It’s time to right the ship, folks.

Penn State will head out west to face UCLA in the Rose Bowl on Saturday after a disappointing loss to Oregon in the White Out. Although the Nittany Lions are reeling, the Bruins have been a mess this season with a lack of production and frequent coaching changes. After receiving a lucrative NIL deal to transfer from Tennessee, quarterback Nico Iamaleava hasn’t been close to what expectations were placed on him after one season in Knoxville.

The Penn State faithful are hoping for a strong bounce-back win against UCLA, a sentiment that our staff agrees with.

Cadyn Gill (4-0): Penn State 35, UCLA 13

After getting its heart ripped out by Oregon in the White Out, Penn State is now tasked with flushing the loss and locking in on a road matchup against UCLA this Saturday. The Nittany Lions are the far superior squad across the board, and that will be reflected in the final score. However, I won’t dismiss the tough challenge that Nico Iamaleava poses on the ground. To put his running ability into context, the Bruins’ quarterback has four more rushing yards (204) than Nick Singleton (200) does at this point in the season, despite logging eight fewer carries. So as long as the blue and white defensive front isn’t too jet-lagged from the coast-to-coast plane ride, Penn State will handle the Bruins and get their season back on track.

Fernando Martinez Ruiz De Esparza (3-1): Penn State 48, UCLA 10

Folks, we’ve got to move on.

I understand last week was very rough for Penn State as it lost its first White Out since 2018. The narrative of it not winning the big games keeps on going, and now it must overcome a lot of adversity if it wants to turn its season around. While James Franklin struggles to get the job done against ranked opponents, he is good at winning in the Big Ten. In his 12 years at Penn State, he has a 64-33 record in Big Ten games, so I expect him to have this team mentally ready for UCLA. The Nittany Lions still have a lot of talent, and despite the long-distance travel, I believe they will rebound from that crushing loss to Oregon last week. The defense is still elite, and don’t be surprised if this offense, which has been struggling, puts together its best performance of the season.

As for UCLA, this team is so bad. It still hasn’t won a game this season, fired its head coach just 19 months after being hired, and it is struggling on both sides of the ball. Nico Iamaleava, the highly sought-after transfer from Tennessee, has turned out to be a bust for the Bruins, as he has only thrown four touchdowns and three interceptions in four games. They just lost to Northwestern, and the chances of them going 0-12 are increasing each game they lose. This game could be ugly for them.

Expect the Nittany Lions to dominate this game as they start their journey to turn their season around.

Michael Zeno (3-1): Penn State 42, UCLA 10

All told, this is a pretty soft landing for Penn State after an emotional White Out loss. In another world, going on the road in the Rose Bowl after a game like this would be a letdown game opportunity, but UCLA has just not looked like a team that would challenge Penn State. After getting the big bucks to transfer from Tennessee, Nico Iamaleava has been a big disappointment, to the point where Deshaun Foster has already lost his job.

I also think there’s a real urgency to get it right ASAP. Those non-conference tune-up games might be that opportunity, but you don’t know what you have to fix in the big games until a big game happens. Now that they know what they need to fix before they get to the meat and potatoes of the Big Ten schedule, expect them to hone in on it.

Penn State covers for the first time this season and is able to temporarily calm the masses.

CJ Gill (3-1): Penn State 41, UCLA 13

After losing a game like Penn State just did a Saturday ago in the White Out, it’s a good thing its next opponent is winless UCLA. The Bruins have been one of, if not the worst, Power Four team in the country so far, and fired their head coach less than a month into the season. Fans will want the Nittany Lions to hang 100 points in Los Angeles, but that won’t happen. Although Franklin’s group will have no issues handling business at the Rose Bowl against a much inferior opponent on Saturday. Penn State gets the easy win, but most people will still be thinking about Oregon.

Jamie Lynch (3-1): Penn State 49, UCLA 0

UCLA is not a good football team. 

There is a lot that needs to be done to alter the offensive scheme to better suit Drew Allar. We should hopefully see some adjusted play calling on Saturday to address this.

Look for Allar to take some downfield shots to Devonte Ross, and the Nittany Lions should do just fine.

Jack Anderson-Jussen (1-0): Penn State 42, UCLA 17

Penn State heads into its matchup with UCLA looking to bounce back from an incredibly sloppy offensive performance against Oregon. The Nittany Lions’ defense has been solid, but it can only carry so much if turnovers and inconsistency continue on the other side of the ball. UCLA, meanwhile, has shown flashes of success on offense but has struggled with significant consistency in its passing game. If Penn State cleans up its mistakes and establishes control early, it should be able to edge out the Bruins and give us a decisive win.

Noah Flenard (1-0): Penn State 31, UCLA 10

The UCLA game is more critical than people give credit. Even though UCLA is winless and doesn’t have much to hang its hat on, especially without a head coach, the Nittany Lions can not sleepwalk into this game like they did the first three non-conference games. This is a gut-check game that will test Penn State’s strength and resiliency. Franklin must restore the confidence of not just the team as a whole, but also Drew Allar. With this in mind, I expect Penn State to win 31-10. Drew will throw for a 65% completion and two touchdowns. Kaytron will keep things hot on the ground and rush for a touchdown while averaging at least four yards per carry. Nico Iamaleava has thrown an interception in three out of four games, and I expect the defense to force Iamaleava to make an error this week.

Michael Siroty (0-0): Penn State 41, UCLA 9

To put it simply, UCLA is not a good football team. Penn State needs a bounce-back win, and they’ll get it in California on Saturday. Both sides of the ball have a far better unit than the Bruins, so this game shouldn’t ever be in question.

Jason Perry (0-1): Penn State 37, UCLA 6

The Nittany Lions need a bounce-back after the heartbreaking loss to Oregon, and they’ll get it against a struggling UCLA team. The defense will stand strong as always, and the offense will be able to score easily against a defense that just let up 17 points in a loss to Northwestern. Will it be complete domination? I doubt it, but it will be a much-needed conference win. PSU is still a top-10-ranked team with potential for an incredible season, but changes need to be made, and it all starts against UCLA.

Alex Wilczynski (0-0): Penn State 31, UCLA 7

After last week’s tough loss, I believe this upcoming game will be a strong bounce-back for Penn State. Learning from the mistakes that held the Nittany Lions back from their last performance only helps them grow and better prepare for UCLA. I’m excited to see how Penn State responds on the field and makes a statement after the White Out.

Oscar Orellana (3-1): Penn State 42, UCLA 7

The defense will ball out. I think the offense will get back on track and use this as a sort of “get right” game. It won’t be overly dominant, but it’ll be a convincing, solid win to get morale up.

Cooper Cazares (3-1): Penn State 35, UCLA 3

Until the offense finds some kind of consistency, I can’t predict that Penn State will run up the score against anybody. The Nittany Lions are clearly still dealing with offensive troubles, but this game in the Rose Bowl should be the perfect opportunity to continue getting Drew Allar comfortable. As much as I would love to predict a 50-bomb, it won’t happen this week.