Say this for UCLA: The Bruins fired their athletic director, but they believe they’ve found their football coach for the foreseeable future.
What does that mean?
It means UCLA officials are in serious discussions with first-year coach Bob Chesney about a contract extension and raise.
Two individuals with direct knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports on Monday, Nov. 2, that UCLA and Chesney have held productive talks about a more lucrative deal that would further cement his future with the Bruins while helping ward off potential interest from programs such as Florida State.
The Bruins remain undefeated in Chesney’s first season and are expected to land inside
the top 12 when the first 2026 College Football Playoff rankings are released Tuesday night.
Dante Moore's NFL draft stock remains strong despite lost season
A Heisman Trophy candidate. Quarterback of a consensus preseason top-five team. The 2026 season was supposed to be something of a coronation for Oregon quarterback Dante Moore.
Instead, Moore started just four games and attempted 99 passes before a vicious hit against USC left him concussed.
A fourth-year junior, Moore certainly could return to Oregon for the 2027 season. But no one USA TODAY Sports spoke with over the past week expects that scenario to unfold.
An NFC personnel executive explained why Moore’s abbreviated season may not prevent him from making the jump to the NFL.
“I think he would be fine to go ahead and come out,” the individual, granted anonymity because NFL personnel cannot publicly comment on current college athletes, said. “I don't think people think he would come back to college.
“I don't think he would drop out of the first (round). I really don't. I think he's better than Arch (Manning), and I'm not sure Arch is coming out. I think the Mannings are too dialed in to know the situation and that Arch likely won't come out. He’s not a first-round pick, but that’s one less piece for him (Moore) to deal with.”
Two AFC staffers echoed that assessment, maintaining first-round grades on Moore and expecting him to come off the board on the opening day of the 2027 NFL Draft.
There remains some debate, however, about how much blame Moore deserves for his uneven 2026 season.
“I genuinely, just general narratives, think it’s a little bit of a mixed bag on Dante,” added the assistant coach. “When you look at the totality of the body of work, it’s easy to point to coaching and scheme (in Moore’s 2026 struggles) versus him as a player, thus leading to (Dan) Lanning to make that coordinator change.
“If Chip Kelly had gone back (to Oregon as offensive coordinator), is Moore having these same issues? If you’re a Dante Moore purist, you’re blaming the coaches.”
Big 12 officiating errors renew calls for national overhaul
Another week, another controversy, or two or three or four, involving college football officiating.
For the second time in three weeks, the Big 12 was forced to acknowledge its officials botched a ruling involving BYU. On Oct. 17, officials ended the game against Notre Dame at least one second early, with the Irish inside BYU’s 10-yard line and in position to attempt a walk-off touchdown.
Most recently, in BYU’s 27-20 win against Arizona State, the Cougars were awarded an early touchdown on a play that should have ended at the 2-yard line. BYU fumbled forward, and a different offensive player recovered the ball in the end zone.
The Cougars should have retained possession, but the play should not have resulted in a touchdown.
So, what can be done?
One college executive shared an idea with USA TODAY Sports that has, at minimum, been discussed, even if it remains far from implementation.
“We need a national consortium of top officials,” the executive said. “Rate them, score them and aggregate over a period of time.
“You grade the refs and assign them games and pay them accordingly.”
Under that proposal, the highest-rated officials would be assigned to each week’s biggest games, most often, though not exclusively, in the Big Ten or SEC. Those two leagues, according to people who spoke with USA TODAY Sports, pay their officiating crews “substantially more” than either the ACC or Big 12.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What I'm Hearing: UCLA works to secure Bob Chesney; Dante Moore's NFL stock holds
