Photo: Kevin C. Cox
UCLA head coach Chip Kelly is reportedly leaving the program to take the offensive coordinator position at Ohio State following the reported sudden departure of Bill O'Brien, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to ESPN's Pete Thamel on Friday (February 9).
"Sources: Ohio State is expected to target UCLA coach Chip Kelly as the school's next offensive coordinator. A deal could come together as soon as today," Thamel wrote on his X account. "Source: UCLA has been made aware of Chip Kelly's potential departure and is planning a national search for a replacement."
Kelly went 35-34 during six seasons as UCLA's head coach, which includes finishing with a winning record in each of the last three years. The former NFL head coach is the fourth college head coach to leave a head coaching job for coordinator positions, following Kane Wommack and Mo Linguist, who took respective offensive and defensive coordinator positions at Alabama, and Jeff Hafley, who left Boston College to accept the offensive coordinator job with the Green Bay Packers.
O'Brien was reportedly hired to replace Hafley at Boston College on Friday, less than one month after accepting the offensive coordinator position at Ohio State. The former Penn State and Houston Texans head coach was hired by Ohio State in January after spending the past three seasons working as an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, first at Alabama from 2021 to 2022 and later returning the New England Patriots in 2023, having previously held several offensive roles with the NFL franchise from 2007 to 2011, including the same two positions during the final year of his initial tenure.
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