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UCLA Bruins coach Chip Kelly began his ascent to the top of football as an offensive coordinator at Oregon in 2007 before getting the top job in 2009. As head coach, he turned the Ducks into a force with his famed spread offense.
Over a four-year tenure, Kelly revitalized an average program and made the Ducks heavy hitters in the college football world.
Why did Chip Kelly leave Oregon?
According to speculations, Chip Kelly left Oregon following his suspension by the NCAA. In 2013, Chip Kelly was hit with an 18-month show cause punishment by the NCAA's Committee on Infractions six months after leaving Oregon for recruiting violations.
Speculation had this as the primary reason Kelly left, but he later clarified his position. Kelly left Oregon for a shot at coaching in the NFL, with several teams courting him.
He later apologized to Oregon fans for his role in the scandal and said it had no bearing on his decision to leave.
"I want to apologize to the University of Oregon, all of its current and former players and their fans," Kelly said in a statement released Wednesday, per Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. "I accept my share of responsibility for the actions that led to the penalties.
"As I have stated before, the NCAA investigation and subsequent ruling had no impact on my decision to leave Oregon for Philadelphia."
Where did Chip Kelly go when he left Oregon?
Chip Kelly joined the Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL in 2013 after initially signing a contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a year earlier before opting to stay at Oregon.
According to NBC Sports, Kelly had promised Oregon that he would return after his interviews with the Eagles, Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills, but he signed his NFL contract two weeks later. He explained why he broke his promise.
"It took so long to make it just because the people here are special," Kelly said. "The challenge obviously is exciting for me, but it's an exciting time (and) it's a sad time — saying goodbye to people you love and respect, and I wanted to make sure I talked to my players and did it in the right fashion and talked to our staff. I feel like I did.''
Who was the coach of Oregon after Chip Kelly?
Oregon appointed Kelly's offensive coordinator, Mark Helfrich, as the coach after he departed. The Ducks athletic director, Rob Mullens, detailed how they had already started vetting candidates for the job even before Kelly left.
"We had already done a lot of groundwork. We had already started the process, knowing that Chip was going to be talking to the Eagles, Bills and Browns," Rob Mullens said. "We had geared up our process. We had obviously shut it down, but it's easy to click right back on.''
In 2021, it was reported that the Oregon Ducks had Chip Kelly on their shortlist to replace coach Mario Cristobal, who joined the Miami Hurricanes, although it never panned out as they hired Dan Lanning.
