From CBS studio, Rick Neuheisel revels in his son’s play calling in UCLA win: ‘Don’t make me cry’

Rick Neuheisel went from neutral CBS studio analyst to passionate dad in one afternoon, and the college football world got to see it live Saturday afternoon.

Neuheisel’s son, Jerry, was named UCLA’s offensive play caller Tuesday, then put together a masterful game plan in guiding the previously winless Bruins to a shocking 42-37 upset of No. 7 Penn State. The entire scene unfolded on Neuheisel’s network, which invited viewers to witness the emotional roller coaster of a father rooting for his son.

“I became a coach again,” Neuheisel told The Athletic. “That’s exactly what took place. All a sudden, he goes down the field in that opening drive, and I’m like, ‘All right, we’ve got something here,’ and then I couldn’t sit. I didn’t have anything to drink. I didn’t have anything to eat the entirety, other than the halftime when we actually had to be on TV. I was grinding, thinking about how to keep this thing going.”

UCLA (1-4) fired coach DeShaun Foster on Sept. 14 after a 0-3 start. Earlier this week, the program parted ways with offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri, which opened the door for a new play caller under interim coach Tim Skipper. Jerry Neuheisel, a former UCLA quarterback and the program’s tight ends coach, shifted to offensive coordinator Tuesday.

“This is how fast you guys in the media work,” said Neuheisel, previously the coach at Colorado, Washington and UCLA. “I got a text from (The Athletic’s) Bruce Feldman. ‘Is Jerry the coordinator?’ And I go, ‘What?’ And so I called him. He said, ‘I just got the job three minutes ago.’”

CBS kept its studio cameras on Rick Neuheisel throughout the game and regularly showed viewers his pride and anguish with each offensive snap.

“It’s dad goggles in full mode and then coaching, getting angry at him,” Neuheisel said. “‘Why are you calling that on fourth down? You needed to call timeout, get a look at that defense, and then run that call.’ … It’s always critiquing. That’s what coaches do.”

On the game’s final snap, Neuheisel shouted in the studio, “Get him down! Get him dowwwnnn! Yeah!” when the Bruins — 27.5-point underdogs — closed out the victory. He then shifted back to football analyst and asked for forgiveness from the Penn State fans for his reactions.

“I’m supposed to be this neutral observer, and I owe the Penn State fans one,” he said. “I apologize, but I think given if they had kids in similar circumstances, they would understand.”

Of all his son’s play calls, Neuheisel said a pass for no gain on third-and-1 late in the fourth quarter was the best he saw. The execution was off, but the call was the right one at the perfect time.

Jerry Neuheisel showed promise when working with the offense earlier in his career, and former UCLA coach Chip Kelly told him that he’d have a shot to become an offensive coordinator in short order. Then Kelly left UCLA, and Foster wanted a play caller with previous experience. Saturday marked Jerry’s first chance to call the plays for a team that had totaled 57 points in its first four games against a defense that had allowed an average of 11.8 so far this season.

Instead of a mismatch, the game launched multiple viral moments. At the game’s end, UCLA players tipped a Powerade bucket over Jerry Neuheisel and carried him off the field as Bruins fans shouted “Jerry! Jerry!” It was reminiscent of a moment 11 years ago when quarterback Jerry Neuheisel replaced an injured Brett Hundley and led UCLA to a win against Texas. He was carried off the field that day, too.

For Rick Neuheisel, the moment was enough to push him over the edge emotionally. He told his colleagues on set, “Don’t make me cry,” but then welled up and fumbled his words when describing his son’s journey.

“I’m just so happy because of how hard he’s worked for it and that he wanted his chance, and then he gets his chance,” Neuheisel told The Athletic. “That’s what I think we all want for all of our kids, whether it’s on this kind of stage or it’s the piano recital. You just want them to feel that sense of pride because they worked for it and they earned it, and then it came to fruition.”

(Photo Jerry Neuheisel and Nico Iameleava: Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images)

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