UCLA football coaching search 2025: Candidates, hot board, names to watch from Bruins experts

After landing quarterback Nico Iamaleava in the spring transfer portal, hopes were much higher for head coach DeShaun Foster and UCLA heading into 2025. Things have not gone to plan at all for Foster and Iamaleava as the Bruins started the year 0-3. UCLA fired Foster on Sunday after falling to New Mexico as more than a two-touchdown favorite. 

Tim Skipper will serve as the interim head coach for UCLA, and the Bruins now have up to a couple months to find a permanent replacement. Who are the top UCLA football coaching candidates the Bruins could target? If you love the Bruins, or just want to know who will be calling the shots for UCLA in the future, be sure to see what the proven team of experts are saying at BruinReportOnline (BRO), the 247Sports affiliate that covers UCLA.

BruinReportOnline’s team of insiders are providing on-the-ground updates as the Bruins look for their next head coach. Stay in the know on all of the latest happenings surrounding the UCLA coaching search and sign up for a VIP membership to BruinReportOnline.

And right now, BRO is offering 60% off annual subscriptions*, so now is the time to sign up. The team at BRO already has a list out of several potential candidates and there are some surprising names on the list. Head to BruinReportOnline now to see them all.

Top UCLA football coach candidates

One name the staff has identified as a potential target on the UCLA football coaching hot board is Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith. 

Smith is just 34-35 as a head coach, but he completely turned Oregon State around, and took over a tough situation at Michigan State and has the Spartans off to a 3-0 start this year.

“A proven rebuild guy,” the staff at BruinReportOnline said. “Took Oregon State from the dumpster to respectable within a few years, and looks to be in the process of doing the same at Michigan State. A well-respected offensive mind who has had a great track record of developing quarterbacks and an effective run game. He’s a West Coast guy originally, having been born in Glendora, and we’ve heard that UCLA is a job that he would be very interested in.” See more candidates at BruinReportOnline.

How to get insider UCLA coaching search updates 

The rest of the list includes several other exciting possibilities, including one of the most respected coaches in the nation who “could be a big swing.” You can only see who it is at BruinReportOnline.

Who are the top names in the UCLA football coaching search, and which big-name coach could the Bruins take a big swing on? Go to BruinReportOnline to see their UCLA coaching hot board and more, all from a team of reporters with extensive experience covering the Bruins, and find out. 

And remember, BruinReportOnline is offering 60% off an annual VIP membership as a coaching search special, so subscribe now before it’s too late.

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