Grading the hire: UCLA hopes JMU lightning strikes twice with Bob Chesney

Story by

Story by
Grading the hire: UCLA hopes JMU lightning strikes twice with Bob Chesney

Grading the hire: UCLA hopes JMU lightning strikes twice with Bob Chesney

Blake Toppmeyer and Matt Hayes, USA TODAY · USA TODAY Sports

Thu, Dec 4, 2025 ·

3 min read

About Our Ads

The last James Madison coach who came to the Big Ten turned the country's worst program into one of its best. UCLA is hoping lightning strikes twice .

Bob Chesney was a candidate for several teams looking to fill vacancies after two seasons in charge of JMU. Since being hired by the Dukes after Curt Cignetti left for Indiana, Chesney is 20-5 in this two seasons, including an 11-1 record this season that has James Madison in the Sun Belt championship game and in contention for the Group of Five spot in the College Football Playoff.

Here's how we grade the hire:

College football coaching grades: Grading each hire, how they fit

CFB coaches on the move: Carousel in overdrive, keep up with hirings, firings

Penn State hired Matt Campbell as its next head coach. Campbell, 46, coached 10 seasons at Iowa State and was the winningest coach in school history.

(Nirmalendu Majumdar, USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Kyle Whittingham is finalizing a new deal to be the coach at Michigan after 177 wins in 21 seasons at Utah. Whittingham replaces Sherrone Moore who was fired Dec. 10.
(Rob Gray, Imagn Images)

UCLA hired Bob Chesney as its next head coach, ending the longest coaching search in country of a coach fired midseason in 2025. Chesney spent two seasons at James Madison and led the Dukes to the Sun Belt championship game this season after coaching Holy Cross, where he won five conference championships.
(Bob Donnan, Imagn Images)

South Florida hired Brian Hartline, replacing Alex Golesh, who left to become head coach of Auburn. Hartline has been an assistant at Ohio State since 2017 first as wide receivers coach then offensive coordinator and helped the Buckeyes win the national championship last season.
(Adam Cairns, USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Florida hired Jon Sumrall as its next head coach, replacing Billy Napier, who was fired midseason. Sumrall, 43, spent two seasons at Tulane and two at Troy and led his teams to the conference championship game in each of those four seasons.

(Stephen Lew, Imagn Images)

LSU hired Lane Kiffin as its next football coach on Nov. 30. Kiffin spent six seasons at Ole Miss and led the Rebels to a spot in this year's College Football Playoff, though he won't coach in it.
(Ayrton Breckenridge/Clarion Ledger)

Virginia Tech hired James Franklin as its next head coach. Franklin was fired earlier this season at Penn State. He replaces Brent Pry, who was fired midseason by the Hokies.
(Brian Bishop-Imagn Images)

Michigan State football hired Pat Fitzgerald as Jonathan Smith's replacement. Fitzgerald coached 17 seasons at his alma mater Northwestern, posting a 110-101 overall record.
(Michael Reaves, Getty Images)

Auburn is hiring South Florida coach Alex Golesh to be the Tigers' next head coach. Golesh is 23-15 in three seasons with the Bulls, with three bowl bids.
(Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images)

Ole Miss promoted defensive coordinator Pete Golding to head coach after Lane Kiffin left for LSU. Golding is in his third season as Rebels DC and served as Alabama's DC before.
(Justin Ford, Getty Images)

Morgan Scalley is taking over as Utah coach with the departure of Kyle Whittingham following 21 seasons in the job. Scalley, a former Utes defensive back, was an assistant under Whittingham for 18 seasons and coach-in-waiting since 2024.
(Rob Gray, Imagn Images)

Arkansas is set to hire Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield to lead the Razorbacks program. Silverfield is 50-24 in six seasons in Memphis with a fifth bowl appearance on the way.
(Wesley Hale-Imagn Images)

Oklahoma State hired Eric Morris from North Texas to be the Cowboys next head coach. Morris replaces longtime OSU coach Mike Gundy, who was fired earlier this season.
(Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images)

Stanford hired Washington Commanders quarterback coach Tavita Pritchard to be the Cardinal's next head coach
(Eric Canha-Imagn Images)

Colorado State hired Jim Mora Jr. as its new head coach. Mora led UConn to back-to-back nine-win seasons and replaces Jay Norvell, who was fired midseason.
(David Butler II-Imagn Images)

Kentucky moved on from Mark Stoops after 13 seasons and hired Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein to fill its vacancy. The Kentucky native previously played for Louisville.
(Ben Lonergan, The Register-Guard)

Iowa State hired Jimmy Rogers as its next head coach. Rogers, 38, spent one year as the coach of Washington State after coaching South Dakota State for two seasons and an FCS national championship in 2023.

