The California Golden Bears take on the UCLA Bruins. Check out our college football odds series for our California UCLA prediction and pick. Find how to watch California UCLA.

The UCLA Bruins might have lifted coach Chip Kelly off the hot seat by blowing out the USC Trojans last weekend. It was widely viewed that Kelly was out if he lost the game, and that he was coaching for his job. He wasn't guaranteed to be gone, but he was definitely on thin ice. With UCLA's emphatic victory, however, the winds have turned. Kelly is likely to be retained for the 2024 season when UCLA goes to the Big Ten. However, a loss to Cal might put Kelly back on the hot seat. Beating USC is a huge deal at UCLA, but losing to Arizona State and Cal sandwiched around that USC victory would significantly undermine confidence that Kelly deserves one more season, and that he is the man to lead the Bruins into the new Big Ten era.

This game is also especially interesting because UCLA will be paying money to Cal as part of the costs of leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten. UCLA helped undercut the Pac-12 Conference in which Cal was a happy member. UCLA's departure for the Big Ten forced Cal to move to the ACC (and Cal was, to be candid, dragged along to the ACC with Stanford more than it was a primary mover in the process). This move will incur travel costs and other expenses. UCLA has to pay for some of those expenses. The name for those expenses: “Calimony.” Whether this off-field drama will flow onto the gridiron Saturday night is anyone's guess, but it's definitely an interesting talking point before a game which otherwise won't get that many national headlines.

Here are the California-UCLA College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

College Football Odds: California-UCLA Odds

California Golden Bears: +9.5 (-110)

UCLA Bruins: -9.5 (-110)

Over: 51.5 (-105)

Under: 51.5 (-115)

How To Watch California vs UCLA

Time: 10:30 pm ET / 7:30 pm PT

TV: ESPN

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why California Could Cover the Spread

Cal just defeated Stanford, so the Golden Bears are going to be happy, upbeat and confident after dispatching their Bay Area rival. Cal struggled a lot on offense in the first half of the season but has become noticeably better in recent weeks, especially in explosive performances against Oregon State, USC, and Washington State in which the Golden Bears scored at least 40 points. If the Cal offense performs anywhere close to how it has been playing over the past several weeks, the Golden Bears should be able to cover the spread. UCLA does not have a particularly good offense. USC's wafer-thin defense made UCLA's offense look really good. Even an ordinary defensive showing from Cal, combined with a good offensive performance, will be enough to cover the spread for the visiting Golden Bears.

Why UCLA Could Cover the Spread

The Bruins just hammered UCLA and will come into this game with a lot of momentum. UCLA's defense, particularly its defensive line, is very muscular and stout. UCLA manhandled USC's offense and contained Trojan quarterback Caleb Williams, limiting USC to 20 points. Any defense which can hold USC to 20 points should probably be able to limit Cal's offense to 13 or 14 points. If UCLA can indeed do that, it should be able to score at least 24 points and not only win the game outright, but cover. UCLA by 10 — maybe 24-14 — is a very realistic outcome in this game.

Final California-UCLA Prediction & Pick

UCLA has a very good defense. It just has to be decent on offense to cover the spread. Take UCLA.

Final California-UCLA Prediction & Pick: UCLA -9.5