UCLA Football: Who cares about the early start? Not the Bruins

Don’t worry about the early start to this Saturday’s UCLA game. The Bruins perform better than you think when they have to set their alarms to wake up.

This Saturday the UCLA Bruins go to Memphis to take on the Tigers. While the Bruins have been on a roll offensively to start out the year, many people are still worried about the early start (9am Pacific Standard Time) of the game.

Will the Bruins have jet lag from the longer than usual flight?

Will the Bruins be sluggish from the early start?

Will the Bruins even wake up in time?

Not to worry.

Over the past five years, the UCLA Football team has traveled around the country playing a total of four games that Bruins fans might watch with a cup of coffee instead of a mug of beer (maybe). And in those games when kickoff is before noon back in Pasadena, the Bruins are 4-0. That’s right, in the past five years when UCLA has to get up early to play, they are undefeated.

In the most recent game where they had to play early, the Bruins beat Virginia in Charlottesville 28-20. The 9am PST kickoff didn’t seem to slow down the Bruins’ defense as they accounted for three touchdowns.

Other recent morning games include wins against Colorado (11am), Nebraska (9am), and Virginia Tech (11am).

Next: 3 keys to victory over Memphis

So when you turn on the television Saturday morning, grab a cup of coffee, and wipe the sleepers from your eyes, be assured that the UCLA players on the field will be wide awake and ready to go.