USC football is trying to do something it has not yet done: Make the College Football Playoff. Guess what? The UCLA Bruins might get to the playoff before USC does. It's awful and horrible, but it's true: UCLA is unbeaten after beating Oregon and Dan Lanning in Autzen Stadium. First-year UCLA coach Bob Chesney has the Bruins on track to make the playoff before Lincoln Riley and USC do.
Beat Dan Lanning in Autzen Stadium
Bob Chesney beat Dan Lanning and Oregon in Autzen Stadium on his first try in his first season as UCLA head coach. Lincoln Riley is 0-3 against Lanning overall, 0-2 in Autzen. UCLA might have found the perfect rock-star head coach while USC slogs along, trying to attain a long-elusive goal.
Chesney as the Western Curt Cignetti
If you were to compare a coach to Curt Cignetti, Bob Chesney - who came
from James Madison and went to the Big Ten, just as Cignetti did - is authoring the kind of story which deserves consideration. He beat Maryland by 51 on the road. He won at Oregon in Year 1. The turnaround in toughness, culture and results is instant and dramatic, as was the case for Cignetti in Year 1 at Indiana in 2024.
UCLA football schedule
The Bruins play Wisconsin, Michigan State, Nevada, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, and USC. If they win five of those seven games, they will be 10-2 and very likely in the playoff.
Wisconsin, Michigan State, Nevada, and Illinois are very likely wins. Minnesota is a probable win. Michigan and USC are toss-ups. UCLA going 10-2 looks more likely than not. At worst, the Bruins will go 9-3. They are already ahead of schedule.
USC football path
USC will need to win two of three from Ohio State, Indiana, and Chesney's UCLA to make the playoff (in addition to beating Wisconsin and Maryland). How confident are you the Trojans can pull that off?
UCLA is better than USC right now
This can obviously change in the coming weeks, but when one team wins on the road at Oregon two weeks after the other team lost at home by 14 to Oregon, Team A is better than Team B. UCLA is Team A. This is not complicated. We don't like saying it, but how can you argue against it?
Defense and Dylan Raiola
UCLA's defense held Oregon and Dylan Raiola to 15 points, and actually, six of those 15 points were the result of a fumble recovery at the UCLA 1-yard line. Oregon's offense got smothered by UCLA. That same Oregon offense posted 41 against USC. The difference is jarring.
Lincoln Riley
With Bob Chesney showing everyone in LA how it's done, Lincoln Riley now faces even more pressure to get USC to a 10-2 record and a playoff berth this year. If UCLA is in the playoff and USC isn't, that's a very bad look for Riley. The heat is on even as the weather gets cooler in October.
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This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC's worst nightmare: UCLA could make playoff before Trojans do
