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Why did Chip Kelly leave UCLA for Ohio State? Explaining head coach to assistant move

Published

1 year ago

January 20, 2025

Why did Chip Kelly leave UCLA for Ohio State? Explaining head coach to assistant move

Ohio State football and coach Ryan Day made a coaching hire splash in the offseason, when it hired former UCLA coach Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator.

It was an interesting move for Kelly, who decided he’d rather be the offensive coordinator at Ohio State than the head coach at UCLA, a position he held from 2018-23.

Day and Kelly have history, which made the move make sense, as Kelly was Day’s offensive coordinator when Day was New Hampshire’s quarterback from 1998-2001. Day was also the quarterbacks coach for the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers when Kelly was an NFL head coach.

Day’s first coaching job as New Hampshire’s tight ends coach in 2002 was also under Kelly’s offense.

Kelly, who won three Pac-12 championships and led Oregon to the 2011 national championship, is among the most experienced offensive minds in all of college football.

Here’s why Kelly left UCLA for Ohio State ahead of the 2024-25 season:

Why did Chip Kelly leave UCLA for Ohio State?

Kelly explained his decision to move from UCLA head coach to assistant at Ohio State in his first spring with the Buckeyes in March.

Kelly, who hadn’t been an assistant being the offensive coordinator at Oregon in 2008, coached UCLA’s quarterbacks for the Bruins’ LA Bowl matchup with Boise State, after Ryan Gunderson left to be the offensive coordinator at Oregon State.

He said being a position coach reinvigorated his love for football.

“I actually coached the quarterbacks for the bowl game, and I just started to think, like I hadn’t actually coached a position since 2008,” Kelly told reporters in his introductory press conference. “I think my wife remarked, she was like, ‘I haven’t seen you this happy in a long time.’ And, to me, the best part of football is football. And so, you got to do football, and not do some of the things involved with the head coaching deal.”

Kelly then said he started looking into possible opportunities to be an assistant coach again.

“So I started to look into, ‘Is there an opportunity?’” Kelly said. “And it would have had to been the right spot to go somewhere and just coach a position again and be back with that group.”

Kelly has been the head coach at Oregon and UCLA, and also the NFL’s Eagles and 49ers since he last stint as an assistant.

Of course, it would’ve taken one of the top assistant roles in college football to likely lure Kelly away from UCLA, which Ohio State provided. It’s unclear what some of the things with head coaching were that turned Kelly away from the Bruins, however, with the current age of college football in recruiting, name, image and likeness and also leading UCLA into a new conference, it likely took a toll on Kelly’s time.

Kelly said being a head coach in the current era of college football requires being a “CEO.”

“I just want to be happy. And I’m really happy coaching the position,” Kelly said. “Really happy to be at this place. It would have taken a special place for me to leave UCLA, because I love those players and I love that coaching staff, but to be here with Ryan, had a great relationship, I’ve known Ryan since he was a little kid. So, I think a lot of things just fell into place that way.”

Kelly took the job that was previously filled by Bill O’Brien during the offseason, but O’Brien never actually coached the Buckeyes as he turned around and took the head coaching position at Boston College, leaving the opportunity open for Kelly.

“Sometimes I do a lot of things other people don’t do,” Kelly said with a laugh. “I don’t know if that’s right or wrong.”

Chip Kelly contract

According to USA TODAY’s assistant coaches’ salary database, Kelly is the eighth-highest paid assistant in college football, making $2 million this year.

He also can make up to $940,000 in bonuses.

Chip Kelly buyout

Ohio State paid UCLA $1.5 million to hire him as offensive coordinator, according to USA TODAY’s salary database. Ohio State also paid an undetermined amount to reduce the tax impact on Kelly.

Kelly signed a contract extension with the Bruins in 2023, which would’ve paid him $6.1 million in 2024.

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Ohio voters literally can’t believe our eyes. Danger of AI ads not overblown | Letters

Published

2 hours ago

May 30, 2026

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Ohio voters literally can’t believe our eyes. Danger of AI ads not overblown | Letters

Letters to the Editor
| Columbus Dispatch

We can’t believe our eyes

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: I fully support House Bill 185. It probably doesn’t go far enough. This is a prime example of “don’t believe everything you see on the Internet.”

I am being inundated with emails and text messages from organizations and people I do not know. I block them as spam, but it doesn’t seem to do any good. About the only way to combat this is to attend a live debate between candidates, but most people do not have the time to do that.

I use AI every day with caution. We need better ways of identifying AI-created falsehoods.

Edwin Heller, Dublin

Tell voters what’s real

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: I don’t think AI should be used in political ads, but there is no way to stop it.What we can and should do is require campaigns to certify that their ad did or did not use AI to generate or edit content that:

Makes a real person appear to say or do something they didn’t say or do.
Alters footage of a real event or place.
Generates a realistic-looking scene that didn’t actually occur.

We grade movie content. Why not political advertising? The public needs a way to help distinguish truth from fiction.

