Arizona State at UCLA

Arizona State, as have many college football teams this year, saw the magic come to an end last week as they were handed their first defeat at Oregon. This is yet another team that has not shown any success on the road. Yes, they beat a bad Stanford team 41-3. But, they barely beat Pac-10 cellar dweller Washington State 23-20 on the road in a game they were outgained by 150 yards. So, in two of the three games they played on the road they have been significanly outplayed. Now they face the Bruins who are complete no-shows for the easy games, but show up big for the bigger games. They beat a very good BYU team soundly, handed Oregon State a thrashing on the road (OSU's only home loss) and pounded a good California team. But, the Bruines got crushed by an average Utah team and were hammered at Washington State. The message is clear: bring in a big team, and the Bruins come up big. Pu Arizona State on the road, and they are ordinary. Getting a bundle of points with the Bruins is a very sound, value laden investment. This is also a big letdown spot for ASU after losing for the first time, with USC on the horizon as well. UCLA has lost just twice in conference, and if they pin another loss on ASU, they are within striking distance of Oregon. UCLA is 13-5 ATS as an underdog under Karl Dorrell and 13-4 ATS at home over the past three seasons. We like the Bruins a s a live dog in this one.