FSU football staff member likely headed to join UCLA in big position

Florida State has made it clear that the football program will undergo front office changes this offseason. The specifics of the plan have continued to stay close to the vest as head coach Mike Norvell and athletics director Michael Alford haven't offered much beyond broad statements.

Regardless, it was obvious that the Seminoles planned to evaluate the performance of general manager Darrick Yray, who has come under fire for Florida State's transfer portal hauls and high school recruiting results over the past two years.

Yray has emerged as a candidate to head back to the West Coast with a P4 program.

UCLA Targeting Florida State GM Darrick Yray

According to 247Sports' Matt Zenitz, UCLA is pursuing Yray to take the same position in Los Angeles. The Bruins recently hired James Madison's Bob Chesney as head coach after firing Deshaun Foster early in the season.

It's unclear when Yray's contract expires at Florida State. He originally joined the Seminoles in February of 2022.

During his first two seasons, the Seminoles went 23-4 and won the ACC Championship. Florida State was able to land talented transfers such as Jared Verse, Braden Fiske, Keon Coleman, Johnny Wilson, Trey Benson, Jaheim Bell, and Fentrell Cypress II.

Florida State GM Darrick Yray is a target for the general manager job at UCLA, sources tell me, @chris_hummer, @BSonnone and @ZBlostein247.

Has been at FSU since 2022, including playing a key role in constructing the roster for FSU’s 13-win team in 2023. Before FSU, worked at… pic.twitter.com/VssnhV167v
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 10, 2025

Yray played a pivotal role in Florida State's acquisition strategies as the failures piled up in 2024 and 2025. The Seminoles have yet to land a top-10 high school recruiting class in his tenure, and the majority of their transfers have busted in the last two cycles.

Before his time at FSU, Yray spent seven years at Oregon State in a variety of roles, including director of player personnel, director of recruiting operations, coordinator of on-campus recruiting, and assistant director of player personnel.

Yray got his start in the industry at Fresno State. Over his seven years with the program, he worked as an offensive assistant and assistant director of football operations. Yray was the pro liaison for the Bulldogs.

Yray's salary in 2025 was believed to be around $300K.

Florida State has already made changes to its coaching staff this month. The Seminoles fired defensive backs coach Patrick Surtain Sr. while bringing in EDGE coach Nick Williams and cornerbacks coach Brandon Harris. Running backs coach David Johnson departed for Arkansas.

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