LOS ANGELES — UCLA football has captured college purists’ imagination around the country.
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CBS lead college football analyst Charles Davis has seen the reaction during UCLA’s 4-0 start.
“I think if you don’t have a real affiliation or you’re not a fan rooting for or against UCLA , the rest of us are watching this in fascination,” Davis said. “They have a fun way of playing. And having that James Madison connection, knowing this staff played against Oregon in the College Football Playoff, makes for a day of compelling football on Saturday.”
Davis, who will be on the call when No. 21 UCLA battles No. 13 Oregon at 12:30 p.m. at Eugene’s Autzen Stadium, spoke with the Southern California News Group on Tuesday about his observations of the Bruins.
While the James Madison parallels are there, Davis doesn’t think Indiana’s story of overnight national championship success with Curt Cignetti compares to UCLA. Instead, he sees Bob Chesney as a coach fans can relate to and a figure who has built from the ground up.
Chesney’s first head coaching job was at NCAA Division III Salve Regina in Newport, Rhode Island, between 2010-12. Afterwards, Chesney headed to NCAA Division II Assumption College in Worcester, Mass., where he led the Greyhounds to five consecutive winning records and produced 12 All-Americans between 2013-17.
Next came the transition from NCAA II to a Division I FBS school at Holy Cross, where Chesney continued creating success and rebuilding programs. Chesney led Holy Cross to an 11-0 regular season record in 2022 – the first undefeated season by the program since 1991 before succeeding Cignetti at James Madison and leading the Dukes to their first College Football Playoff appearance.
“People like it,” Davis said. “The Indiana story isn’t going to be beaten. No one will ever be able to beat what Cignetti did. UCLA has had success in the past. But they haven’t been good in a while, and this is a lot of fun to watch. And when watching Bob Chesney, you’re seeing how he’s done it the right way. He’s worked his way through the ranks and his ascension has been incredible.”
One observation made by Davis is that Chesney has reinvented himself at each stop.
“He’s battle-tested, and he’s been through the coaching clinics and workshops,” Davis said. “His teachings, his messages are consistent, and he’s redefining himself like A.I. And the best part of all? I believe he wakes up confident with who he is every day. He knows what he wants and knows what wants to create that culture.
“You’ve seen it with the guys he’s brought in from JMU. And you see the buy-in quickly. If there’s a player who doesn’t know a scheme or has a question, there’s a James Madison guy there to help explain it.”
CULTIVATING TALENT FROM WITHIN
Chesney has also developed players who otherwise would’ve maybe been discarded to the scout team, second or third string, and turned them into stars. Senior center Riley Robell started as a scout team defensive lineman under Chesney and was on the verge of quitting football to focus on wrestling before meeting Chesney.
Wayne Knight was a kick returner before earning more carries with Chesney at James Madison and is now ranked second in FBS in yards per carry (9.0), tied for third with rushing touchdowns (nine) and carries the fourth-best rushing offense collectively.
And then there’s the work done with Nico Iamaleava, who transferred from Tennessee after a standout career at Warren High in Downey.
Chesney hasn’t just developed players as a coach. He’s viewed as a football professor. A mind that views the game of football with multiple dimensions and whose tactical intelligence and group organizing are hard to match.
He is a delegator who allows offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy and defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler, with their assistants, to teach the game to their own liking and style while obtaining key principles that have shaped UCLA’s early success.
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“That’s what coaches are, coaches are teachers,” Davis said. “It’s not just on the field but off the field. I feel he and his staff have a way of identifying and teaching each player how to throw a block, catch a pass, and help each player figure out how to learn and develop themselves. And when you come to this program, you’re going to learn to be a better player. He went to all the clinics and learned how to get this message out. His whole staff is built that way.”
UTILIZING MULTIPLE OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Among the bedrocks of UCLA’s early success has been Chesney’s constant rotation of offensive linemen, using 10 to 15 players in the trenches rather than a five-man rotation that plays together nearly every snap with occasional breaks.
The system installed by Chesney and offensive line coach Chris Smith has equated to UCLA’s success in the run game and passing game. Offensive linemen aren’t just viewed and utilized as complete one-size-fits-all pieces.
Davis marvels at how each blocker is looked at individually, with strengths and weaknesses to decipher which scheme fits best to their strengths, knowledge and playing style.
“They are going in like it’s a hockey change,” Davis said. “And there’s no loss in continuity. It’s amazing what I’m seeing. And it’s something we’ve rarely seen or at least done and well executed for years.”
Davis compared the run style, offensive tempo and switches to the strategies used by Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown, who revolutionized the game using his own specialized T-formation that required alternating guards.
“We haven’t had that for a long time, and in this case, their continuity is in using multiple players,” Davis said. “You watch their production and it’s been fascinating to watch.”
But Davis also cautioned that Chesney’s style doesn’t fit with each program or organization. Chesney was hired by UCLA on Dec. 6, 2025, and had nearly a year to make the proper installs and recruit the proper players that fit his run style that’s become one of the elite weapons in all of college football.
“It’s not for everyone,” Davis said. “It’s worked well for Coach Chesney, but the key to having something similar is understanding how they go about it. It takes patience and finding the right players and also having great assistant coaches to teach.”
PROGRESS AND PROCESS OVER OUTCOMES
UCLA (4-0, 2-0 Big Ten) now faces Oregon in a highly anticipated rematch between Chesney, albeit at a different program, and Ducks head coach Dan Lanning, who will turn to Nebraska transfer quarterback Dylan Raiola after starter Dante Moore was ruled out Wednesday while still dealing with a head injury.
Moore, who transferred to Eugene in December 2023 after one topsy-turvy season at UCLA, sustained a frightening concussion on a second-quarter hit flagged for targeting in a 41-27 victory over USC on Sept. 26. Raiola, who stepped in and threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns in defeating the Trojans, will make his first start for the Ducks (3-1, 1-0).
Davis, in observing Chesney, has seen how UCLA has thrived. It might feel overnight from the outside until peeling back the layers and the small details executed, from stretching to Iamaleava’s footwork drills and catching interceptions in practice.
“It’s just fun to see UCLA having the success they are having as a team,” Davis said. “They run the ball with great effectiveness and turn that into great production. It’s success that not many expected so quickly. Now they get to be measured by a team like Oregon, who is always a factor in deciding the College Football Playoff.
“This is a team that plays with passion; they are talented, disciplined, and that’s why they’re hard to beat. For UCLA, they aren’t worried about anything besides measuring themselves. And they get that measurement against Oregon to really see how far along they are.”
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