Ex-NFL QB Derek Carr joins UCLA as volunteer adviser
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- Derek Carr joins UCLA as a special adviser to coach Bob Chesney in a volunteer role focused on game-planning strategy and quarterback development, the program announced Monday.
- Carr spent 11 seasons in the NFL with the Raiders and Saints, earned four Pro Bowl selections, and announced his retirement in May 2025.
- Chesney praised Carr's "passion for the game" and called his experience "an incredible resource" for UCLA's coaching staff and players in a news release.
- Carr and UCLA general manager Darrick Yray overlapped at Fresno State from 2009 to 2013, a connection Carr cited as part of his motivation to join the Bruins.
- Chesney is in his first season at UCLA after going 21-6 in two years at James Madison, winning a Sun Belt title and reaching the College Football Playoff last season.
- Yray is also in his first season with UCLA after spending seven years at Fresno State in offensive and football operations roles.
Why it matters: UCLA, working under a first-year head coach and first-year GM who both arrived from James Madison and Fresno State, is leaning on a retired four-time Pro Bowl quarterback to accelerate an offensive rebuild — and Carr's volunteer status signals the hire is about mentorship and credibility rather than roster construction.
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