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Has a coach ever been fired after the first week of the regular season? That's what it feels like heading into The Hot Seat Bowl as Texas A&M and UCLA open the season against one another with two coaches who both enter the year with their jobs seemingly on the line. One of them will get off to a good start with a solid non-conference win. The other will have the heat turned up a notch or two.

Viewing information

Date: Sunday, Sept. 3 | Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Rose Bowl -- Pasadena, California
TV: Fox | Live stream: FutboTV (try for free)

Storylines

UCLA: Jim Mora is on the hot seat. That's what happens when you bring a lot of hype to a program, raise the expectations, and then fail to live up to the expectations you created. When Mora showed up at UCLA in 2012, he won nine games that season. He would then win 10 in each of the next two seasons, starting his career with the Bruins with a record of 29-11, going 18-9 in the Pac-12. The last two seasons, the Bruins have gone 12-13 overall and 7-11 in the conference.

Still, it's possible things aren't as bleak as they seem. One down season isn't out of the ordinary at a lot of schools around the country, and things should have gone better last year, but after losing quarterback Josh Rosen to a season-ending injury in 2016, things completely fell apart. The Bruins start the 2017 season with their quarterback healthy and a roster that is still one of the more talented units in the Pac-12. A win over the Aggies in the Rose Bowl to start the year could be exactly what this team needs to get back on track.

Who are the pros picking? Visit SportsLine to see which college football teams Vegas pros are hammering on opening weekend through Monday night.

Texas A&M: Kevin Sumlin has won a lot of games at Texas A&M in his tenure, and he's raised expectations for what this program can be while doing so. The problem for Sumlin is that too many of those wins have come in September and not nearly enough have come in October and November.

Still, before the Aggies can get to those later months, they must get through September first, and a win against UCLA on the road would be as good a start as any. The Aggies' defense should still be solid, even with the loss of a player like Myles Garrett, and on offense, the run game is likely to be a strength as well. The question is whether this Aggies offense can find enough of a passing attack to pose a balanced threat throughout the 2017 season.

Prediction

I wish I could tell you that I have a definitive read on this game, but I don't. These are just two teams that have proven to be unpredictable over recent years, and both enter this new season with a lot in common. The more I go over what's likely to take place in this contest the more I realize it seems like a coin flip. Whenever that's the case, I tend to take any points you might want to give me. Pick: Texas A&M +4 (UCLA 24, Texas A&M 21)