UCLA Football Under Terry Donahue – 1996-2015
Nov 28, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Josh Rosen (3) throws a pass against the Southern California Trojans during an NCAA football game at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. USC defeated UCLA 40-21. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
2015
UCLA starts 5-0 and retains a #1 ranking under true freshman quarterback Josh Rosen before dropping a Thursday night game to #15 Stanford. The Bruins finish with six straight wins only to face unbeaten Stanford again in the conference championship game. They lose again to the Cardinal, led by eventual Heisman winning running back Christian McCaffrey. At 11-2, UCLA is set to meet 12-1 Iowa in the Rose Bowl.
The Monday following the championship game, Donahue holds a press conference to make following statement:
"I’m here to announce that this coming Rose Bowl will be my last game as UCLA’s head coach. I’m 71 years old – I’ve been in this position for 40 years – and it would be unfair to the program and fans that have given me so much for me to linger on past my capabilities to make useful contributions. What’s more, I want to spend time with my wife, kids, and grandkids while I still have my health. I’m very proud of what we have accomplished at UCLA during my 40 years here as the head coach: We won 354 games and lost 137. We went 22-17-1 against USC. We went 20-8-1 in bowl games, including 6-1 in the Rose Bowl. We were conference champions twelve times and national champions three times. We had a Heisman trophy winner. We have some of the greatest football facilities in the country. We have made a place for this program among this sport’s very elite schools. In the interests of both continuity and locking up the best available young coaching candidate in this business, Dan [Guerrero] and I have received approval to announce that offensive coordinator Tom Herman has accepted promotion to the head coach position, starting January 2. Phil Snow will be staying on as defensive coordinator. I am confident that I leave this program in a position to continue competing at the top levels of this sport. I assure you, my presence won’t be missed. I will always call UCLA my home, and I look forward to seeing what Tom and Phil will do with this program in the coming years. This is the best university in the world, and it has been a privilege to have coached here for the entirety of my career. Thank you; Go Bruins."
Next: UCLA Football: The Top 10 Quarterbacks of All-Time
**Thanks to Jack Wang for his article as well as for providing some contextual details to me post-publication.**