The 2026 season is right around the corner but that doesn't mean that new head coach Bob Chesney and the UCLA Bruins are done making moves. Earlier this week Chesney and the program announced that longtime NFL quarterback Derek Carr will be joining the program as a special advisor to Chesney .
Time will tell how big of an impact Carr will make with the Bruins . Carr has flirted with coming out of retirement in the past since last appearing in the NFL during the 2024 season with the New Orleans Saints.
Since then, Carr hasn't held any official coaching positions but will now join UCLA as the program looks to climb up the Big Ten Conference. While Chesney comes to UCLA with experience, the experience doesn't come at the highest level, which is where Carr's expertise could shine.
"I think when Derek Carr asks to help out, the answer is yes," Chesney said on Tuesday during his media availability. "Now he has a place in Newport Beach, right down the road, he [said] 'I'm going to be around a lot and I'd love to help out'."
Chesney and the Bruins will take all the help they can get. UCLA is fresh off of a 3-9 season in 2025 but the reasons for optimism about the long-term standing of the program are plentiful. No one should be more excited than UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who now has a four-time NFL Pro Bowler in his corner to help guide Iamaleava to the next level.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 'The answer is yes' Bob Chesney didn't overthink bringing on Derek Carr
