UCLA and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy parted ways after one season on Thursday.
The Bruins (5-7) ranked 126th out of 134 FBS teams with 18.4 points per game in their first season in the Big Ten and first under head coach Deshaun Foster.
Bieniemy, 55, won two Super Bowls as the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive coordinator from 2018-22 and interviewed for multiple NFL head coaching vacancies across multiple offseasons.
He made a lateral move in 2023 to become the offensive coordinator with the Washington Commanders before joining the Bruins this season.
Multiple outlets reported UCLA fired Bieniemy. However, his agent, Jason Fletcher, called it a planned, mutual separation that will allow his client to return to the NFL coaching ranks.
“Eric and UCLA mutually parted ways today as previously planned,” Fletcher said in a statement, per NFL Network. “He’s still getting paid by the Commanders. After interviewing for head coaching jobs last year, he wanted to stay active and busy. So, he decided to go help out Deshaun Foster, who is like his little brother, at UCLA as opposed to sitting out a year. The plan was always to return to the NFL in 2025, and he’s looking forward to the opportunities ahead.”
–Field Level Media