UCLA football (3-0, 1-0 Big Ten) began its conference slate with a victory last week and now has the chance to continue its win streak against Maryland (2-1) on Saturday on the road. The Bruins beat the Terrapins 20-17 at home last year with a walk-off field goal from then-junior kicker Mateen Bhaghani and will now rematch with the squad at SECU Stadium. Here are the game predictions from Sports editor Jacob Nguyen, assistant Sports editor Gabriela Garcia and Sports senior staffer Kai Dizon, as well as a guest prediction from Copy chief Amelia Chief.
Jacob Nguyen
Sports editor
Prediction: UCLA 42, Maryland 38
This is probably the most uncertain I have been with a prediction all season.
Will the Terrapins be the Bruins’ biggest threat so far in 2026? I would say the Golden Bears are worth having a spot in the conversation.
But unlike UCLA’s season opener, Week 4 comes with higher expectations for a squad undefeated through three games – the program’s best start to a campaign since 2023.
And despite a 52-point outing against Purdue – UCLA’s most points in a game in three years – giving up 38 points, including over 400 yards in the air, to a team that did not win a single conference game in 2025 kind of tarnishes any optimism the Bruins’ offense gave me.
If Purdue’s receiving room did what it did against the blue and gold last Saturday, I cannot imagine what havoc Maryland is capable of wreaking, boasting a position group with four 100-plus-yard receivers through three games. It doesn’t help, either, that the Terrapins return starting quarterback Malik Washington, who has grown from his freshman season and is more talented than Boilermaker Ryan Browne.
While I have faith that the Bruins can clean up a preposterous inability to complete downfield tackles going into College Park, a Westwood victory largely hinges on whether coach Bob Chesney’s squad can shut down the air.
I am no betting man, but my high school speech and debate coach is, and we frequently call about UCLA football’s outlook each week. Whatever the line is, I am taking the over between two teams that should engage in a back-and-forth scoring torrent – one coming out fast in the air and the other stampeding on the ground.
If my old mentor has told me anything, the prediction markets agree with my own crystal ball. So, for now, I’ll take the Bruins to come out on top in the DMV with the ground attack showing out as always.
So shout-out to fifth-year running back Wayne Knight.
And also, shout-out to Tommie Lindsey.
Gabriela Garcia
Assistant Sports editor
Prediction: UCLA 42, Maryland 28
Why not make it to 4-0?
After watching the matchup against Purdue last weekend, I’ll be honest – there were some moments where I was unsure if UCLA would come out on top or not.
But they did.
So why not do it again?
Although the Bruins gave up 38 points to the Boilermakers, I still have optimism that they can pull off another win. And that’s all because of the offense. UCLA tallied 645 total yards, a number that includes 369 on the ground, thanks to Knight.
The fifth-year running back leads the nation with eight total touchdowns, and those touchdowns have been crucial to UCLA’s wins. Senior quarterback Nico Iamaleava has also hit his stride, throwing for a career-high 276 passing yards against Purdue.
This recipe has been the answer to the Bruin faithful’s worries, even if the defense has stumbled at times.
But I wouldn’t say they’re going to make it out of the weekend too easily.
Maryland enters conference play averaging 11 yards per receptions and flaunting two receivers with 230-plus receiving yards each. And that’s not all – they also boast two others with 100-plus.
The Bruin defense has found itself not being able to limit the air game, and I feel the Terrapins will take advantage of that. However, Chesney’s squad has shown they can survive when it matters most and fight off opponents this season.
So I have faith the ground game will continue to pull through and bring the Bruins to 4-0 for the first time since 2022.
Kai Dizon
Sports senior staffer
Prediction: Maryland 42, UCLA 34
I don’t love the Bruins’ chances against Washington.
The Maryland quarterback has proved to have an arm comparable to Purdue’s Browne – who dissected UCLA’s defense for 378 yards a week ago – and the legs to rush for 303 yards and four touchdowns in 2025.
Washington hasn’t run much of late, but he also hasn’t had to.
Even if the Bruin defense can disrupt the Terrapin’s 71.6% completion percentage, he has an entire side to his game that has not made it to tape in 2026.
Meanwhile, I’m uncertain what to expect from Iamaleava.
Chesney said Wednesday that a football player is never going to feel 100% after the start of the season – a player recovers as well as they can during the week and gives everything they have come Saturday.
He’s right.
But if Iamaleava is arguably coming off his best, or second-best, performance as a Bruin, just how much can you bet on him to not only maintain his current level of production – which pales in comparison to Washington’s – but exceed it as the season wears on?
Amelia Chief
Copy chief
Prediction: UCLA 42, Maryland 24
UCLA hasn’t started 4-0 since 2022. In fact, it recorded the exact opposite mark last year.
But it’s a new season with a new coach and a new culture.
When I turned on the TV to watch UCLA’s opener against California, I was prepared to be embarrassed by my prediction of a Bru-win after Cal’s opening touchdown. But when the Bruins responded just minutes later with a touchdown of their own, I knew I was watching a different team than the one I had resigned myself to the past two years.
Despite entering the fourth quarter tied at 24, the Bruins were spotted dancing on their opponents’ field, while the Golden Bears seemed to just mill around. UCLA would then score 21 points unanswered in the last stanza – more than it scored in eight of its games in 2025.
Chesney’s squad proved its resilience again in its home opener against San Diego State, breaking a first-half scoreless stalemate and notching another 21-point fourth quarter.
Although these tight moments, coupled with UCLA tying twice and trailing once against Purdue – the worst team in the Big Ten last year – may indicate that UCLA’s winning streak is precarious, I would like to once again choose optimism. The Bruins certainly have work to do, but they have also shown themselves capable of fighting and winning in the face of tension.
The Chesney train will roll on, and the Terrapins will roll over.
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