UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava (9) looks to throw a pass during an NCAA football game against Utah on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, in Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)

Penn State

Offense: Drew Allar constantly reminds me of Brett Favre. No, not the Super Bowl-winning version of Favre, who delivered in pressure moments. Just the version of Favre who would also counter that by making

awful decisions at the most crucial times. Favre did it sometimes. Allar always seems to do it in the biggest games. Never have understood the hype, never will.

Defense: Penn State spent all that money to bring in Jim Knowles for that? It’s not just that Penn State consistently could not make big stops at crucial times or that it allowed 424 yards. It’s also that the Lions failed the put heat on the quarterback and managed no sacks and one measly tackle for loss.

Special teams: Why in the world was Gabriel Nwosu punting on fourth-and-7 from the Oregon 36 in a tie game? The ensuing touchback generated a 16-yard net average. That’s not his fault, of course. Ryan Barker remains a model of consistency and matched his career-high long with a 49-yard field goal against Oregon.

Coaching/intangibles: Assistants change; players change, the results do not. Big Game James is 4-21 against top-ranked teams and again could not win when all the advantages leaned to PSU. The board has to have a serious discussion soon. Are you content with consistently being almost elite, or is it time to find someone to push the program over the top? It’s not an easy answer.

UCLA

Offense: UCLA is last among Big Ten teams in both yards and points.

The 14.3 points per game is 4.7 below next-worst Northwestern. Quarterback Nico Iamaleava essentially has been the offense, averaging a little more than 50 yards per game on the ground and 197 passing yards. He also accounts for four of the team’s five touchdowns.

Defense: Hey, the Bruins are consistent. They also are last in the Big Ten

in points and yards per game. That holds true even after holding Northwestern to 17 points a week ago. That was first time an opponent failed to score at least 30 points against UCLA. They do have league’s top two tacklers in linebackers JonJon Vaughns (47) and Isaiah Chisom (42).

Special teams: Kicker Mateen Bhaghani has been a bright spot, going 7-of-7 on field goal tries. He has been outstanding at UCLA the last three years, connecting on 35 of 40 kicks, including four from 50 yards or longer. Bhaghani hit a 57-yarder last season. Punter Will Karroll has been average both this year and last. Return game is nothing special, either.

Coaching/intangibles: UCLA was competitive for interim coach Tim Skipper in his debut after Deshaun Foster was fired, but he faces four teams ranked No. 21 or higher over the next eight weeks. In his lone full season of coaching, Skipper went 6-7 at Fresno State last season, leading it to the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, which is lost, 28-20, to Northern Illinois.

Advantages: PSU — Offense, defense and coaching/intanglibles; UCLA — Special teams

Masse’s record: 4-0

Prediction: Just like the first three games, we’re not going to learn much about Penn State since UCLA is having an abysmal season. The only question is where Penn State’s minds will be? At this point, without a win against Ohio State, the Lions likely will miss the playoffs. Penn State 42, UCLA 10