USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll: UCLA receives votes, Pac-12 left out of top 10
It's been a while since the Bruins have been praised, let alone feared, by opposing coaches.
They've received just two votes in the last 63 weeks of the coaches poll, both of which came in the 2019 preseason.
It isn't exactly a sharp incline, but things are trending up for the Bruins.
The USA Today Preseason Coaches Poll, released Tuesday morning, had the usual suspects up at the top – Alabama at No. 1, Clemson at No. 2, Oklahoma at No. 3, Ohio State at No. 4 and Georgia at No. 5. Towards the bottom, UCLA football made an appearance in the receiving votes section, grabbing seven votes from the 65 Division I coaches on the Amway Board of Coaches.
It marked only the second time in the past five years that the Bruins received multiple votes in the preseason rendition of the poll. UCLA hasn't been ranked in the top 25 by coaches since the 2016 preseason poll.
The hype in Westwood isn't exactly on the same level as the expectations in South Bend, Tuscaloosa or Columbus, but there's a reason the Bruins are entering this season with more respect from coaches around the country.
UCLA is returning 93% of its overall production from last season, good for No. 2 among Power Five programs. The Bruins finished 2020 with a 3-4 record, albeit losing those four games by a combined 15 points.
The rest of the Pac-12 was well-represented in the preseason poll this week, despite not having anyone in the top 10, as Oregon and USC came in at No. 12 and No. 14, respectively. Washington was ranked No. 21 and although Utah and Arizona State didn't make the top 25, they placed 26th and 28th in votes. California and Stanford each received one vote as well.
Overall, UCLA came in at No. 42.
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