One Returning UCLA Player Ready To Become a Star

UCLA football will have a completely different roster compared to last season's disaster.

New head coach Bob Chesney just had one of the best seasons for a Group of Six program in history. While James Madison has been in the Sun Belt Conference for only four seasons, he has helped turn that program into one of the best in the conference.

Chesney led James Madison to their first Sun Belt Conference Championship, with a 12-1 record and 8-0 record in the conference, then they qualified for the College Football Playoff. Now that Bob Chesney is here at UCLA, he has completely changed the roster and built it back into a much more talented squad. However, despite bringing in all the talent from the transfer portal, he still kept some around.

While UCLA was 3-9 last year, it still had some good players on the roster. Nico Iamaleava at QB, Scooter Jackson and Rodrick Pleasant in the secondary, and Eugene Brooks on the offensive line. But there is one name that is ready to become a star next season. That player is Scott Taylor, who will now enter his second season with the Bruins and showed as a freshman why he can be a great player on the Bruins' defense.

Scott Taylor as a Freshman

Taylor was one of the higher-ranked players in the Bruins 2025 high school recruiting class and was listed as an edge rusher coming out of high school. When he got to UCLA, he would move from being an edge rusher to being a linebacker.

With the Bruins last season, Taylor would primarily be in a reserve role on the Bruins defense. He would play in all 12 games for them and would show off his potential with 12 total tackles, six being solo tackles, along with a forced fumble.

Why Scott Taylor Will Be a Star

Looking at Scott Taylor from last season, some might think that he will just be a role player for next season. However, the Bruins' linebacker room will be much improved with the likes of Sammy Omosigho, who comes from Oklahoma and will lead the defense. With a player like him, there won't be so much pressure on Taylor to produce.

Taylor is also very versatile as a player. As I mentioned before, during his high school career, he was an edge rusher who got after the quarterback. With Bob Chesney and defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler calling the plays, they will be able to put him in situations not only to rush the passer but also to stop the run.

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