Chesney Reveals New Details About the Bruins' Job

The buzz surrounding Bob Chesney is at an all-time high. Not only has he led JMU to the College Football Playoff, but he has also signed on as UCLA’s newest head coach, giving Bruins fans plenty of reason for excitement.

Here is everything notable he said in his most recent interview with the Bruins Insider Show:

Chesney Reflects on Emerging as an Early UCLA Candidate

Dec 9, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA football coach Bob Chesney (right) shakes hands with athletic director Martin Jarmond at introductory press conference at Renee Luskin Conference Center Centennial Ballroom. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

When Deshaun Foster was fired on Sept.14, the hunt for the next UCLA head coach started almost immediately. Very early on, Chesney was inquired about, something that was key in making him the Bruins' newest coach. Here is how Chesney recounts the experience:

I got a call pretty quickly. And, you know, there were some, you know, players involved in this that I knew. From my past, one Bill Simmons, that's, I think, pretty close with Casey Wasserman and another guy named Brett Veach, who's really close with Adam Peters. And those were calls that happened way earlier. Before anybody even was talking about this actually being a thing.
Bob Chesney

Chesney's Initial Impression of UCLA

chesen — Dec 9, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Bob Chesney is introduced as UCLA Bruins football coach at press conference at Renee Luskin Conference Center Centennial Ballroom. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

As an East Coast coach, Chesney’s exposure to UCLA during his time at JMU was fairly limited. Even so, he understood immediately the kind of opportunity he was stepping into. When asked about the Bruins, Chesney spoke highly of the program and the prestige surrounding the school.

I didn't have, you know, a one notion or another in a positive or negative way. I just knew the history of it here. I knew what this place was. I know that it is one of the greatest areas that you could possibly bring a recruit to or live in the world and at the same point in time, being you, know, number one in academics, with those connections. I understood all of those things, that was really important for me.
Bob Chesney on UCLA

Chesney's Powerful Message to UCLA's Players

With Chesney comes a winning culture and the high expectations he believes everyone in blue and gold must meet. There’s little doubt he wants to turn UCLA into a consistent winner, and he made it clear that the process starts with him—and extends to every player on the roster.

Are you willing to sacrifice what you got to sacrifice to get what you want? Ultimately, we want but once we understand what our expectations are and what we want, then we start to build ultimately the standards what we got to do every day, and then the process of holding each other accountable to it is really the way this thing works. But if anybody that touches this program doesn';t believe we're going to win, they should not be part of this program.
Bob Chesney on Player Expectations

Bob Chesney on What Makes a Great Team

Chesney might be the only person in Westwood truly equipped to speak on this. He has proven himself as an accomplished winner at every level of college football, and he understands better than anyone that the details are what sustain a winning culture.

Every single person on this team. matters whether you're a scout team player running down on kickoff you matter, to make sure that we have the speed the intelligence and the toughness that comes with the team that we're about to play, so every single thing matters. Everything here matters. The way they keep their lockers, the way they keep the weight room, all the little things matter.
Chesney on a Winning Culture

Bob Chesen — Dec 9, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins football coach Bob Chesney (center) poses with athletic director Martin Jarmond (left) and chancellor Julio Frenk at introductory press conference at Renee Luskin Conference Center Centennial Ballroom. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Bob Chesney has set the expectations for UCLA football, now it is a matter if he can deliver.

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