Chip Kelly appears headed back to school.
The former Oregon, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers head coach has agreed to take charge of UCLA’s football program, The Los Angeles Times’ Ben Bolch reported Saturday, citing sources with knowledge of the situation. UCLA is expected to appoint Kelly on Saturday and hold an introductory press conference next week.
Kelly spent the 2017 season as a college football analyst with ESPN and is considered one of the most sought-after coaches in the country. The University of Florida had been pursuing Kelly, but the Gators decided to move in another direction this week.
He’ll replace Jim Mora, whom UCLA fired last Sunday after six seasons. Mora took the Bruins to the Pac-12 championship game in 2012 and Bowl games in his first four seasons, but they’ve struggled over the last three campaigns, going 18-19 since 2015.
Kelly thrived in four seasons at Oregon between 2009 and 2012, leading the Ducks to to four Pac-10/12 titles, a BCS National Championship Game appearance, a Rose Bowl championship and a Fiesta Bowl Championship. He went 26-21 in three seasons as Eagles head coach and 2-14 in his one-year tenure as 49ers coach.
