Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA Predictions, Picks & Odds Week 1: Get Set for Tight Contest

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31 August 2023

Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA Predictions, Picks & Odds Week 1: Get Set for Tight Contest

Can the UCLA Bruins open with a win over Grayson McCall and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers? Here is our best Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA prediction based on the best college football odds.

Coastal Carolina ended the 2022 season on a losing streak,dropping three of its last four games, including an upset loss against the ECUPirates in its final bowl game. Quarterback Grayson McCall's injury caused the three defeats, and even though he was able to make two appearances in thesethree games, his performance didn't come close to what it's accustomed to. Ifhe's healthy, McCall can be considered one of college football's top midmajor QBs.

The UCLA Bruins enter 2023 after a 9-4 record in 2022. Unfortunately, they lost a key reason for those nine wins, as Dorian Thompson-Robinson was drafted by the Cleveland Browns after being a game-changing quarterback a season ago. Ethan Garbers takes over under center after seeing limited action in each of the last two seasons.

Here is our best Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA prediction and college football picks (odds via our best college football betting sites; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA prediction: Week 1

Coastal Carolina +14.5 (-110 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐

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Last season, the Chanticleers won games in spite of their defense. They allowed more than 20 points in all but one game, and they allowed 45 or more in their three consecutive losses to end the year. Even though the defense will likely leave a lot to be desired again this season, when McCall is healthy, he can lead this team to victory over anyone.

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The Bruins should be good again this season, but the loss of Thompson-Robinson cannot be understated when making your college football best bets for Saturday. Last season, he threw for 2,883 yards and 25 touchdowns, while adding 631 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. He was the reason why UCLA scored 28 or more points in every game.

Garbers takes over, and while Chip Kelly will surely look to outscore his opponents like he has always done, there is no way the Bruins are going to be as explosive as they were a year ago. The Chanticleers are an experienced team, and McCall very rarely turns the ball over. If they can control the clock, they should be able to frustrate the Bruins from start to finish.

That’s why we like the Chanticleers in this one. They have a tested leader under center who will not shy away from the moment. Additionally, this game has the potential to be much lower scoring than many are thinking. The total is currently as high as 66.5. If the game is lower scoring, that favors the Chanticleers. And if it’s higher scoring, then we expect that to be because it’s a back-and-forth contest. Take the spread as the safest player for your college football Week 1 predictions.

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Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA best odds

Every sportsbook is offering the same spread for the same price. If you’re solely interested in playing the Chanticleers, then the choice is yours for where to bet.

However, if you wanted to parlay the Chanticleers with a total, then we’d recommend wagering at DraftKings or FanDuel. We’re leaning Under, and both of those books are showing a total of 66.5.

Coastal Carolina vs. UCLA odds

The Bruins opened as 14.5-point favorites, and they have seen 67% of wagers come in on them. However, oddsmakers have not moved the line at all. This seems suspect. At first, it looked like the Chanticleers were getting the extra half-point as a way to bait bettors into the underdog. Instead, it seems this line is small enough that bettors are being baited into taking the big-name program.

The total opened at 65.5, and all of the support has been on the Over. These were two really high-scoring teams a year ago, and both of them struggled on the defensive side. 62% of wagers back the Over, which has led to totals as high as 66.5 at some of the best sports betting apps.