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The Bruins Nation FanPulse polls over the past two weeks have shown a significant drop in the confidence that Bruin fans have in the direction of the UCLA Bruins men’s basketball program.
The last time I wrote about the FanPulse poll back in December, the confidence level for the basketball program was 82.1%. The FanPulse poll then took about three weeks off before returning last week when it dropped to a season-low 62%. This week, it bounced back a little bit, due in large part to the win over the Washington Huskies. This week’s results were in before the loss to Stanford on Wednesday. It now stands at 69%.
Now, that’s still a reasonably good number, especially when you look at the final confidence poll for the football program. To be sure, if Chip Kelly cared about finishing and possibly extending his contract at UCLA, he would might just kill for the basketball confidence ranking.
That’s because the football program finished its season at just 17%, more than 10% lower than it was to start the season.
I mean, think about it. Only 27% of Bruin fans were confident in the direction of the program when the season started in September and, now that the season is over, more than one-third of that confidence has evaporated.
When you combine that with the fact that Chip will be getting a new boss this summer, it’s pretty obvious that Kelly will start the 2020 season on the hot seat.
Finally, today, we have the final football Top 25 of the season. Overall, the Bruins Nation Top 25 and the SB Nation National Top 25 are pretty similar. The only two differences are that Bruins Nation voters ranked Utah higher than Memphis and Notre Dame higher than Appalachian State. Nationally, among all SB Nation voters those teams are flipped.
Here are both final Top 25 rankings:
FanPulse Top 25 Polls, Week 16
| Rank | BruinsNation Top 25 | SB Nation Top 25 |
|---|---|---|
| Rank | BruinsNation Top 25 | SB Nation Top 25 |
| 1 | LSU (15-0) | LSU (15-0) |
| 2 | Clemson (14-1) | Clemson (14-1) |
| 3 | Ohio State (13-1) | Ohio State (13-1) |
| 4 | Oklahoma (12-2) | Georgia (12-2) |
| 5 | Georgia (12-2) | Oklahoma (12-2) |
| 6 | Florida (11-2) | Florida (11-2) |
| 7 | Penn State (11-2) | Penn State (11-2) |
| 8 | Alabama (11-2) | Alabama (11-2) |
| 9 | Baylor (11-3) | Baylor (11-3) |
| 10 | Minnesota (11-2) | Minnesota (11-2) |
| 11 | Oregon (12-2) | Oregon (12-2) |
| 12 | Utah (11-3) | Memphis (12-2) |
| 13 | Memphis (12-2) | Utah (11-3) |
| 14 | Notre Dame (11-2) | App State (13-1) |
| 15 | App State (13-1) | Notre Dame (11-2) |
| 16 | Boise State (12-2) | Boise State (12-2) |
| 17 | Auburn (9-4) | Auburn (9-4) |
| 18 | Wisconsin (10-4) | Wisconsin (10-4) |
| 19 | Air Force (11-2) | Air Force (11-2) |
| 20 | Cincinnati (11-3) | Cincinnati (11-3) |
| 21 | Iowa (10-3) | Iowa (10-3) |
| 22 | Navy (11-2) | Navy (11-2) |
| 23 | Michigan (9-4) | Michigan (9-4) |
| 24 | Virginia (9-5) | Virginia (9-5) |
| 25 | UAB (9-5) | UAB (9-5) |
Football season may have ended Monday night, but you can still sign up to participate in the SB Nation/Bruins Nation Fan Pulse for basketball season. While there won’t be a basketball top 25 poll, you will be able to continue to voice your opinion on the direction of the UCLA basketball program!
Are you a part of the 69% who believe Mick is going to get things fixed? If so, there are some very reasonably priced seats available for Sunday’s game against UC Berkeley. The team is trying hard. Give ‘em some support.
What do you make of this week’s results? What do you think about the confidence level of the direction of the UCLA football program under Chip Kelly? How about the confidence level for the direction of the UCLA basketball program under Mick Cronin?
Let us know in the comments!
Go Bruins!!!