UCLA, last unbeaten team in the Big Ten, turns to Ty Dieffenbach for the rest of the season

UCLA is 6-0 for the first time since 2022 and is the only Big Ten team without a loss. It will play the rest of the season without the quarterback who started it. Coach Bob Chesney said Monday that Nico Iamaleava will miss the rest of 2026 after surgery on the knee he hurt in the 17-15 win at Oregon, the Associated Press reported. That makes Ty Dieffenbach the starter for the second half of the schedule.

The Bruins already have one game of evidence with him. In his first start, and his first game against an FBS opponent, the Cal Poly transfer threw for a career-high 264 yards on 22 completions in a 17-7 win over Wisconsin, which came in on a four-game winning streak, according to The Sporting Tribune. The Tribune's profile of the roster says the Bruins have handled the loss the way the rest of Chesney's first season has gone, with a group made up largely of former FCS players. Chesney described a locker room he has built around each player's personal background. "Everybody has a story to tell," he told the outlet.

The player who has carried the most is running back Wayne Knight, who followed Chesney from James Madison. The Tribune reports that UCLA leads the Big Ten at 231.0 rushing yards per game and ranks third at 5.6 yards per carry. Knight has run for a touchdown in every game, has already topped his touchdown total from last season, and is on pace to match Skip Hicks' school record of 22 rushing touchdowns in a season. Before Iamaleava's diagnosis became final, ESPN reported that he had 982 passing yards and four touchdowns this season. UCLA is losing a starter, but most of the offense never ran through him.

What it means against Michigan State

The Spartans visit the Rose Bowl on Saturday, October 24, with the game on CBS. UCLA has won by scores ranging from a two-point road win at No. 13 Oregon to a 54-3 rout at Maryland. Its last two games were lower scoring, though. The Bruins have put up 17 points in each of them, and they have allowed a combined 22 points over those two weeks. Starting 52-38 over Purdue and 54-3 at Maryland, the team has turned into one that wins with defense and the run game.

The board expects that to continue. UCLA is a heavy favorite: Novig has the Bruins at -525 on the moneyline and Michigan State at +506. The venues are unusually far apart on that number. Kalshi's -290 is the best UCLA price anywhere, so the cost of backing the favorite depends a great deal on where it is quoted. On the spread, UCLA is favored by 14.5 points. Novig prices the Bruins at +108 at that number, and theScore Bet has the best price on UCLA at -115 at -13.5. Hard Rock Bet has the best Michigan State price at -110 with 14.5 points, just ahead of Novig's -111. The total is 44.5, which fits UCLA's last two games. Novig has the over at -111 and the under at +106, and FanDuel has the best over price at -108. Sportsbook hold across the 12 venues runs from 3.6% to about 7%.

The spread is two touchdowns, so the market expects Dieffenbach's second start to look a lot like his first, with Knight carrying the offense and the defense holding Michigan State down.