUT that did not seem to bother the pedestrian Warhawk passing game. We may need to go DEEP undercover and get the scoop on Mr Ferguson. The good news is that the Tigers rushing attack should have their way with the UCLA SOFT UNDERBELLY and you know that we are always looking for that advantage. The Bruins are also very banged up on the defensive side of the ball and have PAC 12 play on deck.
MEGA-MAZING MORSELS
An alert MEGALOCKS MEMBER reminded us that this game is at HIGH NOON which will be a 9am kickoff for the UCLA boys…..Not sure it matters…..Just something to think about…..Neither team has been stellar vs Vegas lately….UCLA 5-11 ATS L16 and Memphis is 3-8 ATS L11.
Summary
We originally leaned toward Memphis now just not so sure. UCLA is gonna burn at some point with their one-dimensional offense BUT is this the week ? We are not crazy about the Memphis defense and while we love their rushing attack we are just not getting enough points.
Conclusion
No official play. No doubt Memphis can pull the upset. Best small potatoes play seems to be Memphis ML at +125 or better. Right now it is +125 to +130 almost everywhere.