New UCLA coach Bob Chesney wasted no time tearing down and rebuilding the Bruins’ offense for 2026.
After a 3-9 season and a 3-6 mark in Big Ten play, UCLA needed a reset. DeShaun Foster was dismissed after the Bruins dropped their first three games, and Nico Iamaleava’s first year in Westwood never got on track. He finished with fewer than 2,000 passing yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions after arriving from Tennessee in a messy divorce.
Chesney, fresh off leading James Madison to the College Football Playoff, answered with a massive roster overhaul. UCLA added 45 players through the transfer portal, including several from James Madison, and the offense now has three newcomers who could shape whether the Bruins get back to a bowl game.
The first is running back George Pettaway Knight, who arrives after a breakout redshirt junior season at James Madison. Knight was one of the most productive backs in college football last year, piling up 207 carries, 1,373 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.
UCLA’s ground game was rough a season ago, with Iamaleava leading the team with 505 rushing yards and four scores while Jalen Berger topped the running backs with just 364 yards and two touchdowns. With a better offensive line in front of him, Knight looks set up for another 1,000-yard season.
Landon Ellis gives the Bruins a much-needed target on the outside. UCLA’s receiver group was thin, and leading receiver Kwazi Gilmer has already transferred to Nebraska.
Mikey Matthews and Titus Mokiao-Atimalala were the only other Bruins to clear 300 receiving yards last season, though Matthews is back. Chesney brought Ellis with him from James Madison, where he led the Dukes with 624 yards, 36 catches and five touchdowns.
He can work every level of the field, from the slot to deep routes to the red zone, which should make him a dangerous option for Iamaleava.
Up front, Jordan Davis is the kind of portal addition that can change the feel of an offense. UCLA’s line struggled badly last season, allowing 27 sacks while offering almost no push in the run game.
Davis missed time with an injury last year, but in eight games he was a major piece of South Alabama’s top-20 rushing attack. Now projected at left tackle, he should help protect Iamaleava’s blindside and hold up against edge pressure.
In Other News...
Mick Cronin May Be Closing In On Another Major UCLA Addition
Mick Cronin has already put together a busy offseason haul for UCLA, landing four transfer players and a high school class that includes a four-star forward. The Bruins are still working the international market, too, and one of the more intriguing names on their board is a young forward from FC Barcelona who is turning heads at the FIBA U17 World Cup.
What makes this pursuit especially interesting is the way UCLA has built some recent connections overseas, with Serbian ties beginning to matter in the recruiting picture. The target has also been producing at a high level in recent games, which only adds to the sense that Cronin may be closing in on another significant addition before the roster picture is finalized. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee Still Has A Shot At A Receiver Who Could Shift Everything
The race for Xavier Sabb is still very much alive as the five-star wide receiver heads toward a July 3 commitment, with Oregon, UCLA, Tennessee and LSU all in the mix. Sabb has already taken official visits to each of his finalists, and the recruiting picture has been shifting as Oregon continues to stack talent in its 2027 class, giving the Ducks a noticeable edge in the public buzz around his decision.
UCLA, though, has not gone quietly. Bob Chesney and the Bruins made a late push, and Sabbs June trip to Westwood kept them in the conversation at a time when every visit and every bit of recruiting activity seems to matter. For UCLA, the question is whether that late momentum can still matter when Sabb finally makes his call, or whether the final stretch has already tilted the board elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]