Feb. 8, 2026, 4:08 a.m. PT
Bob Chesney has gotten off to a fast start as the next head coach of UCLA football, adding 41 players in the transfer portal and reigniting a fire within the Bruins fanbase with his passion in returning UCLA football to glory.
Few people know what Chesney is going through than former UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel. Neuheisel, who attended UCLA, was the Bruins head coach from 2008-2011, collecting just a 21-29 record while at the helm in Westwood.
Even though Neuheisel didn’t have a storybook tenure with the Bruins, he keeps a close eye on his alma mater and believes in what Chesney is building towards.
“I haven’t had a chance to congratulate Bob but I wish him nothing but the best,” Neuheisel said to Will Decker of LAFB Network. “He’s obviously had a terrific career, every where he’s been, most recently James Madison. Getting to the CFP was an accomplishment and then some, especially from the Sun Belt Conference.”
Neuheisel’s son, Jerry Neuheisel, was UCLA’s interim offensive coordinator last season for the Bruins. He was not retained by Chesney and the new staff, with Jerry Neuheisel getting hired as Northwestern’s quarterbacks coach this offseason.
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“As is always the case, you’re only as good as your players, and he’s bringing with him a bunch of kids from JMU,” Neuheisel said. “We know how that worked out for the guy who last left JMU in Indiana. Hopefully the administration will get behind him and do what is necessary to compete in this world of college football because obviously he’s got the chops and knows how to win.”
Rick Neuheisel also accepted a coaching job this offseason, becoming the next head coach of the Dallas Renegades in the UFL.