UCLA is set to welcome in the Bob Chesney era very soon. With that will begin roster construction. A key player that is on many peopleโs radars is Sahir West. Many hope that Chesney can sway him to transfer to UCLA. West was the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year at James Madison. In the championship game against Troy last night he had an astronomical final line. 10 tackles, three sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss. He is a player that could completely change UCLAโs defensive line right from the jump. As UCLA needs to create more pressure on quarterbacks and get into the backfield.
๐๐ฎ๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ก๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐ซ.
โ JMU Football (@JMUFootball) December 4, 2025
The future is bright for Sahir West, your 2025 Freshman of the Year!#GoDukes pic.twitter.com/3DkYzmOqei
West in his freshman season not including any bowl or possible playoff games has seven sacks and 14 tackles for loss. He constantly wins his blocks and can anchor a defensive line, freeing up other players. As he will see double teams as coordinators focus on taking him out. Chesney is known for his defensive prowess and could bring some James Madison players over with him. West needs to be at the top of the list as the trenches are so important to winning football games. Which happens to be the number one area of concern for the Bruins.
SAHIR WITH THE SACK, SPIN WITH THE SCOOP AND SCORE!
โ JMU Football (@JMUFootball) December 6, 2025
DUKES LEAD 31-14!! pic.twitter.com/t4vy60iBnH
West attended Mount Saint Joseph High School in Baltimore, Maryland. He was listed as a 210-pound linebacker when he was a recruit and didnโt have any star rating. He committed to James Madison in February 2024. Since then, he has bulked up to 270 pounds and is an edge rusher. Showing his tremendous work ethic and becoming the player that he is. Now he has the opportunity to go to a larger school if he so wishes. Which will get him more national attention. It remains to be seen if UCLA covets him.
James Madison defensive lineman Sahir West, only a redshirt freshman, is a dude.
โ Tracy McDannald ๐ (@Tracy_McDannald) December 6, 2025
Ten tackles, 5 1/2 for a loss with 3 sacks, and just forced a fumble that led to a scoop and score for a 31-14 lead.
If he gets swayed to head to UCLA with Bob Chesneyโฆ
The Bruins have a lot of roster construction that is needed to be done. It is quite possible that James Madison makes it into the College Football Playoff. Which most likely they would give Chesney the opportunity to coach in that. But it is already a positive that James Madison commits are now flipping to UCLA. If all goes right, UCLA can snag away West in the portal and kick off their rebuild with a prized start.