UCLA coach Bob Chesney is close to signing a contract extension to stay put in Westwood, Calif., a program source told The Athletic, as the Bruins move to retain the architect of an unbeaten season that has carried them from a three-win finish to the brink of the College Football Playoff. The source spoke under condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
In his first season, Chesney has led UCLA to a 9-0 record and No. 4 in the CFP committee’s most recent rankings — the highest position the Bruins have landed in program history. The Bruins are the only unbeaten team in the Big Ten or the SEC and enter Friday’s home date against Illinois with their first 9-0 start since 1998.
The contract talks come less than a year after UCLA hired Chesney from James Madison, where he led the Dukes to their first Sun Belt championship and Playoff appearance in 2025. His current contract is a five-year, $33.75 million agreement.
UCLA’s revival has continued through the loss of former starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in an Oct. 10 victory at Oregon. Backup Ty Dieffenbach helped the Bruins seal that win and has won all four of his subsequent starts. At Minnesota last Saturday, Dieffenbach, a Cal Poly transfer, threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns on just eight completions, including two 75-yard, fourth-quarter connections with Aidan Mizell that broke open a tie game for a 34-20 victory.
A productive running game and disruptive defense have helped sustain the Bruins through this improbable transition. UCLA leads the Big Ten with 213.2 rushing yards per game and entered this week leading the nation with 27 takeaways. Running back Wayne Knight, who followed Chesney from James Madison, leads the Big Ten with 789 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns.
The contrast with the program Chesney inherited is stark. UCLA finished 3-9 last season, firing former Bruins star running back DeShaun Foster after an 0-3 start and completing the year under interim coach Tim Skipper. Chesney has already matched the largest year-over-year improvement in wins in school history. A victory against Illinois would surpass that mark and tie UCLA’s single-season record of 10 wins.
Chesney, 49, arrived with a record of success built across all four levels of NCAA football. He took over a Division III Salve Regina program coming off eight consecutive losing seasons and produced three straight winning records. At Division II Assumption, which had managed a meager two winning seasons in the previous 17 years, he delivered five in five seasons. He then led Holy Cross to five consecutive Patriot League championships before going 21-6 in two years at James Madison. His career record is 141-52.
Chesney took both coordinators — Dean Kennedy on offense and Colin Hitschler on defense — with him from James Madison to UCLA. His final game with the Dukes was a first-round Playoff loss at Oregon last December; less than 10 months later, he returned to Autzen Stadium and delivered UCLA’s first win there since 2004.
After Illinois, the Bruins — who have never reached the CFP — finish the regular season at Michigan on Nov. 21 before returning to the Rose Bowl to host rival USC on Nov. 28.