James Madison coach Bob Chesney, whose team climbed to 21st place in the last AP Top 25 Ranking as the Big 5's top playoff threat, is being targeted UCLA due to a coaching vacancy, and could also potentially participate in Penn State. Chesney is a leading candidate at UCLA. according to 247Sports.
CBS Sports analyst Rick Neuheisel, who played for UCLA and then coached the team from 2008-2011, knows the program quite well. His son Jerry is currently the Bruins' offensive coordinator after being promoted earlier this season following the firing of coach DeShawn Foster.
“I'm listening to Bob Chesney at UCLA…he has to make a decision.” Rick Neuheisel said Saturday.. “Since Mike Elko is dating again Texas A&MPenn State still seems to have a spot, and Chesney is from Penn State, so maybe he's looking at something closer to home.”
Chesney, who is 18-5 in FBS at James Madison, is a native of Culpmont, Pa., where he starred as an all-conference cornerback at Dickinson College. After serving on various staffs following his playing career, the 48-year-old landed his first coaching job at Division III Salve Regina in 2010 before taking over Division II Assumption FCS. Holy Cross and will lead James Madison in 2024 after the departure of Curt Cignetti Indiana.
At Holy Cross, Chesney earned Patriot League Coach of the Year honors three times and won five conference championships in six seasons.
Chesney will earn $833,495 at James Madison for the 2025 season, according to the company. USA Today Coaching Salary DatabaseThis is the most the Dukes have paid a coach since joining the FBS ahead of the 2022 season. Cignetti now makes 11 times that amount in Indiana.
Penn State fires James Franklin in October after a home defeat to Northwestern marked the third straight time the Nittany Lions started a Big Ten game. NebraskaThe team's Matt Rhule and Elko were considered early top targets before both reportedly extended their contracts at their current schools.
Chesney mentioned that his name had been mentioned in other job openings earlier this month during an appearance on “Bar stool for awakening” until victory over Marshall And Appalachian State.
The Dukes have already clinched a berth in the Sun Belt Championship and are three wins away from finishing 12-1 as the highest-ranked team in the Group of Five.
“There's really nothing to talk about. … worry about what we have to do here on a day-to-day basis, just like every other coach in America,” Chesney said, “but at the end of the day, I think for me, there's a lot of different guys saying a lot of different things when it comes down to it. I can tell you we're absolutely happy here. If you've seen this student body and seen the stands, it's a great place to play and practice football. We love everything about it.
“And ultimately, is there anything that could ever change my life? Maybe. But I've been in this situation many times. Everywhere I went they always said, “Hey, he's leaving.” This seems to happen all the time, especially when recruiting. For me, we just take it one day at a time and do the best we can. But at the end of the season, I think a lot of people will have to make a lot of different decisions, including our current players.
“The best thing for me is having open, honest and transparent conversations with our players when issues like this come up. But right now we're so focused on being the best we can be. You won't get to the point where I'm on this show, our name will be in the conversation because we allow a lot of outside conversations to come into play.”
If Chesney were hired at UCLA, it would be his first taste of leading a program on the West Coast.
