Following the conclusion of the college football season on Monday, USA TODAY released their final US LBM Coaches Poll of the season, with the 16-0 Indiana Hoosiers sitting in the top spot after winning their first-ever national championship in program history.
Bob Chesney’s James Madison team ended the season at No. 20 but it’ll be tough for the Dukes to maintain that rating during the 2026 season. Not only did James Madison lose Chesney, their head coach, they lost offensive coordinator Dean Kennedy and defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler.
Along with the coaching losses, James Madison saw 26 players enter the portal, including star freshman Sahir West and running back Wayne Knight heading to join the UCLA Bruins to reunite with Chesney.
James Madison added some talent in the transfer portal too, bringing in 27 players. The Dukes’ transfer haul was ranked No. 1 in the Sun Belt Conference according to 247 Sports, with James Madison landing 15 three star recruits.
UCLA hopes that Chesney can lead the Bruins to an appearance on next year’s season-ending Coaches Poll, but it won’t be easy. There’s three Big Ten teams in the Top-10, with No. 1 Indiana, No. 4 Oregon and No. 6 Ohio State.
In addition to the elite teams at the top of the conference, the Big Ten also has No. 17 Iowa, No. 21 USC, No. 22 Michigan and No. 25 Illinois. This crop of teams will be the real challenge for Chesney’s Bruins to surpass before, hopefully, building up the programs to compete with the elite teams in the Big Ten over the coming years.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: James Madison makes appearance in final USA TODAY US LBM Coaches Poll
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
