UCLA's safety depth was all but destroyed after the mass-exodus.

The only safety of starting caliber left, was Cole Martin, who will be penciled in as a starter, assuming that Bob Chesney doesn't adopt a Brian Kelly-esque attitude of "my players are better than the last guy's players!"

He'll probably be back in 2027 (if he doesn't transfer again), but either way, he's a non-factor by 2028.

Bob Chesney brought in 41 players through the transfer portal, and none of the three safeties he brought in should be around for 2028. Two of them (Ta'Shawn James, Malik Hartford) are coming off season-ending injuries from 2026, with Hartford having shoulder surgery not too long ago. The third (Tao Johnson) is out of eligibility after 2026.

I'm guessing that they're going to need a lot of help from Lady Luck to get to 0.500, which usually means that you'll have a lot of guys transferring out after 2026 as well.


That presents a much easier opportunity for Terry to crack the 2 deep in 2027, and seize a starting spot in 2028.