UCLA could not look much different than it did last year.

That is probably a good thing.

The Bruins went 3-9 last season and 3-6 in the Big Ten, and the one moment everyone remembers is the massive upset over Penn State. That win basically changed the direction of the Penn State program and helped end the James Franklin era there.

But for UCLA, it was more of a flash than a foundation.

The rest of the season was rough.

The offense struggled. The defense gave up too many points. The pass rush was almost nonexistent. The roster never looked deep enough to compete week after week in the Big Ten.

Now Bob Chesney takes over after a terrific run at James Madison, and the Bruins are trying to rebuild fast with a roster that has a very different feel.

There is one major piece back.

Nico Iamaleava.

And if UCLA is going to make a real jump, he has to be better.

HEAD COACH

• Bob Chesney, entering year one at UCLA
• UCLA went 3-9 last season.
• The Bruins finished 3-6 in the Big Ten.
• Chesney went 21-6 in two years at James Madison.
• James Madison reached the College Football Playoff under Chesney.

This is a really interesting hire.

Chesney won big at James Madison. He took a Group of Five program to the playoff, which is not something anyone should just brush off. James Madison was explosive on offense, tough on defense and extremely well coached.

Now he gets a Power Four job.

That changes everything.

At James Madison, Chesney could win with development, system, confidence and a roster that fit exactly what he wanted to do. At UCLA, the athlete level is higher, the resources are better and the brand is bigger.

But the schedule is also much harder.

That is the challenge.

UCLA averaged only 18.2 points per game last season, ranking near the bottom of the country. The Bruins averaged 320 yards per game, which was not much better. Opponents scored 33.4 points per game, even though they averaged only 387 yards per game.

That tells you UCLA was not just getting beaten.

It was getting put in bad situations.

Chesney’s James Madison team averaged 36.5 points per game and 452 yards per game last season. The Dukes also allowed only 19 points per game and 275 yards per game.

So the coaching track record is exciting.

The question is how fast it translates.

QUARTERBACK

Everything starts with Nico Iamaleava.

And this is one of the more fascinating quarterback situations in the Big Ten.

A couple years ago, Nico was one of the biggest names in the sport. He helped take Tennessee to the College Football Playoff, became one of the faces of the NIL era, left for UCLA, and then sort of faded from the national conversation.

That does not mean he cannot play.

He can.

But last season showed that UCLA cannot ask him to do everything.

Iamaleava completed 64% of his passes with 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also ran for 505 yards and four touchdowns.

Those rushing numbers are good.

But they also tell part of the problem.

Too much of the offense was on him. UCLA did not have enough around him. The run game leaned too much on the quarterback. The passing game did not have enough explosive answers.

The deep-ball numbers were the biggest concern.

Iamaleava went 6-of-31 on deep throws with two touchdowns and one interception. That is a 19% completion rate, one of the worst marks in the country.

That has to change.

Some of it is on Nico. He has to be more accurate downfield. He has to give receivers chances. He has to make defenses pay when they crowd the short and intermediate game.

But some of it was also the roster.

UCLA did not have enough proven receivers. It did not have enough help in the run game. It did not have the kind of offensive line that allowed everything to function cleanly.

That is why Chesney and this new staff matter.

They have to give Nico an offense that helps him instead of asking him to save everything.

If they do, the Bruins can be much more competitive.

THE REST OF THE OFFENSE

The offense has a lot of new pieces, and most of them are connected to James Madison.

That makes sense.

Chesney knows those players. They know his system. If UCLA wants to improve quickly, bringing over players who already understand what the staff wants is logical.

The most important addition may be Wayne Knight.

Knight comes over from James Madison after rushing for 1,373 yards and nine touchdowns last season. That is exactly what UCLA needed.

A real running back.

A proven running back.

A back who can take pressure off Iamaleava.

The Bruins also have Jaivian Thomas and Anthony Woods, who both rushed for 294 yards last season. That gives UCLA more options in the backfield, and that matters because last year’s leading non-quarterback rusher is gone.

This offense cannot be Nico plus hope again.

The receiver room is also being rebuilt.

Landon Ellis comes over from James Madison. Leland Smith comes in from San Jose State. Brian Rowe comes in from South Carolina. That is a brand new group trying to replace a receiver room that did not bring back anyone with more than 500 yards from last season.

That is both concerning and exciting.

It is concerning because chemistry takes time.

It is exciting because UCLA needed something different.

The offensive line also gets help from James Madison.

