Did UCLA fire Chip Kelly? Predicting Pac-12 coach's future in CFB arena amid jittery football season

UCLA coach Chip Kelly's job was under heavy scrutiny all week heading into the crucial Week 12 matchup against city rival USC. The rumor mill reached a crescendo when college football insider Tracy Pierson reported that Kelly would likely be fired after the Trojans game. Pierson said this was expected to be the case irrespective of the Bruins' result on Saturday.

Kelly returned to college football in 2018 with UCLA after a stint in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. He is currently on a 7-4 record this season and holds an overall record of 33-33, with 25-25 in the Pac-12, throughout six seasons as Bruins coach.

---

Did UCLA fire Chip Kelly?

Even though the news of Chip Kelly being on the verge of losing his job came from a reliable source, the coach was not fired by UCLA following the game against USC. The Bruins secured an upset 38-20 road win over the Trojans, which marked their seventh victory of the 2023 season.

Addressing the rumors following the big win against USC, coach Kelly said the outside noise doesn’t affect him. He also revealed the lesson he learned from Saturday's victory.

"Not an issue for me," Chip Kelly said. "I've never been governed by the fear of what other people say, and the lessons that this game has taught me is that there's gonna be highs and there's gonna be lows. And you gotta lean into the lows, embrace them, and then you just gotta go to work."

Kelly additionally disclosed that he had an earlier conversation with the university’s executive senior associate athletic director, Josh Rebholz. Per Kelly, Rebholz conveyed a message from athletic director Martin Jarmond, refuting the rumors of him getting fired by the program.

"Josh [Rebholz] came over the other day and said, 'Hey, there's a report about this, and Martin [Jarmond] told me it was inaccurate, inappropriate," Kelly said. "I don't pay attention to that stuff, I don't read that stuff, I never see that stuff."

---

What does the future hold for Chip Kelly at UCLA

While Chip Kelly's job at UCLA appears safe for now, it is unclear what the athletic department's decision will be at the end of the season. The athletic department desires a better performance from the football team, and it's up to Kelly to rise to the situation, banking on his experience.

It is expected that the athletic department will hold any decision on the future of Kelly until the end of the season. The Bruins will notably transition to the Big Ten in 2024 alongside three other Pac-12 teams. The program's decision-makers must determine whether Kelly is the right man to lead them in the more competitive Big Ten.