PASADENA — DeShaun Foster stood at a podium at the Rose Bowl, his eyes glazing over as he stared forward into an abyss of reporters.
He had been at such a podium before in better times, remarking after Rose Bowl heroism in moments like his four-touchdown performance against USC in 1998. Or touting the success of Bruins running backs he had coached, future NFL players he was able to gloat about before they’d been “league’d.”
Friday night was different – a sinking sensation unlike seasons before.
The second-year UCLA head coach, now sitting at 5-10 overall after taking over the program from Chip Kelly in 2024, was searching for answers on what led the Bruins (0-3) to one of the lowest-of-lows starts in program history. For the first time since 2019, the Bruins began their season with three losses – and there might not be a win in sight with Big Ten play on the horizon.
A loss to Utah in Week 1; sure. But defeats to Mountain West Conference opponents UNLV and New Mexico – losing to the Lobos 35-10 on Friday night – has turned the soft side of the Bruins’ schedule into Armageddon, a never-ending spiral of questions about coaching, effort and Foster’s pointed word of choice: discipline.
When asked about what his message to the UCLA faithful was after Friday’s defeat, to the 31,163 fans who weathered poorly executed drives – including a bungled second-quarter 1-minute drill when the Bruins drained the clock after misusing timeouts to no points on the scoreboard – Foster said it comes down to whether you’re willing to be there, with him and the team, through thick and thin.
“If you’re a real Bruin, you’ll still be a fan,” Foster said. “There’s plenty of programs that have unfortunate starts and [have] been able to turn stuff around, so it’s either you stick with it or not.”
If not for the throes of students on field trips, filling the lower end-zone sections at the Rose Bowl, UCLA could have been at risk of reaching new attendance lows – a night when a sparsely filled band and quarter-full student section attempted to create as much noise as possible without the fall quarter underway in Westwood.
Foster, at his introductory press conference on Feb. 13, 2024, dreamed of filling the Rose Bowl back to its highs of when he was a student-athlete. He said he would “hit this ground running” to help the team win games, noting how UCLA brings in national championships across its other programs, but hasn’t been able to surge over the hump in football.
Athletic director Martin Jarmond noted Foster’s “energy” and “hunger” after hiring the longtime UCLA assistant coach. Through three weeks, however, the energy at the Rose Bowl has dimmed – and the hunger, and desperation, for victory No. 1 continues to build.
One reporter asked Foster, point blank, if he was still the man for the job.
“Most definitely,” Foster said.
Why does Foster feel that way?
“Because I can get these boys to play,” he responded.
Does he feel overmatched?
“Nope,” he said. “Not at all.”
Foster provided passion and spirit, ending the 2024 season on a high by helping drag the Bruins to a 4-7 finish after a 1-5 start. The former UCLA running backs coach noted that a similar situation could occur this year.
But such potential success is flickering like a light bulb in a Big Ten basement.
While pressure might continue to build on Foster and the Bruins, all the way to the athletic director’s office, his players are standing by their coach.
“I believe in him 100% and he ain’t never really lied to us or anything like that,” redshirt senior defensive lineman Gary Smith III said. “We just got to keep our trust in him, and there’s a lot of things we have to clean up. I wouldn’t point the finger at Coach Fos. Coach Fos is a great guy.”
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava isn’t a multi-year Bruin like Smith. He left Tennessee after leading the Volunteers to the College Football Playoff last season to join the Bruins.
Iamaleava now finds himself leading an offense that is ranked among the nation’s worst, unable to keep pace with a team such as New Mexico, which UCLA was favored to beat by two scores.
For Iamaleava, the blame doesn’t fall on Foster, but on himself and his teammates.
“We’re doing him a disservice not performing for him ’cause he’s telling us everything we need to hear, he’s telling us everything we need to do, and we’re not executing as players,” Iamaleava said. “It all falls back on the players.”
But as the Bruins head into a bye week before potentially their last clear-cut chance at a victory against Northwestern, Foster turned his glazed-over eyes inward – the weight of the program on his shoulders.
“Everything that happens can fall on me,” Foster said. “I’m the head coach, so it can fall on me.”
