Report: Oregon wants Chip Kelly if Mario Cristobal leaves

Oregon may have to replace their head coach in the coming days if Mario Cristobal decides to leave the program, and one report says they will look to an old friend should that situation arise.

Cristobal has been heavily linked to the Miami job, and many expect the Hurricanes to fire Manny Diaz and hire the Oregon coach. John Canzano of The Oregonian predicts that the Ducks will try to bring back Chip Kelly if Cristobal leaves for Miami.

If Mario Cristobal leaves Oregon for Miami… I expect UCLA coach Chip Kelly to be a target for Ducks.

Maybe THE target.

— John Canzano (@johncanzanobft) December 5, 2021

Canzano also noted that Kelly currently has a $9 million buyout at UCLA through Jan. 15. After that, neither side would owe anything if Kelly left. That could complicate things a bit. If Kelly did want to leave UCLA to return to Oregon, both he and Oregon would want to wait for the buyout to drop to $0. UCLA, of course, would want an answer as soon as possible.

Kelly was the head coach at Oregon from 2009-2012. He led the Ducks to the National Championship Game in 2010, where they lost to Cam Newton and Auburn. Kelly then went to the NFL to coach the Philadelphia Eagles from 2013-2015 and San Francisco 49ers for one season in 2016. He was hired by UCLA in 2018.

Kelly’s overall record in four seasons at UCLA is a disappointing 18-25, but the team is 8-4 this year and finally seems to be heading in the right direction. He went 46-7 in four seasons at Oregon, so you can understand why Ducks and Bruins fans might have differing opinions on the coach.

Photo: July 24, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins coach Chip Kelly during Pac-12 football media day at Hollywood & Highland. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sport