UCLA and Oregon may have both been idle Saturday, but its clash this week in Eugene, Ore., now has plenty more stakes after a wild weekend that included four losses by teams ranked in the top 10 of the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
The Bruins and Ducks, ranked 11th and 12th, respectively, the previous week, each moved into the top 10 in the latest rankings released Sunday afternoon.
UCLA (6-0, 3-0 Pac-12) moved up two spots to No. 9, with Oregon (5-1, 3-0) right behind at No. 10. They are the lone teams with unblemished league records, vying for the early inside track to the conference championship game, and the Bruins are just one of nine remaining unbeaten teams in the FBS.
It is UCLA’s first top-10 ranking since it was slotted 7th in Week 5 of the 2015 season.
The Bruins will be looking for the program’s first win over a top-10 team in 12 years. The game also will be the first time a top-10 UCLA team has faced a fellow top-10 opponent since No. 7 UCLA defeated No. 10 Washington, 35-13, on Oct. 13, 2001.
A win would make the Bruins’ early case for a College Football Playoff spot even stronger.
In addition, UCLA will once again be on a big stage as ESPN’s “College GameDay” morning show will be broadcast from Oregon, the network announced Saturday night. When the teams met last season, the show traveled to UCLA.
The game itself will air on FOX at 12:30 p.m.
USC’s 43-42 loss at Utah dropped the Trojans from 7th to 12th, making UCLA the conference’s highest-ranked team, while the Utes jumped five spots to No. 15.
The poll’s top five also got shuffled around after Tennessee defeated Alabama, 52-49, on a field goal as time expired. The Volunteers moved up from No. 6 to No. 3, while the Crimson Tide dropped from No. 3 to No. 6.
Georgia remained atop the poll, followed by Ohio State, while Michigan and Clemson rounded out the top five.