Riley Robell, an All-Sun Belt type of player, comes over. Tackie Nd Raymond also comes from JMU. UCLA also has Eugene Brooks and Sam Yoon back up front.

That could be the difference.

If the line improves and Knight gives the Bruins a real run game, Iamaleava’s job changes completely. He can be a quarterback instead of the entire offense.

That is the goal.

DEFENSE

The defensive number that stands out is almost impossible to believe.

UCLA produced zero sacks last season.

Not few.

Zero.

That tells you everything about how much work this defense needs.

If you cannot sack the quarterback one time in a season, you cannot survive in the Big Ten. You are not creating negative plays. You are not speeding up quarterbacks. You are not getting offenses off schedule.

That has to be fixed immediately.

The Bruins do have some returning pieces in the secondary.

Scooter Jackson, Cole Martin and Rodrick Pleasant are all back. That gives UCLA experience on the back end, but the secondary can only hold up for so long if there is no pass rush.

That is why the transfers matter.

Sahir West comes over from James Madison as a defensive end. DJ Barksdale also comes in from James Madison in the secondary. Sammy Omosigho comes in from Oklahoma, and Tao Johnson comes in from Utah.

Those are important additions.

But the biggest thing is simple.

UCLA has to become more disruptive.

The Bruins do not need to turn into the 1985 Bears. They just need to make quarterbacks uncomfortable. They need to create sacks, tackles for loss, hurried throws and turnovers.

Chesney’s James Madison defense was outstanding last season. The Dukes allowed only 19 points per game and 275 yards per game.

If even some of that defensive identity travels to Los Angeles, UCLA will look very different.

But going from zero sacks to Big Ten competitive is not a small jump.

That is probably the biggest challenge on the roster.

SCHEDULE

The schedule does not give UCLA much time to ease into things.

Three of the first five games are on the road.

The Bruins open at Cal, then host San Diego State and Purdue. After that, they go to Maryland and Oregon.

That is a tough start.

Cal is a rivalry-type road game. Maryland is a long trip. Oregon is one of the best teams in the country.

So UCLA may be improved and still take some early punches.

The next stretch is where the season has to be made.

After Oregon, UCLA gets three straight home games against Wisconsin, Michigan State and Nevada.

That is the softest and most important part of the schedule.

If the Bruins want to push toward a bowl game, they need to win there. All three are at home. All three are games UCLA has to view as realistic opportunities.

Then comes the final month.

The Bruins go to Minnesota on Nov. 7, host Illinois on Nov. 14, go to Michigan on Nov. 21, and finish with USC at home.

That is not easy.

Michigan on the road is a major challenge. USC is the rivalry game. Illinois should be improved. Minnesota is a tough place to play in November.

The path to a bowl is there, but it is narrow.

San Diego State and Purdue need to be wins. UCLA probably needs to win at least two of Wisconsin, Michigan State, Nevada and Illinois. Then it has to steal something on the road.

That is asking a lot in year one.

But it is not impossible.

OUTLOOK

UCLA should be better.

I feel pretty confident about that.

The question is whether the record shows it right away.

That is a different conversation.

Bob Chesney is a really good coach. He proved that at James Madison. He brought over players who know his system. He has a quarterback with talent. He has a running back in Wayne Knight who can change the feel of the offense. He has a staff that should bring more structure and belief.

That is the optimistic case.

The concern is the roster gap.

UCLA was not just unlucky last season. The Bruins had major problems. They could not score enough. They could not protect the quarterback well enough. They did not have a consistent running game. They did not have a downfield passing game. They had zero sacks.

Those are not small fixes.

The best-case scenario is that Iamaleava plays like the quarterback people thought he could be, Knight gives UCLA a real run game, the James Madison transfers help the offense function quickly, and the defense finally creates pressure.

If that happens, UCLA can push toward a bowl.

The worst-case scenario is that Nico is still forced to do too much, the new receivers take time to settle, the defensive front still does not create pressure, and the early road schedule puts the Bruins behind before the rebuild has traction.

UCLA will look much better.

But the record may only be a little better.

This feels like a team that could improve by a lot in quality and only improve by a couple games in the standings. That happens when the schedule is difficult and the roster is being rebuilt.

Still, there is a real reason to believe.

Chesney has won everywhere he has been. He brings a clear identity. He brings players who know how he wants to play.

And if he can get the best out of Nico Iamaleava, UCLA becomes a lot more interesting.

Maybe not a Big Ten contender yet.

But a team nobody should just pencil in as an easy win anymore.

Full disclosure: I use AI tools to format my research into an article encompassing all of the information.