As USC prepares to face UCLA, the big story is not the Pac-12 championship, or the Rose Bowl, or the College Football Playoff, or the New Year’s Six. It’s whether Chip Kelly will be fired by UCLA. USC’s defensive coordinator search will intensify after this game, but while Lincoln Riley looks for his most important assistant heading into the Big Ten, the Bruins are wondering if they are about to begin a new head coaching search.
UCLA insiders and people who follow the program closely are generally in alignment on this point: They believe that Chip Kelly is more likely to be fired than not. Kelly might not be done, but even if he beats USC on Saturday, his odds of returning as UCLA head coach for 2024 would be 50-50 at best.
Let’s go into the reportage and analysis of UCLA journalists and experts to flesh out this situation and then offer some added notes USC fans (and all college football fans) will appreciate: