UCLA’s offseason reset has given the Bruins something they haven’t had in a while: a real sense of direction.
After a 3-9 season in 2025 and a rough stretch that left them near the bottom of the Big Ten on both offense and defense, UCLA moved on from head coach DeShaun Foster and effectively hit restart for 2026. The Bruins have gone 8-16 since entering the conference two years ago, and the slide made a major overhaul unavoidable.
That overhaul starts with Bob Chesney, the former James Madison head coach who arrives in Westwood after a strong two-year run with the Dukes. Chesney went 21-6 at JMU, winning a Sun Belt title and reaching the College Football Playoff last season. He is also bringing some familiar faces with him, including running back Wayne Knight and wide receiver Landon Ellis.
The early reaction around the program has been encouraging. CBS Sports’ David Cobb gave UCLA a B+ for its offseason work so far, pointing to both the coaching change and the holdovers who remained in place, especially quarterback Nico Iamaleava.
“UCLA borrowed the Indiana blueprint and hired a successful James Madison coach in hopes of igniting a struggling Big Ten operation. Like Curt Cignetti did when he left JMU for Indiana, Chesney is bringing numerous players with him.
That familiarity should ease the transition. Having former five-star quarterback prospect Nico Iamaleava stick around may also help,” Cobb said.
He added: “If the new Bruins' regime can unlock Iamaleava's potential, the supporting cast Chesney has assembled is good enough to get this thing turned around quickly after an 8-16 run for UCLA over the past two seasons.”
UCLA still has to prove it can turn the offseason optimism into results, but the pieces are there for a faster climb than the Bruins have managed in recent years. A title run isn’t the expectation.
A meaningful step forward is. And for a program that has spent too long going the wrong way, that alone is a change worth watching.
In Other News...
CBS Just Put An Early Verdict On UCLAs Chesney Era
CBS Sports wasted no time putting a number on UCLAs first year under Bob Chesney, slotting the Bruins 10th in the Big Ten preseason picture for 2026. The projection has UCLA at 7-5 overall and 5-4 in conference play, a notable jump from the three-win season that preceded Chesneys arrival and a sign that the program is already being judged through the lens of how quickly the new coach can steady things.
The forecast also suggests there is a workable path back to respectability if UCLA can cash in on the right games, with wins penciled in against Purdue, Maryland, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Illinois. Even so, the schedule view leaves the Bruins in the middle tier of the league for now, and the bigger question for this era is whether Chesney can bring enough structure and physicality to turn those early expectations into something more lasting. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA May Have Found Its Most Intriguing Defensive Line Wild Card
Aiden Gobaira arrives at UCLA as one of the more intriguing additions on the defensive line, the kind of player whose path makes the arrival itself part of the story. A highly regarded recruit coming out of high school, he drew major attention before landing at Notre Dame, and his talent has never been in question for evaluators who remember what made him such a coveted prospect in the first place.
What makes him especially interesting for the Bruins is the way he has already proven he can fight back into form after a detour that could have ended a career. Gobaira resurfaced at James Madison and gave the Dukes a full season of dependable production, showing enough burst and disruption to suggest he still has something to offer at a Power Four level. For UCLA, that makes him less of a depth add and more of a wild card worth watching when the defensive line rotation starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA Just Won A Recruiting Battle Fans Have Waited On
UCLAs defensive recruiting push picked up a notable boost when Myles Baker, a highly regarded safety prospect out of California, moved into the Bruins class. The four-star defender had long been on the radar as one of the better players in the state, and his appeal goes beyond one position thanks to the kind of versatility that college staffs covet on defense.
What makes this one matter for UCLA is the path it took to get here. The Bruins stayed on Baker through the spring and summer, brought him back to campus multiple times and made sure he got an official visit, all while battling a rival program that had initially secured his pledge. For a team trying to stack defensive talent, landing a player like Baker is the sort of win that can resonate well beyond one recruiting cycle. [Read more 🡒]