Coaching Gig Rankings: UCLA Job Overrated?

Here's what he had to say about the gig:

"UCLA may be a Big Ten program, but the Bruins are a true bottom-feeder as currently constructed. When you hear talk about short-term cash infusion in the Big Ten, plenty of it is built around trying to save UCLA, which finds itself in a major financial hole. Consistent cross-country travel in the Big Ten and major focus on basketball takes away from the football team.

"The Rose Bowl is a blessing and curse as images constantly go viral for lack of fan support. Recruiting in Los Angeles is a huge advantage, but the Bruins have not signed a top 10 player in California since 2019. This job is an uphill battle, but certainly one with intrigue." 

If coaches on the carousel feel the same way as Jeyarajah about UCLA's gig, maybe Skipper would be a good option to look at moving forward. He sure is ready.

Skip is Ready

Soon after Skipper was named Westwood's interim head coach, he expressed his desire to be a head coach in the future.

• "I'm one of those people [where], if I'm doing something, I want to get to the top," he said in his first media availability as UCLA's interim. "So, if that's the top of the mountain in this profession, I want to do that. Whatever job it is, I'm going full speed ahead. That's just my nature.

• "I actually experienced this last year, a full season. I enjoyed it. Wish you win some more games and things like that, but when you become a head coach, it's a lot less about the ball and more about the off-the-field stuff. So you either like it or you don't, and I rather enjoyed it. We're going to keep on building from that."

Despite coaching just 18 games overall as an interim coach over the last three seasons -- which is 18 more than DeShaun Foster had before being hired -- Skipper's resume speaks for itself. He has an 10-8 overall record; his first being a bowl game win and some of his latest coming against the likes of No. 7 Penn State, Michigan State and Maryland.

The culture and belief system he's built in such a short time at UCLA is undeniable. Skipper will almost certainly be a head coach sometime in the near future.