This post was updated Aug. 18 at 10:34 p.m.

Coach DeShaun Foster is adding Pasadena to his team’s itinerary ahead of its season-opener in Honolulu.

Citing concerns over how his team will respond to the pressure of gameday, Foster said it will hold a scrimmage at the Rose Bowl ahead of UCLA football’s kickoff against Hawai’i on Aug. 31.

“They’re handling it well – out here on the football field – (but) during the game, it’s a little different,” Foster said during Wednesday’s practice session at Spaulding Field. “I just want to see how our temperament is during the game.”

Additionally, Foster closed Saturday’s practice to the public to prepare his team for its inaugural Big Ten season and to avoid another “vanilla practice” – with the coach adding his priority is to increase his team’s focus and intensity.

It’s not just the time crunch of the impending season and conference realignment, however. UCLA is simultaneously adjusting to the new standards set by an overhauled coaching staff.

Spearheaded by offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, the Bruins adopted an NFL-caliber playbook that players persistently gravitate toward.

“EB (Bieniemy) knows what he’s doing, he’s very proven, and this offense is going to be really good,” said redshirt junior wide receiver J. Michael Sturdivant during Thursday’s practice. “He’s been a great teacher. Having Frazier (wide receivers coach Erik Frazier) as my coach has helped a lot.”

Bieniemy and Frazier both bring NFL coaching experience to Westwood. The former was the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2018 to 2022 and of the Washington Commanders in 2023, while the latter was an offensive skill assistant with the Tennessee Titans in 2021 and 2022.

Frazier added that Bieniemy reached out to him for the opportunity in Westwood after the two met one another as coaches on the Chiefs in 2016 and 2017.

“I remember taking a bathroom break, and I hear coach EB in a meeting room talking to his guys,” Frazier said. “I just listened and saw what he was doing and how he was teaching. … I gravitated towards him a lot.“

With a receiving core highlighted by Sturdivant, redshirt senior Logan Loya and redshirt junior Titus Mokiao-Atimalala, Frazier said he’s inherited a promising unit.

Frazier added that his job right now is to rewire the little things and instill the values he demands of his players – concepts Frazier attributes to his time at the next level.

In another Kansas City connection, Shea Pitts, who played for the Bruins from 2017 to 2022, rejoined the team’s coaching staff on Thursday as a defensive analyst after working with the Chiefs as a coaching fellow.

Pitts wrote on LinkedIn that his work dealt with video, scouting reports, creating visual cards and tracking offensive tendencies.

Of course, not everyone has reached the pinnacle of football just yet. For special assistant Mike Babcock and redshirt senior defensive lineman Luke Schuermann, UCLA represents a step up the collegiate ranks.

Having signed on Aug. 7, Babcock comes to the Bruins after serving as the head coach at McKendree – a Division II program – for 11 seasons. After leading the Bearcats to their first-ever DII postseason appearance last season, Babcock rejoins the Bruins after a two-decade coaching hiatus from Westwood.

“Somebody that’s been around the game,” Foster said. “He’s been a head coach for 11 years, five years when he was here before (as a position coach) and I played with him for three years(as teammates). … somebody you know you can trust.”

After four seasons at Johns Hopkins, Schuermann is making the jump to Power 4 football fresh off a Division-III All-American campaign last season. The St. Louis local holds the Blue Jays’ all-time records in tackles for loss and sacks.

“I like his mentality, man,” said defensive line coach Tony Washington Jr. on Monday. “One thing about Luke is he goes a hundred miles an hour. … It’s just about fine-tuning little details and cleaning up his techniques.”

While UCLA may wish to have limitless time to tinker, toil and tweak, the clock continues to tick on a landmark season just two weeks away.

Email Dizon at [email protected] or tweet @KaiADizon.