Bob Chesney, UCLA Bruins Top List In AP Big Ten Midseason Awards

By the looks of it, Bob Chesney is well on his way to fixing the fixer-upper he acquired when UCLA hired him.

The No. 12 Bruins have their highest ranking in four years, reached midseason as one of nine unbeaten Football Bowl Subdivision teams and are tied with No. 4 Ohio State and No. 5 Indiana at 3-0 in Big Ten play.

Not bad for a team that was picked to finish 13th in the 18-team Big Ten and was 8-16 overall and 6-12 in conference games the previous two years under Deshaun Foster and Tim Skipper.

For their accomplishments so far, Chesney was named the Big Ten’s top coach and UCLA the most surprising team at the midway point of the season by a vote of Associated Press writers who cover the conference.

Chesney, who led James Madison to a 21-6 record over two years and a spot in last season’s College Football Playoff, inherited a mess when he was hired last December.

There was the predictable roster churn that comes with a new coaching hire, but Chesney got a big win when starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava, now injured, decided to stay. A Big Ten-high 46 transfers, including 11 from James Madison, and 17 freshmen joined the Bruins.

A major infusion of donor cash for name, image and likeness spending has helped, but the athletic department as a whole was a financial wreck. Five days before the Bruins’ opener, chancellor Julio Frenk fired athletic director Martin Jarmond, the man who hired Chesney.

Chesney is the first football coach in UCLA history to start his debut season 5-0. The Bruins lead the Big Ten with 253 yards rushing per game and Wayne Knight, one of the James Madison transfers, is first in the conference with 109.6 yards per game.

Their 54-3 win at Maryland two weeks ago was the program’s most lopsided in a Big Ten game and in a conference road game since 1955, and their 17-15 win at Oregon last week was their first road win against the Ducks since 2004.

Northwestern quarterback Aidan Chiles. He has excelled for the Wildcats after playing one year at Oregon State and two at Michigan State, where he got benched after eight games last season. Chiles has led Northwestern to a 4-1 start, completing 71.4% of his passes for 234.4 yards per game with nine touchdowns and no interceptions.

Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith. He was the unanimous choice for this award as he puts together what looks destined to be one of the best individual seasons in program history. Smith’s 48 catches, 916 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns are second-most in the country. He has gone over 150 yards in four of six games, including two over 200 yards.

Indiana’s Josh Hoover is third in a line of one-year quarterback transfers signed by Curt Cignetti. Hoover has 17 touchdown passes and no interceptions for the defending national champion Hoosiers. He threw 33 interceptions in 35 games his previous three seasons at TCU. 

Indiana edge Tobi Osunanmi, who transferred from Kansas State after missing the second half of last season because of injury. He leads the Big Ten with 9.5 tackles for loss and is tied for first with teammate Stephen Daley and Oregon’s Matyo Uiagalelei with five sacks.

Southern California defensive end Luke Wafle. He has lived up to his billing as a five-star recruit and No. 1 prospect in the nation by On3/Rivals. Wafle has 27 tackles, six for loss and two sacks, and is among the Trojans’ highest-graded defenders by Pro Football Focus. He’s missed just two tackles on 264 snaps.

Oregon edged Michigan for this dubious distinction. The Ducks brought in a highly regarded class of transfers to go with 14 returning starters, including a quarterback projected to be one of the first players taken in the 2027 NFL draft. Their No. 2 preseason ranking was highest in program history. A loss at Oklahoma State in the second game was a red flag. They beat Southern California on the road with backup Dylan Raiola at quarterback for most of the game, but last week’s 17-15 home loss to UCLA dropped the Ducks to 3-2 and out of the Top 25.

Maryland’s Mike Locksley has managed to survive seven mostly underwhelming seasons, but this year’s could be the worst. The Terrapins have two wins, and one was against a second-tier Championship Subdivision opponent. If they don’t beat Rutgers at home as a 6.5-point favorite this week, they might not win another game.

Oregon’s Dante Moore was on the receiving end of linebacker Desman Stephens II’s illegal hit to the head and chest, knocking him out in the second quarter against USC on Sept. 26. Moore threw for 30 touchdowns while leading the Ducks to the College Football Playoff semifinals last year, and they had pinned their hopes on him as they chased the program’s first national championship. Moore missed the UCLA game, and his status hadn’t been determined for this week’s game against Nebraska.

Reporting by the Associated Press.