The UCLA Bruins are among the football programs looking for a new head coach, and a favorite has emerged for the job.
BetOnline.ag has listed odds for who will fill many of the coaching vacancies. They have Bob Chesney as the favorite to get the Bruins’ job with 3/2 odds. After Chesney are Jedd Fisch and Tommy Rees, who both have 11/4 odds. Tony White and Jonathan Smith are next on the list.
Bob Chesney 3/2 (+150)
Jedd Fisch 11/4 (+275)
Tommy Rees 11/4 (+275)
Tony White 4/1
Jonathan Smith 7/1
Brian Kelly 10/1
Pat Fitzgerald 14/1
Ryan Silverfield 18/1
Chesney, 48, is in his second season as the head coach at James Madison. His JMU teams have gone 18-5 under him. and the Dukes are 9-1 this season. Prior to JMU, Chesney coached at Holy Cross and went 44-21 over six seasons.
Former UCLA head football coach and quarterback Rick Neuheisel mentioned Chesney’s name too while talking about the Bruins’ job on CBS Sports Saturday.
“I’m hearing Bob Chesney from James Madison at UCLA. He’s got to make a decision … it seems like Penn State still got a spot, and Chesney is from the state of Pennsylvania, so maybe he’s waiting for something a little bit closer to home,” Neuheisel said.
"I'm hearing Bob Chesney from James Madison at UCLA. He's gotta make a decision." — @CoachNeuheisel pic.twitter.com/ZCGdT4kJUz
— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) November 15, 2025
Jedd Fisch is currently the head coach at Washington, but he coached at UCLA in 2017 and served as their interim head coach briefly.
Rees is the offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns, but he has experience in college serving as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for both Notre Dame and Alabama.
White is the defensive coordinator at Florida State. He played at UCLA and served as a graduate assistant there.
