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Bob Chesney does not have just one motivational mode.
The UCLA football coach can inspire.
“It’s your house, your house, your house!” Chesney repeated as he tapped players on the helmet or shoulder before the Bruins routed Maryland by 51 points on the road.
He can reassure.
“It will not be louder,” Chesney told his team before it faced Oregon at Autzen Stadium after having rolled in speakers behind the line of scrimmage in practice, “than what that huddle was this week.”
He can challenge.
“You left a lot of opportunities out there that should be yours,” Chesney told his team while holding a 10-6 halftime lead over the Ducks. “Go f—ing take them back in the second half.”
The animated displays have been unveiled thanks to a series of behind-the-scenes videos released by the school’s athletic department.
No matter Chesney’s approach at any moment, there are a few constants.
He speaks with confidence and conviction, passion reverberating with every word. The underlying message is to leave no doubt, the coach repeatedly telling players they must believe 100% they’re going to win each game, not 99%.
His most famous speech came earlier this month inside an Autzen Stadium tunnel.
As his underdog team prepared to face Oregon, Chesney paraphrased Hernan Cortes, a Spanish conquistador who ordered his soldiers to burn their boats so that the only choice was to proceed into battle.
“Burn the f—ing boats!” Chesney yelled inside the tunnel. “There is no way out. We can’t go that way, you’ve got to go through these motherf—ers!”
The Bruins went on to post a 17-15 victory and have won their first six games, UCLA’s best start since it also went 6-0 in 2022.
Where did all this swagger come from? Who motivated the coach who is inspiring the rest of the college football world?
Chesney credited his father with being a major influence in his approach. Bob Chesney Sr. delivered similarly spirited pep talks to his son before their small Catholic high school took on local powers in Pennsylvania coal country.
“He was always looking for an edge, like a mental edge and a building-of-confidence edge,” Chesney said Monday of the father who was the team’s head coach. “Never were we the better team, but we played better than a lot of teams, and I think that had a lot to do with just his ability to motivate us and have us believe in ourselves.”
The younger Chesney said he also has researched different leadership styles to incorporate into his own approach, extracting what he needed to fit the narrative of any situation.
Last week, it was having a bigger bullseye on the team’s back and whether the Bruins would allow themselves to shift into being hunted or remain the hunter.
This week, it’s about maintaining the team’s high standards as two-touchdown favorites against Michigan State.
Wide receiver Semaj Morgan said Chesney’s words resonate because he’s not just talking.
“All the things that he talks about and tells us about,” Morgan said, “he does on a daily basis. Like, he’ll go out there in every single drill we do, every period in practice, he’s so involved, he’s so enthusiastic, so it’s hard not to take after your coach when that’s all your coach is. … I feel like if he could, he would put on some pads and practice with us and play with us.”
Chesney said there’s a progression to his messages, with the buildup starting early in the week and leading to a payoff before the game.
“Ultimately,” he said, “I try to put a lot of thought into it and we try to make sure we consistently carry messages throughout the week that they can stay focused on and know in times that when it gets tight that who they are and what they’re all about.”
All the pregame motivation has led to postgame revelry, linebackers Donavyn Pellot and Jalen Woods hoisting Chesney on top of lockers inside a cramped visitors’ room inside Autzen Stadium.
Crouching below a support beam, Chesney delivered one final message.
“Hey, listen,” he said, “a lot of opportunities you left out on that field, just so you know. But you capitalized on a whole lot more – that’s exactly what you gotta do. Two weeks in a row that they say, ‘How are you going to stop this team? No interceptions, no turnovers, no nothing’ and the defense f—ing shows up.”
And with that, Chesney’s players banged on their lockers in celebration before breaking into the school’s fight song, their coach singing along with them while pumping his arm, his smile saying it all.