Unbeaten UCLA opens at No. 8 in first CFP rankings, behind three one-loss teams

UCLA is 8-0, and the College Football Playoff selection committee still put the Bruins behind seven other teams. The first rankings of the season, released Tuesday, have Bob Chesney's team at No. 8. That is three spots lower than the Bruins sit in both the AP poll and the coaches poll, as UCLA Wire noted. Miami, Georgia, Utah and Indiana hold the top four spots, followed by Alabama, Kentucky and Texas.

If the rankings held, UCLA would get no first-round bye but would host a first-round game at the Rose Bowl, against BYU, with top-seeded Miami waiting in the quarterfinals. UCLA Wire took the placement as a signal that the Bruins have little margin left, and argued that two losses would knock them out of the field. Still, the ranking shows how far the program has come. USA TODAY Sports framed it as Chesney putting UCLA back in the playoff conversation in his first season, and the Los Angeles Times pointed out that the Bruins won only three games last year.

The Times also laid out what UCLA has left: at Minnesota on Saturday, Illinois at home on Nov. 13, at Michigan on Nov. 21 and USC at home on Nov. 28. The committee releases another ranking on Nov. 10, so the trip to Minneapolis is the first result it will weigh. Fans can follow the Bruins' season on our UCLA team page.

What it means at Minnesota

UCLA's résumé starts with its defense. The Bruins have outscored opponents 268-107, which works out to 33.5 points scored and 13.4 allowed per game. The early games were shootouts, including 52-38 over Purdue and 54-3 at Maryland. Since then UCLA has won mostly with defense. In the last four games, a 17-15 win at then-No. 13 Oregon, 17-7 over Wisconsin, 28-10 over Michigan State and last week's 27-0 shutout of Nevada, the Bruins gave up 32 points in total, or eight per game. Two of those four were one-score games, so they have not been blowouts.

That profile fits how the market prices Saturday's game, which kicks off on Fox. UCLA is favored on the road. On Novig, one of 12 venues on our board, the Bruins are -203 on the moneyline and Minnesota is +194. On the spread, Novig has UCLA favored by 5.5 at -104. The best UCLA spread price anywhere is BetMGM's -5 at -110, which is half a point shorter at a higher cost. The sportsbooks are fairly far apart: hold runs from 3.6% to 6.2% on the moneyline and from 3.8% to 7.0% on the spread.

The total is 39.5, and Novig prices both sides close to even money. That is low for a team that once routinely scored 50, but the Bruins' last four games averaged about 30 combined points. A road win by more than a field goal would match the market's view and would help UCLA's case in the Nov. 10 ranking. A loss would use up half the margin UCLA Wire says the Bruins have left.