Report: Chip Kelly's decision down to two schools, announcement expected in coming days
It appears that Chip Kelly is getting ready to make a decision.
The former head coach at Oregon and in the NFL has been linked to the Florida job since the Gators fired Jim McElwain. It appeared that Kelly may become the next head coach of the Gators last week following the SEC’s approval of Kelly joining the conference should Florida wish to hire him.
Nothing official has been announced since that time, and it now appears that Kelly is getting set to decide between the Florida position and the head coaching vacancy at UCLA. It was quickly reported that the Bruins were pursuing Kelly after releasing head coach Jim Mora over the weekend. Kelly certainly has ties to the west coast after his time with Oregon and the San Francisco 49ers.
ESPN’s Mark Schlabach shared the report that Kelly did meet with UCLA officials on Tuesday, and his decision between the two schools is expected in the coming days:
Filed to ESPN: Chip Kelly met with UCLA officials in LA on Tuesday. He is expected to decide between Florida and UCLA jobs in coming days. He is not expected to consider any other college openings
— Mark Schlabach (@Mark_Schlabach) November 22, 2017
It appears fans will now have to wait and see where Kelly decides to go. It is worth noting that former Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti, who Kelly served under with the Ducks, believes Kelly would take Florida over UCLA.
ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg shared the comments:
Former Oregon coach Mike Bellotti to https://t.co/Y2XYMmBcNU on Chip Kelly's decision: "If he has a choice between UCLA and Florida, I think he would take Florida. They're both good jobs, but UCLA has fired every coach since Terry Donahue." https://t.co/2Hg3HklpDc
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) November 22, 2017
The comments were quickly noticed and met with the realization that Florida has fired its last two coaches midseason:
#Gators last two coaches have been fired midseason. https://t.co/8qG7kajqEj
— Matt Hayes (@MattHayesCFB) November 22, 2017
It is still speculation as to where Kelly will coach next, but the firings at UCLA would likely not make Florida more attractive to Kelly with the Gators recent track record with head coaches, although Florida is certainly the better job.