This post was updated Aug. 25 at 5:06 p.m.

DeShaun Foster’s first training camp has drawn to a close.

Reflecting on the journey, the first-year head coach said he had a goal for his players: Command from within.

“I wanted this team to get to a point to where it’s player-led and not coach-driven,” Foster said. “I think we’ve done a good job of picking up some leaders that we didn’t know were here.”

Ethan Garbers answered Foster’s call.

The redshirt senior quarterback is entering his fourth season in Westwood but just his first as the undisputed starting signal-caller. The Washington transfer earned the starting nod in 2023’s season-opener but was quickly supplanted by former quarterback and five-star recruit Dante Moore.

The ensuing quarterback carousel – marred by injury and inconsistent play – continued throughout the campaign, ending with the departures of Moore and Collin Schlee.

Garbers notched six starts across the season, posting 11 touchdowns to just three interceptions – capped off with a two-touchdown performance in relief of an injured Schlee during the Bruins’ comeback LA Bowl victory.

More than eight months since the squad’s last game, Garbers and company seem poised to embark on their maiden voyage in the Big Ten.

“I think they are all tired of playing each other,” said tight ends coach Jerry Neuheisel. “(They’re) ready to go play somebody else.”

Though the team may be ready to take the field, personnel gaps remain.

The defensive backs room – decimated by graduates and outgoing transfers – is one with lingering question marks.

“There’s a couple of things we’re figuring out in terms of pairings,” said cornerbacks coach and special teams coordinator Kodi Whitfield. “(The) guys are really competing and working hard, and I’m proud of what we’re doing right now.”

Senior Devin Kirkwood and redshirt junior Jaylin Davies are penciled in to start at cornerback, given their familiarity with the system. Kirkwood has started 12 games in his UCLA tenure, while Davies has logged 16.

Senior defensive back Kaylin Moore – a California transfer – has swiftly impressed the coaching staff with his versatility, able to play as both a nickelback and an outside cornerback.

The special teams battles have also come down to the wire.

“We’ve took on the challenge as a unit, as a team, to improve on special teams – a phase of the game that’s super important,” Whitfield said. “That leads to direct competition at that kicker spot. Who’s going to give us the best chance to convert scoring opportunities?”

The Bruins’ 2023 kicking woes were well documented.

Replacing three-year starter Nicholas Barr-Mira, the combination of R.J. Lopez and now-redshirt senior Blake Glessner yielded just eight field goals in 17 attempts, or a 47.1% clip. Although Lopez transferred to Purdue following the season, Glessner remains at UCLA and is locked in a tight race for starting duties.

Battling him is sophomore kicker Mateen Bhaghani, another Cal transfer. The former Golden Bear went eight of nine on field goal attempts – converting all four in Cal’s blowout win against UCLA last season – and a spotless 29 of 29 on extra points as a freshman.

On the punting side, a pair of redshirt sophomores – Brody Richter and Chase Barry – remain in a dead heat. The former saw significant action at Northern Arizona in 2023, while the latter has recorded just one punt in his collegiate career.

Though members of the coaching staff have maintained pursed lips about who will see the field, they have not been coy about the importance of the team’s season opener at Hawaiʻi.

“We’re not on vacay,” Foster said. “This is our Super Bowl. We want to get this started off on the right foot.”