Report: Austin Peay expected to hire UCLA assistant Jeff Faris as next head coach

UCLA assistant coach Jeff Faris is expected to be the next head coach at Austin Peay, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

“Sources: UCLA assistant Jeff Faris is expected to become the next head coach at Austin Peay,” Thamel wrote on Twitter. “He’s a Tennessee native and has been the offensive coordinator at Duke.”

Faris spent one season at UCLA under Chip Kelly and coached at Duke from 2012-21 in a variety of roles.

Faris coached offense throughout his time at Duke and UCLA, including being the tight ends coach last season. He played for the Blue Devils from 2008-11 as a reserve safety before becoming a grad assistant in 2012.

He ended up as the wide receiver’s coach from 2014-16 and added offensive recruiting duties from 2017-20. Faris also became the tight ends coach in 2018 at Duke and eventually the co-offensive coordinator at quarterbacks coach in 2021.

Chip Kelly to remain at UCLA

The staff changes continued despite Chip Kelly remaining as head coach. There were reports of Kelly’s imminent firing, but he’ll remain with the program in 2024.

Kelly has now spent two more seasons with the Bruins than he did at his first head coaching gig at Oregon. However, his first stint in the Pac-12 was far more successful with a record of 46-7, a pair of appearances in the Rose Bowl, and one shot at the national championship in 2010.

After that, he spent four seasons in the NFL, three with the Philadelphia Eagles and one with the San Francisco 49ers, before returning to the collegiate ranks in 2018.

Much of the frustration around Kelly started to build after a 17-7 loss to Arizona State this season. That dropped the Bruins to 6-4 which, ahead of their move to the Big Ten, wasn’t good enough to some after a few seasons. Still, he took some of the heat off with an 18-point win over USC. That was before they laid an egg in their season finale with a 26-point loss to California.

With UCLA extending his leash into next season, it’s a major opportunity for Kelly to put the program back on the right track in their first year in a new conference. If not, his name could very well come up on the hot seat again in 2024.