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UCLA Football: Chip Kelly hire instantly makes Bruins contenders

By Connor Muldowney

BUFFALO, NY - OCTOBER 16: Head coach Chip Kelly of the San Francisco 49ers watches his team warm up before the game against the Buffalo Bills at New Era Field on October 16, 2016 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images)
BUFFALO, NY - OCTOBER 16: Head coach Chip Kelly of the San Francisco 49ers watches his team warm up before the game against the Buffalo Bills at New Era Field on October 16, 2016 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /
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UCLA football has officially struck a deal to make Chip Kelly the next head coach and he instantly makes the Bruins contenders in the Pac-12.

More: 5 Reasons Chip Kelly can return the Bruins to greatness

Rumors had been running rampant regarding the hiring of former Oregon, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers coach at UCLA. The Bruins had just fired Jim Mora just a week earlier following a loss to USC and Kelly was the subject of all the coaching carousel rumors.

On Saturday morning, the program announced it was officially hiring the head coach, arguably the hottest coach with experience on the market.

According to College GameDay, the deal is worth $23.3 million.

The hire is huge for the program which hasn’t won a conference title in about two decades. The Bruins haven’t been all that competitive in the Pac-12 and really weren’t serious contenders since the Pac-10 gained two teams.

Kelly brings plenty of experience to Los Angeles as he was the head coach with Oregon, going 46-7 in four seasons with the Ducks and leading them to three conference titles, another division title and a berth in the national title game in 2010.

USC has dominated the crosstown rivalry for the past number of years and the athletic department is making a concerted effort to change that. The addition of Kelly instantly makes the Bruins top contenders for Pac-12 titles annually.

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Although people will knock Kelly’s lack of success with the Eagles and 49ers in the NFL, he was a tremendous college football coach first. Also, he has a history of success in the Pac-12 and knows the recruiting landscape as well.

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