It’s onerous to not assume that UCLA already had one thing labored out, and that’s a part of why Kelly was working onerous the previous couple of weeks to discover a new offensive coordinator job.
UCLA followers who’re dreaming is likely to be pondering of Massive Ten coaches like Jonathan Smith, who left Oregon State for Michigan State, or PJ Fleck, who has been at Minnesota for seven seasons. These don’t seem to be real looking choices given UCLA’s vital monetary constraints. The same old suspects like Chris Klieman or Matt Campbell, whose names have popped up in teaching searches the final two years, in all probability won’t be in play. This doesn’t appear to be that sort of teaching search.
The extra real looking transfer appears to be UCLA hiring a coach who has some earlier ties to this system.
The extra doubtless candidates in all probability embody the next.
UCLA bringing again D’Anton Lynn
Lynn did a superb job final season as UCLA’s defensive coordinator, which was his first ever season working as a DC. The 34-year-old is younger, hungry, a superb recruiter and he was so desired that crosstown rival USC doubled his wage and employed him away from UCLA. Many Bruins followers wished Kelly gone and would doubtless have been pleased with him fired and Lynn because the alternative.
UCLA didn’t have the assets to retain Lynn as its defensive coordinator, and it didn’t need to pay a buyout to Kelly. Now the Bruins now not must pay Kelly a buyout, they usually might give Lynn a increase over what USC gave him.
It’s additionally straightforward to determine that Bruins followers would love this rent as a result of it could be placing USC at an obstacle within the course of. Would Lynn depart USC after a month to return to the rival college? UCLA has to at the very least make that decision and discover out.
Hiring ex-Stanford coach David Shaw
If UCLA can have a brand new coach inside 4 days, meaning it doubtless has been engaged on one thing behind the scenes. Shaw’s son performs for UCLA. He could be somebody straightforward to have labored one thing out with since he doesn’t have any present teaching constraints.
Whereas Shaw did nice at Stanford from 2011-2018 after taking up for Jim Harbaugh, he fully fell off in 2021 and 2022, going 3-9 each years. NIL and the switch portal each damage an elite college like Stanford, which depends on its tutorial excellence as a draw — not NIL or transfers. The 51-year-old Shaw was completed at Stanford, however the best way he completed his tenure would encourage little confidence that those self same two points wouldn’t be hurdles for him at UCLA.
Nebraska DC Tony White
The 44-year-old performed linebacker at UCLA and was extremely regarded for his intelligence. He started his teaching profession as a graduate assistant after which developed additional teaching expertise underneath Rocky Lengthy at San Diego State and at Arizona State. He served as a defensive coordinator at Syracuse for 3 seasons earlier than Matt Rhule employed him as Nebraska’s DC final season.
If UCLA needs somebody who’s younger, motivated, has coordinator expertise and ties to the Bruins, White would match.
Pete Carroll
Simply need to be sure you’re nonetheless studying. Carroll is out there and nonetheless has curiosity in teaching. He’s finest recognized for rebuilding USC into an absolute monster within the 2000s. This is able to by no means occur, however he might in all probability step in for 2 years and provide the previous Dennis Erickson fast turnaround.
If UCLA have been on the lookout for simply an interim-type answer, some names to think about could be line of defense coach Ikaika Malloe or large receivers coach Jerry Neuheisel. One other chance could be former UCLA working again Deshaun Foster, who coached RBs at UCLA from 2017-2023. He simply left to take the working backs job with the Raiders although.
Though UCLA traditionally has had a superb program, it’s vital to do not forget that replicating the success underneath the likes of Terry Donahue and people earlier than him, is unlikely. UCLA operates underneath strict monetary restrictions from the College of California public college system. The college has limitations on how a lot it will probably pay coaches and staffs. As of now, UCLA will doubtless be paying Cal an annual subsidy for leaving the Pac-12 (the “Calimony” cost). It would not have the identical donor or NIL base as different huge faculties. Plus, UCLA is headed to the Massive Ten, the place it should face journey points and presumably harder competitors. The entire aforementioned points didn’t exist prior to now when UCLA had its best ranges of success. Profitable sufficient to please the fan base shall be an enormous problem for whomever will get the job.
