Biggest Decisions Facing UCLA Coach Chesney Before Camp Begins

New UCLA head coach Bob Chesney and his staff have a big rebuilding task ahead of them entering their inaugural season with the Bruins. After one of the worst seasons in program history, Chesney and his staff have a lot of big decisions to make before the season opener at Cal on September 5.

UCLA was abysmal across multiple offensive and defensive categories in 2025. Nearly every position will have competition for UCLA entering the 2026 season. The bigger questions for Chesney and his staff are how to improve multiple areas that were a problem in 2025.

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Creating More Explosive Plays on Offense

UCLA will be led offensively by quarterback Nico Iamaleava and James Madison transfer running back Wayne Knight. The Bruins were one of the worst teams nationally at producing explosive plays in 2025. The addition of Knight and a completely rebuilt receiver corps should make UCLA more explosive offensively in 2026.

James Madison transfer Landon Ellis should provide UCLA with a deep threat, and Leland Smith, who transferred from San Jose State, will give the Bruins a big target at 6'4 in short yardage and the red zone. Mikey Matthews returns as the only receiver from the 2025 UCLA rotation.

Protecting the Quarterback

UCLA was 97th in 2025, allowing 2.25 sacks per game. Eugene Brooks was the only starter on that UCLA offensive line projected to start in 2026. James Madison transfer Riley Robell is expected to start over 2025 starter Sam Yoon at center in 2026.

The interior of the offensive line will be critical for UCLA in 2026. Eugene Brooks and Julian Armella return as the starting left and right guards. Carter Sweazie was the starting LG for James Madison in 2025 before transferring to UCLA. Armella, Brooks, and Sweazie will compete for snaps with UCLA in 2026.

How To Create More Havoc Defensively

James Madison transfer edge rusher Sahir West should provide UCLA with a huge boost defensively in 2026. UCLA was last nationally in 2026 with 40 tackles for loss and 10 sacks in 12 games. Seven of the top eight defensive linemen on the UCLA two-deep depth chart are incoming transfers.

Position battles and putting players in the right position to succeed will ultimately be the biggest decisions for Chesney and his staff to make at the end of training camp. UCLA should have a significantly improved roster in 2026. The Bruins need transfers to perform well to succeed in 2026.

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