In Reply to: That is a wildly asinine narrative (long) posted by Rubik543 on September 23, 2025 at 22:58:03
Chip inherited the youngest team in CFB his first two years. He had a HS wide receiver playing QB as a true freshman. He played the toughest schedule in the nation his first two years. He endured Covid and the mindless lockdowns. He walked into an athletic department that was bankrupt, kept in operation only through a debtor in possession financing from Ucla. He walked into an athletic department that discouraged NIL giving at the outset of this new era. They forbade MoW from hosting or even attending on-campus events. They refused to allow MoW to advertise in Ucla publications. They told donors to refuse NIL requests as it might be illegal.
"Recruiting" in the new NIL-portal era is about money. Chip had none, yet he's faulted for failing to recruit. Insane and illogical.
What few dollars he did have, he spent in the portal. Latu, the Twins, Bobo, Charbonnet, Muasau, Steele, even Josh Kelley (who probably didn't cost much initially). He assembled one of the best OL's in the nation using lightly regarded talent but anchored that line with a sure-fire left-tackle freshman starter...who he personally recruited.
His defenses were weak at first, but in a few years he had one of the best defenses in the conference. As the schedule eased up and his talent improved, so too did his results.
He lost a few games he should've won, especially a few in November, and that is all the Ucla folks could see in their minds. Illogical and emotional.
There was pain, but there also was a football program arising from the ashes of futility. Victimhood, pain and empathy are what now define Ucla. It could only see the pain. Jarmond failed to act in late 2023 to replace Kelly, so he left knowing full well that his contract wouldn't be renewed. The program has now fallen to defacto FCS status, its financial deficit widening and its future in doubt.
Imagine an organization so mind f*cked that it can't successfully market the nation's most popular college sport in the heart of the nation's media capital and largest city? Always crying about lack of resources, but never generating any on their own. Losers.
Ucla is for losers.
Good job Ucla! What an elite university!