Is Chip Kelly the Offensive Spark Northwestern Has Been Waiting For?
Chip Kelly Brings His Offense to Evanston
This morning, Northwestern University announced the hiring of longtime football coach Chip Kelly as its offensive coordinator. Kelly, as you all know, has a long track record of leading successful offenses, especially at the collegiate level. Going back to his days at Oregon, his teams always played with speed and tempo, but it also takes the right athletes to make that style of play work.
“I am honored to join the Northwestern Football program,” said Kelly. “This program and university are clearly on the rise, and the values of the people and this place align with my own. I am grateful for the opportunity. There is tremendous potential under Coach Braun’s leadership, and I’m ready to contribute to this team. There is great momentum around the program, and the opening of the new Ryan Field reflects Northwestern’s commitment to excellence and innovation. It will be a major asset as we continue to move forward, and I am excited to get to Evanston.”
Head Coach David Braun is excited for the hire, as Kelly will hopefully get Northwestern’s offense in a better place for the upcoming season.
“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Chip and his wife, Jill, to our university,” said Braun. “His innovative approach to offense using systems that focus on varying tempo, efficiency and smart decision-making, his track record of developing quarterbacks, and his ability to maximize talent are exactly what our program needs at this moment. I am extremely grateful for the ongoing partnership of our university, Mark Jackson and passionate supporters to make this addition happen. Make no mistake: this is a program-defining change and is reflective of our long-term commitment to the pursuit of championships.”
In 2025, Northwestern averaged 346.1 yards per game, placing them 98th in the country according to cfbstats.com. That included 185.9 passing yards per game and 160.1 rushing yards per game, with the ground game being their strongest area offensively based on where they stacked up nationally.
Kelly comes in after spending this year with the Las Vegas Raiders in the same role, before being let go on November 23. Prior to that, he spent 2024 at Ohio State as the offensive coordinator. While there, the Buckeyes won the national championship and finished with the 28th ranked total offense in the nation, along with the 29th ranked passing offense at 263 yards per game.
Kelly also had a five year stint as UCLA’s head coach from 2018 through 2023. While there, his offenses were among the best in the country. In 2022, the Bruins ranked fourth nationally in total offense at 503.6 yards per game, and they consistently maintained a top 20 rushing attack. It will be interesting to see how Northwestern evolves under Kelly’s offensive identity.
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Quotes Sourced from: Northwestern Athletics
Featured Image Credit: Scott Chandler – UCLA
