UCLA football has juice again and coach Bob Chesney built it in months
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Days after getting hired at UCLA, former coach Jim Mora and a phalanx of assistant coaches showed up to the California state championships at what is now the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson.
Full of swagger and confidence, it looked like a breath of fresh air was being pumped into the program, more edginess, more bravado.
That first recruiting class under Mora finished No. 17 nationally. In Mora’s first full recruiting cycle, the Bruins finished ninth nationally by signing five-star Eddie Vanderdoes and 18 four-star prospects.
Mora won 29 games in his first three seasons before things fizzled out and he was fired after losing three straight to USC.
Since Mora’s firing, UCLA has three winning seasons and four losing ones. Chip Kelly didn’t give a hoot about recruiting. DeShaun Foster could recruit but seemingly had no organization around the program.
For many elite prospects in California, UCLA was an afterthought, a backup plan if USC or Oregon or countless other programs didn’t work out.
But that’s the case no longer.
UCLA is back to having the No. 17 class nationally but even more than team recruiting rankings is a vibrancy that first-year coach Bob Chesney and his staff have given the program.
Since when have this many people – from coaches to prospects to handlers to parents to fans – been this excited about UCLA football?
“It’s the new coaching staff,” four-star receiver Hayden Koo said. “They bring a whole new energy to the place. It’s for sure changed. The coaching staff is just fired up for this season to bring back UCLA football. It’s great to hear from a lot of them.”
The 2027 recruiting victories are well-documented.
UCLA beat Oklahoma for JuJu Johnson. The Bruins flipped Jerry Outhouse from Georgia. Texas Tech was trending for George Toia before UCLA convinced him to come back home. USC looked like the leader for Pole Moala before numerous trips to Westwood.
Nebraska lost out on Matthew Gregory when UCLA landed his pledge in June. Myles Baker flipped from Cal. Jackson Roper didn’t have the Bruins on his top list and then everything changed after his visit.
On and on down the list. And 2028 could be even better.
Gaige Weddle doesn’t have UCLA in his top three but he’s loved the coaching staff and if he’s leaning more to staying home it could be an option. Gigantic offensive lineman Lincoln Fa’alafi has UCLA and Notre Dame among his early standouts.
Star quarterback Josiah Boyd has the Bruins in his top handful. The more one goes down the list of the 2028 California state rankings, the more prospects are taking UCLA seriously again.
Almost all of them visited in the spring. Seemingly, all of them loved their time.
Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco four-star offensive lineman Elisha Mueller has a ton of respect for Chesney. The Bruins are battling USC, Alabama, LSU and others for him.
“The head coach at UCLA is a proven winner,” Mueller said. “He’s done it at every level.
“He took JMU to the College Football Playoff. That says something. I didn’t know what JMU was until they made the playoffs, no disrespect. The proof is in the pudding that he’s a great coach.”
Long Beach (Calif.) Poly teammate Zion Anderson is a close friend of Johnson and playing together is a strong consideration.
UCLA has so much juice right now that USC legacy Chauncey Washington II is seriously considering doing the unthinkable: Turning down the Trojans to play for their crosstown rival.
Whether it actually happens is yet to be seen but Washington’s recruitment is a perfect example of the changes in only the last few months: What was once unfathomable is becoming reality.
“Everybody just assumes (USC) but UCLA has a big chance,” Washington said.
“The staff. The ‘27 class is doing something special. It’s real. It’s not hype. They’re doing something special. The coaches, the staff, they know what they’re doing. You saw what they did at JMU and they’re going to do something special at UCLA.”
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