UCLA has been searching for its new head coach for most of the season, as head coach DeShaun Foster was let go just three games into his second season at the helm. Foster, who led the program to a 5-10 record, was replaced by interim head coach Tim Skipper. Under Skipper, the Bruins are 3-5 with a shocking 42-37 win over then-No. 7 ranked Penn State on Oct. 4, which led to James Franklin‘s firing.

During the latest edition of the ‘Always College Football‘ podcast, ESPN‘s Greg McElroy tabbed James Madison head coach Bob Chesney as the ‘obvious’ candidate for the UCLA opening.

“Their job is open after they fired DeShaun Foster in the middle, or the beginning frankly, of September,” McElroy said. “The interim head coach right now is Tim Skipper, and Tim Skipper by the way did a pretty dang good job in a short period of time. However, things have started to fall off a little bit as the season has gone along. This is an obvious search for me. This is a very hire for me… I’m going out and hiring Bob Chesney from James Madison. This is the guy that you absolutely have to find who can do more with less.”

McElroy lauds Chesney’s ability to follow the ‘Moneyball approach’

“You have to find a guy that uses kind of the quote ‘Moneyball approach’ if you will,” McElroy continued. “To evaluate talent and to get guys to buy in and create organizational consistency so that you can actually play against the likes of the teams you’re forced to play against that have deeper resources and better opportunities and are way ahead of you right now in terms of program stability. So, this one’s obvious to me. Go hire James Madison head coach Bob Chesney and get the job done as soon as humanly possible.”

Chesney has flown through the coaching ranks in the past decade. His head coaching career began at Division III Salve Regina in 2010, before he moved on to Division II Assumption, FCS Holy Cross, and finally Division I James Madison in 2024. Chesney replaced Curt Cignetti following his move to Indiana and has led the Dukes to a 19-5 record over the past two seasons.

With just one week remaining in the regular season, Cheney has his program well in contention for the GO5 spot in the College Football Playoff. It’s safe to say he would be a big splash for a UCLA program looking to contend in a loaded Big Ten conference.