(James Snook, Imagn Images)

Kansas State has brought back former player and assistant Collin Klein as its football coach after Chris Klieman stepped down after seven seasons. Klein spent the past two years as offensive coordinator at Texas A&M.
(Peter Aiken, Getty Images)

Tosh Lupoi is returning to alma mater California after the school fired Justin Wilcox. Lupoi, a longtime college and NFL assistant, was defensive coordinator at Oregon for four seasons.
(Ben Lonergan, The Register-Guard)

Charles Huff is the new Memphis football coach after one season at Southern Mississippi after leading the Golden Eagles to a bowl game. He previously was at Marshall for four seasons.
(Matt Bush, Special to the Clarion Ledger)

Connecticut hired Toledo coach Jason Candle to replace Jim Mora. Candle won 81 games in 10 seasons with the Rockets.
(Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports)

James Madison moved quickly to hire Billy Napier, a former coach at Florida and Louisiana-Lafayette, after the departure of Bob Chesney to UCLA.
(Matt Pendleton, Imagn Images)

After losing Jon Sumrall to Florida, Tulane elevated offensive coordinator Will Hall to the job. Hall previously coached four seasons at Southern Mississippi.
(Matt Bush, USA TODAY Sports)

Toledo found the replacement for Jason Candle with the addition of Mercer's Mike Jacobs, who led the Bears to consecutive FCS playoff appearances in two seasons at the school.
(Will McLelland, Imagn Images)

Oregon State hired Alabama co-offensive coordinator JaMarcus Shephard as its head coach, replacing Trent Bray who was fired after an 0-7 start this season.
(Jason Clark, Getty Images)

North Texas hired former West Virginia coach Neal Brown as the replacement for Eric Morris, who departed for the head coaching job at Oklahoma State. Brown spent six seasons with the Mountaineers and won 35 games in four seasons at Troy.
(Ben Queen, Imagn Images)

Ohio promoted interim coach John Hauser after the team defeated UNLV in the Xbox Bowl. Hauser replaces Brian Smith, who was fired in December.
(Raymond Carlin III, Imagn Images)

After the departure of Jimmy Rogers, Washington State hired Kirby Moore, who spent the last three seasons as an assistant at Missouri after previous stops at Fresno State and Washington.
(Denny Medley, USA TODAY Sports)

Caostal Carolina filled its coaching vacancy after the firing of Tim Beck by hiring Ryan Beard from Missouri State, who led the Bears to a bowl game in their first FBS season.
(Michael Gulledge, Special to the News-Leader)

Southern Mississippi promoted offensive coordinator Blake Anderson to fill its coaching vacancy following the departure of Charles Huff. Anderson was previously the head coach at Utah State and Arkansas State.
(Michael Madrid, USA TODAY Sports)

Alex Mortensen took over as interim coach of Alabama-Birmingham after the firing of Trent Dilfer. Mortenson was promoted to full-time coach after going 2-4 to finish the season.
(David Butler II, Imagn Images)

Grade: B

Some other schools — looking at you, Penn State — might regret not hiring Chesney.

He wins. Google him.

Yes, Chesney is going to draw comparisons to Curt Cignetti, because Chesney succeeded Cignetti at James Madison and maintained his success.

But, also, their rise through the ranks shows some parallels. Chesney, 48, coached in Division III, then Division II, then FCS, before cracking into the FBS ranks with James Madison.

And, get this: In 16 years as a coach, he's only had one losing season at any level. That's darn impressive.

Surviving signing day without a coach: How UCLA football stayed afloat

Like Chesney, Cignetti also coached in Division II and the FCS before moving to FBS. They're not replicas, though. Unlike Cignetti, Chesney didn't work under Nick Saban. In fact, he's never coached in a Power Four conference, even as an assistant.

Chesney, a Pennsylvania native, will head to the West Coast after spending his entire career in the Eastern Time Zone. UCLA is replacing alumnus DeShaun Foster , so you get the sense with this hire that a winning track record mattered than knowing the words to "Sons of Westwood."

This will mark the greatest challenge of Chesney's career. UCLA is one of the Big Ten's tougher jobs. Didn't they say the same thing about Indiana, though? Let's see how true those Cignetti comparisons hold up. ― Blake Toppmeyer

Grade: B-

Before we go further, it must be one or the other: Did Curt Cignetti take the core of elite players from James Madison two years ago to rebuild Indiana, or is Chesney living off what Cignetti built?

Clearly, the former is the answer ― which makes the narrative that Chesney is benefitting from Cignetti utterly ridiculous. The coaching and recruiting and developing aspect isn't the problem with this hire, it's the school.

UCLA is set up to fail, and has been for a long, long time.

it wasn't until Jim Mora essentially strong-armed the school more than a decade ago into building a palatial football facility, that the program at least had a chance to compete. Prior to that, UCLA's main practice field was 80 yards. Seriously.

Until the school commits to financially support the program like the rest of the Big Ten schools, it wil be a heavy lift for any coach. Until the private NIL world catches up with the rest of the Big Ten (and blue bloods of college football), UCLA will struggle to win games.

Chesney has a strong track record of winning wherever he has coached, but it takes more than Xs and Os. it's the ability to attract elite players. No matter the coach, elite players win big games. ― Matt Hayes

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: UCLA football hires Bob Chesney as head coach. Expert grades

Mobilize your Website

View Site in Mobile | Classic

Share by:

Grading the hire: UCLA hopes JMU lightning strikes twice with Bob Chesney

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

These college football coaches are on the move. See who found new home

Grade: B

Grade: B-