2014 Schedule Preview: UCLA Bruins

The UCLA Bruins come to Texas for a pivotal early season clash with the Texas Longhorns.

For Texas, this game will be a measuring stick on where the program is at. The Longhorns have not fared well against Top 10 teams in recent years. The game also starts a difficult stretch of the schedule. Texas will face three Top 10 teams in a four-game period.

UCLA enters the season as the nation’s No. 7 team. The Bruins are projected to win the Pac-12 South. It’s not a stretch to say UCLA could find itself in the College Football Playoffs. The Bruins toughest opponents, Oregon, USC and Stanford come to Westwood. If the Bruins can take care of business at home, it could find itself sitting pretty at the end of the season.

Last year UCLA finished 10-3. After a 5-0 start, Jim Mora‘s group stumbled in back-to-back games on the road at Stanford and Oregon. The team was able to right the ship before a surprising slip-up versus Arizona State. UCLA took care of business in the Hyundai Sun Bowl by dismantling Virginia Tech.

Another important aspect to this game is recruiting. Top recruits from both Texas and California will be watching. UCLA can showcase its talented team on national TV, with top high school players outside of California watching. Texas wants to win recruits over with a hard-hitting style of defense and a new attitude. There is a lot at stake with this game.

Here is preview of the UCLA Bruins.