Paul Finebaum Believes Head Coaching Job At Prominent CFB Program Is A 'Dead-End Job'

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In one of the most stunning moves of the offseason, UCLA head coach Chip Kelly accepted the offensive coordinator job at Ohio State after six seasons with the Bruins. The Bruins named running backs coach DeShaun Foster as the next head coach.

ESPN’s Paul Finebaum shared his thoughts on the UCLA job during an appearance on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. He called the head coaching job a ‘dead-end’ job due to the Bruins having to compete with multiple external factors that overshadow the program.

“I think it’s a really challenging job,” Finebaum said. “That (Los Angeles) is a tough town. I read an article today titled ‘Is Jim Harbaugh big enough for LA?’ That’s the kind of town it is. You win a national championship in college football and you’re trying to get attention.

“You got two pro football teams. You got the Dodgers, who along with the Yankees are the biggest franchises in Major League, and right now probably the biggest franchise. You got the Lakers, who on their worst day are still the biggest franchise in the NBA and you got USC, who again even on its worst day is a big story in town. And you have UCLA, who is never a story in football, and occasionally in basketball.

“So you go in there with a middling coach and you’ll get run over because the schedule is frightening. I would be very careful as a sitting head coach or someone who has a great future ahead to take that job because to me it is a dead-end job.”

Foster is familiar with the challenges associated with the program after coaching the past seven seasons at UCLA. He was also an All-American running back for the Bruins from 1998-2001.

UCLA will travel to Hawai’i for the start of the 2024 season before its Big Ten debut against Indiana on Sep. 14.