Richard Wires, Columbus

Ban political ads, already

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: Political ads should be banned. Those using – AI-generated or not. I don’t trust anything I read online anymore, and especially political ads.

People read/see those ads, don’t research the information in them, and vote according to, oftentimes, the misinformation in those ads. The huge amounts of money being spent on ads is sinful!

Lyn Miller, Smithville

Food cuts hurt hungry families

While President Donald Trump and Republicans continually find new ways to enrich their billionaire funders and friends, they’ve made the largest cuts to SNAP in history, making it more difficult for over 40 million Americans, including 16 million children and 8 million seniors, to access healthy foods and forcing them to rely on the cheapest foods (usually the most ultra-processed}.

They’re especially hurting American children and setting them up for worse health outcomes than previous generations by making it harder for them to access healthy foods.

They’ve cut funding to support farm-to-school programs and food banks, passed the largest cut to food assistance in history, and are pushing to end the decades-old practice of putting fluoride in water to reduce tooth decay. Most appalling, they’ve even allowed food companies to use cancer-causing chemicals in snack foods targeted to children.

Meanwhile, they’ve allowed food companies to take advantage of inflation to raise prices to increase their profits. A Kroger executive suggested that inflation is good for business when he testified the chain has hiked the milk and eggs prices beyond the costs from inflation.

This is one more reason that we must do all we can to get Republicans out of office.

Russ Smith, Strongsville

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I-TEAM: FBI searches multiple Stansley Mining properties in NW Ohio

Published

12 hours ago

May 29, 2026

Press Room

I-TEAM: FBI searches multiple Stansley Mining properties in NW Ohio

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – The FBI was part of a search of multiple properties related to Stansley Mining on Friday, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed.

A Public Affairs Officer for the FBI Cleveland Division confirmed to the 13 Action News I-TEAM that authorities searched a business in the area of Siliva Road in Sylvania, as well as property in Ottawa County by State Route 590 in Benton Township.

Officials with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation told the 13 Action News I-TEAM that they executed a search warrant at the property in Benton Township. Ohio BCI’s environmental division and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency were involved in the search.

It’s unclear exactly what officials were looking for. The FBI spokesperson said there wasn’t additional information to share at this point, but added there is no threat to the public.

Stansley Mining is the entity that owns Rocky Ridge Development, a company at the center of extensive 13 Action News coverage after its South Toledo mining operation was improperly working in a residentially-zoned area.

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A punk-rock comeback: Melt’s Matt Fish ready to open new Ohio City restaurant

Published

1 day ago

May 29, 2026

Press Room

A punk-rock comeback: Melt’s Matt Fish ready to open new Ohio City restaurant

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A critically acclaimed name in Cleveland’s food scene is making a comeback of sorts and entering a new era in the food and restaurant business.

After the official closure of Melt Bar and Grilled locations across the area in late 2024, founder Matt Fish is stepping back into the restaurant business with a brand-new concept in Ohio City.

More Melts close

Fish is preparing to open “Proof Public House” inside the former Proof BBQ space along Lorain Avenue.

The new restaurant and bar is expected to officially open in mid-June after recently obtaining its food service license.

The announcement was just made on the restaurant’s official Instagram page this week.

But Fish says this project is very different from Melt’s previous projects, with more than a dozen locations across Ohio.

“I’m starting from scratch. Brand new concept. Brand new feeling, brand new attitude,” Fish said. “I wanna get back to basics.”

Fish describes Proof Public House as a punk rock-inspired neighborhood bar and restaurant with elevated comfort food, craft drinks, and an evolving seasonal menu.

“I’ve always wanted to get back to my roots,” Fish said. “I’ve always wanted to get back to a small place and recapture that magic of what Melt Bar and Grilled was when it first opened up.”

The longtime chef and restaurateur says music and creativity will help define the atmosphere and capture the essence.

Fish grew up on punk rock music and is also a drummer.

He says Cleveland’s history and punk rock roots make this latest project feel even more special.

The menu, he says, will feature chef-driven comfort food with rotating seasonal dishes and a specialized beverage program.

“Just have fun with the menu,” Fish said. “The beverage program will be very seasonal. It’s gonna be very evolving.”

Although many fans still associate Fish with the iconic grilled cheese sandwiches that helped make Melt Bar and Grilled a Northeast Ohio staple after opening in 2006, he says this new chapter is about moving forward.

“That part of my life is over and gone, but it was something special to so many of us,” Fish said.

Still, longtime Melt fans may notice subtle nods to the past.

Fish hinted there would be occasional “odes to Melt” appearing on the menu in the future, in some capacity.

He also credits former Proof BBQ and current Visible Voice Books owner Dave Ferrante for encouraging him to jump back into the hospitality business.

Fish quietly consulted on projects behind the scenes after Melt’s closure, including work connected to Visible Voice.

“I want to do something for myself, do something for the City of Cleveland, do something for my family and friends,” Fish said.

Proof Public House is expected to announce an official opening date soon.

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