UCLA Bruins head coach Chip Kelly Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

UCLA HC doesn't hold back on new clock rules in college football

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 9/3/23

Chip Kelly had a zinger for ESPN during his halftime interview on Saturday night.

Kelly’s UCLA Bruins went into halftime leading Coastal Carolina 14-6 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. As he was walking toward the tunnel, Kelly stopped for an interview. He was asked about playing two different quarterbacks in the first half and lamented how UCLA only had four offensive possessions, preventing them from getting a good look at their options (Kelly planned to play three different QBs).

Kelly attributed the lack of possessions to the new clock rule in college football, which calls for a running clock after first downs rather than a stopped clock.

“These new rules are crazy. We had four drives in the first half. Hope you guys are selling a lot of commercials,” Kelly said during his interview.

THE GOAT, CHIP KELLY HAS SPOKEN! pic.twitter.com/d6dWrRit2W

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The new rules are intended to shorten the total length of games, which you might figure would limit the amount of commercials TV networks can run. But under the new system, TV networks can just lengthen their commercial breaks instead while shortening the length of games.

Either way, Kelly likes to run a fast offense and get in lots of possessions. The new rules are cramping his style.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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