Sources: Chip Kelly in negotiation to potentially be the next head coach of Florida

Submitted by BoFlex on

Florida has received ‘verbal commitment’ that there won’t be issue with hiring Chip Kelly

Source: Gator Reps are headed too talk with Chip Kelly. Things are picking up on the @SEC coaching searches.

— Trey Wallace (@TreyW_Radio) November 14, 2017

Credible source tells me Florida finalized deal with Chip Kelly last night. Announcement coming either today or tomorrow. If this is true it's a solid big splash hire for the Gators.

— John Ivory (@Ocala7v7Showdwn) November 14, 2017

buddha

November 14th, 2017 at 2:54 PM ^

I know it's all still up in the air, but I was hoping he'd wind up at USC. I don't really have a good reason for this; just thought it'd be cool to see.

BlueMk1690

November 14th, 2017 at 2:58 PM ^

recruiting in FL would get very interesting indeed..Chip Kelly has certainly been a controversial figure and regardless of the merit of the accusations, in recruiting that would be used by rivals, no questions asked.

ndscott50

November 14th, 2017 at 2:59 PM ^

This story seems to say a lawyer talked to someone who says there is some sort of verbal agreement that the SEC won’t get in the way of Florida considering Chip Kelly. Seems like there is a ways to go before this is a done deal.

UMProud

November 14th, 2017 at 3:09 PM ^

If this pans out it will be intereting to see if Chip Kelly's "personality issues" will be an issue at Florida...although winning does cover a multitude of sins

LSAClassOf2000

November 14th, 2017 at 3:26 PM ^

There's a significantly "milder" version of this story over at GatorBait, wherein Florida is only at this moment sending representatives to talk to Kelly, so there seems to be a little disagreement about how far along this might be. That being said, I would expect Florida to move at warp speed if they did get some kind of a framework for Kelly in place if it does happen. 

In reply to by yzerman19

Steve in PA

November 14th, 2017 at 6:39 PM ^

That's the problem for all the state schools in California.  They have stipulations on spending that really kill them bringing in a homerun coach and staff.

bronxblue

November 14th, 2017 at 3:57 PM ^

He'll be successful enough there, but it feels like college football has figured out Chip Kelly's offense, and based on what I saw during his NFL days, I'm not sold he's flexible enough to innovate.  He's better than a Shark Humper or some retread, but I'm not sold he's going to turn Florida around.  Though I could absolutely be surprised.

bronxblue

November 14th, 2017 at 8:01 PM ^

To me, the bigger innovation Kelly brought to college was tempo (and I guess, as a result, mismatches).  He'd run 80-100 plays in a game when most reasonably-talented teams were still in 70-ish range against your average team.  And he did it running the ball, which also caught teams off guard.  You'd see teams like Texas Tech and Baylor run a bunch of plays and pick up lots of yards, but they tended to be pass-focused.  It was an incremental improvement on offenses you already saw (such as RR's), turned up to 11.  

But now, lots of teams run a lot more plays and at a higher rate.  In 2011, the average number of plays a team ran in a year was about 888 plays; in 2016. it was 912.  Those extra 30-ish plays are huge in terms of wearing down an opponent and exploiting mismatches.  I just think defenses have figured that out a bit more than when Kelly left Oregon.

NateVolk

November 14th, 2017 at 4:18 PM ^

When he left, so did the genius mad scientist.

The guy consults for Bill Belichick and has for years.

He flopped as an NFL coach but his run in college was epic and was getting even better when he left for the Eagles.

No one figured out his offense. No one ran it like Oregon did with him in charge. And no one has since.

 

stephenrjking

November 14th, 2017 at 4:38 PM ^

Things petered out in Philly after the first season, and the offense regressed to the point that it was just plain bad. Its predictability became a major problem and it seemed that Kelly was unable to adapt to the increased level of study and adaptation in the NFL. Chris "Smart Football" Brown wrote an article about how predictable it was, an astonishing thing to read.

San Francisco was a no-win scenario for him, but he didn't make things any better. 

treetown

November 14th, 2017 at 5:25 PM ^

The system Chip Kelly prefers to run will get the QB hit. That is a big issue in addition to the wonderful analysis in Smart Football. BUT consider if there was a owner and GM that have the nerve to do something different. Consider that during his time in Philadelphia, he could have had these three QBs: Tim Tebow, RGIII, Terrell Pryor. All three were available - and if they were signed, it could be possible to run a QB - all three will play - and with three of them, it may be possible to get through the season with someone making it to the end. 

Would this work? Maybe? But again, it would take a radical approach. Right now, everyone is looking for another Tom Brady or Aaron Rogers. 

Niels

November 14th, 2017 at 7:35 PM ^

Per above, he really did not adjust to the NFL. The idea you can simply tire out defenses overlooked some pretty obvious things (predictability and the 53 man roster limiting substitutes on D, among others). He was also a terrible (terrible!) judge of talent in the draft. That being said, his system was and should still be a nightmare to coach against in college.

Durham Blue

November 14th, 2017 at 9:14 PM ^

If I was a UF fan I would be very excited.  Chip Kelly's offense at UF will be a bitch to stop.  Consistent warm weather in the SEC is conducive to his spread offense.  He'll be recruiting the talent-rich state of Florida.  If this is truly HAPPENING then UF will return to prominence very soon.

Actually, as a college football fan I am excited to see him return to college.  I like watching his teams.  He's good for the game and belongs at this level.