UCLA Football: 5 reasons the Bruins will be better than USC in 2018

1. Pac-12 Coaching Guru

Not only is Chip Kelly one of the best coaches in the Pac-12, but he is also one of the best coaches in the country. Prior to leaving for the NFL, Coach Kelly kept Oregon in contention for the National Champion and best team in the country for years. Chip Kelly has a great track record in the Pac-12, and has no reason not to continue his dominance in the conference.

UCLA struggled last year on offense, despite having one of the top quarterbacks in the country. Coach Kelly has shown his strength in coaching is in improving offensive efficiency. With three viable options at quarterback (Wilton Speight, Devon Modster, and Dorian Thompson-Robinson), two capable running backs (Bolu Olorunfunmi and Soso Jamabo) and a solid offensive line, look for the Bruins to dominate Pac-12 defenses.

Additionally, when Chip Kelly was hired, along came a great set of assistant coaches that will contribute to improving UCLA’s game, particularly on defense. Coach Kelly has brought in Coach Jerry Azzinaro to be the defensive coordinator. Coach Azzinaro has served under Kelly at all of his past three coaching jobs as a defensive assistant. Azzinaro brings tons of experience to a defensive group that underperformed last year.

As for USC, Coach Clay Helton is a good coach, who has done well thus far with the Trojans. Though, Clay Helton is no Chip Kelly. Furthermore, Coach Helton had a Sam Darnold quality quarterback leading his offense for the past two years. This won’t be true for the coming seasons, and therefore, will require more of Coach Helton to prepare his offense.