UCLA Football: Embattled Chip Kelly Shrugs Off Notion That Boise State Win Redeemed Season

After taking down the Boise State Broncos in the LA Bowl over the weekend, the UCLA Bruins finished off their season on a high note. It was an up-and-down year for UCLA, but one that ended with some promise.

Despite losing three of their last four games during the regular season, the Bruins re-grouped and came away with the win in their bowl game. But head coach Chip Kelly dismissed the notion that this win redeemed the team for their struggles this season.

"My job is to prepare these guys and create an environment for them to be successful and then to get out of the way and let them do it. We’ve had challenges. We’ve had challenges with adversity. We’ve had challenges with injuries. We don’t make excuses, nor do we let other people make excuses for us. This is life. What these guys showed today, I’m really proud of them. I’m really proud of how they responded. That’s what a competitor does. A competitor responds. A non-competitor reacts."

Per Chip Kelly via UCLA Communications

If anything, this performance in the bowl game should make the Bruins wonder what went wrong. They showed a total team effort against Boise State and responded to being punched in the mouth over the last few weeks.

"When you look at statistics, this group won eight-plus games three years in a row. It’s the second time it’s happened since 1988 at UCLA. So that’s what I’m really proud of what these guys did and to beat a really good Mountain West football team in Boise State. Our guys came out in the second half and won that football game. It wasn’t handed to us. They won that football game.”

Per Chip Kelly via UCLA Communications

As the team heads to the Big Ten, they can build off this win over the offseason. The Bruins know where they need to improve, and they have a lot of work to do these next few months.