New Faces, Old Traditions
2024 was a year of sweeping change. A new coach in a new conference with what felt like an entirely different team. And 2025 is no different. UCLA football has a new offensive coordinator, a new quarterback and fresh faces throughout the program. Only one thing has remained constant: a flourishing yet steady culture that DeShaun Foster – a man who knows what it’s like to don the blue and gold on the gridiron – established.

Running back Revamp?

It seemed inevitable that Foster would guarantee running game mastery when he took the helm of UCLA football.

The former second-round NFL pick was a Second Team All-American his senior year and smashed multiple school rushing records throughout his collegiate career – including most yards in a season as a freshman and most in a single game with 301 against Washington in 2001.

If Foster were to get something right in his first season as head honcho, it had to be in his area of expertise – the ground and pound. But, in the most ironic way possible, the Bruins’ offensive backfield was abysmal, posting the fourth-least rushing yards per game in the Football Bowl Subdivision with 86.6. Additionally, the Bruins featured just one rusher – former Bruin T.J. Harden – with more than 500 yards and at least four yards a carry.

On top of that, Harden had an underwhelming season after rushing for over 800 yards and eight touchdowns while splitting snaps with Carson Steele in 2023. The Bruins historically produce some of the best running backs in the sport, including Foster, Maurice Jones-Drew and Zach Charbonnet.

And with Foster at the helm, there’s no excuse for this program not to have a prolific rushing attack.

With the additions of junior running back and California transfer Jaivian Thomas along with four-star recruit Karson Cox, the Bruins appear poised to succeed. But can they reverse the curse of last season?

Nico’s Niche

Few college programs have a five-star quarterback under center – let alone the No. 2-ranked signal caller in the nation and No. 1 in the state of California.

Even fewer teams have one of these players fall in their laps. But Foster and Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach Tino Sunseri both bought the same lottery ticket. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Nico Iamaleava may boast the most pro-level attributes and intangibles of any quarterback in UCLA history.

Standing at 6 feet 6 inches and top-end elite arm strength, coupled with two-way playmaking capability, Iamaleava excels in all areas. Scouts and general managers alike seek out prospects exhibiting those qualities every April, and they may focus on Iamaleava if he produces a promising 2025 campaign. Iamaleava is the quarterback whom former UCLA Head Coach Chip Kelly always wanted but never had. The Long Beach local should take this offense to another level after the 2024 season left a lot to be desired under center.

Iamaleava has the arm to go deep – preventing defenses from stacking against the run and allowing for a more explosive and deceptive rushing attack – the legs to evade pass rushers and improvise, and the frame to withstand hard hits and see over the defensive line to hit targets over the middle of the field.

How Iamaleava adjusts to Foster’s scheme will determine the Bruins’ success – but he has the potential to put the program on the map in the Big Ten.

New Faces

Foster gave the Bruins a complete makeover after his inaugural year leading the program.

Over 40 players from the 2024 roster left via graduation or the 2025 NFL Draft, and the Bruins brought in 55 players through freshman recruiting and the portal. Vast roster turnover is becoming more and more commonplace in the ever-evolving NIL landscape.

But since the Bruins are returning just a handful of starters from the previous season, the monumental changes leave two potential outcomes. UCLA may experience revolutionized cohesion, helping lift the previous 5-7 team to the upper echelons of one of college football’s most elite conferences. Or, the team could ignite a dumpster fire that plummets the program further into the Big Ten’s basement.

There is no doubt that this season could be make-or-break. Produce another dismal and underwhelming season, and conference adversaries will begin to lose respect for the former Pac-12 powerhouse.

Make a statement, and the Rose Bowl starts becoming a red circle on opponents’ calendars. How Foster brings all of these moving pieces together will determine the Bruins’ success in 2025. Helping him reign in the chemistry and camaraderie of the squad are his eight new assistant coaches – all mirroring Foster as the mold of former players-turned-coaches.

Only time will tell how UCLA’s squad will come together, but Foster has to be careful if he wants to sew together a winning fabric.

Sunseri Sensation

When UCLA hired Eric Bieniemy to take over the team’s offense in 2024, fans and experts alike expected his Super Bowl-winning experience to transform UCLA’s offense.

One year after the squad boasted the third-worst rushing offense in the Football Bowl Subdivision and former Bruin signal caller Ethan Garbers tied for the conference lead in interceptions, it is safe to say that the Bieniemy experiment was a failure.

But Tino Sunseri may be the one to revolutionize the Bruins’ offense. The new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach boasts a resume that highlights his ability to develop. A former record-setting quarterback himself at Pittsburgh, Sunseri learned under legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban, training first-round picks Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones.

He then took his talents to James Madison, where he had a different quarterback all three years and helped garner conference awards for each of them. Most recently, he elevated an Indiana offense that no one had on their radar, helping the program clinch a College Football Playoff bid. Sunseri also developed Hoosier signal caller Kurtis Rourke into a Heisman candidate and NFL Draft selection.

The quarterback specialist is no stranger to learning and improving a new system. Everywhere he has gone, the offensive system has flourished. He has not only squeezed everything out of each quarterback under his wing but bolstered the entire offense.

Sunseri is likely getting the best quarterback of his coaching career in redshirt sophomore Nico Iamaleava. And with the budding weapons around Iamaleava – this offense will blossom.

Recruiting Revolution

One of DeShaun Foster’s main goals when taking charge in Westwood was to put UCLA football on the map – to make it a brand, a household name and a known football school.

Central to this drive was revolutionizing the Bruins’ recruiting, particularly in California. Foster has done just that. UCLA’s 2024 transfer class ranked 44th in the nation, and 2025’s recruiting class –Foster’s first as head honcho – sat at 36th.

A year later, he has transformed both, improving the rankings to No. 20 and No. 22 nationwide, respectively. And Foster is on the trajectory to reach his recruiting goal. The Bruins’ 2026 recruiting class already boasts double the number of four-star prospects from the 2025 recruiting class, as well as two more players than the year prior.

Comparatively, last season’s recruiting class ranked 12th in the Big Ten, but next year’s holds the No. 7 spot, putting UCLA above the likes of Indiana, Illinois and Michigan State. The biggest get of

Foster’s tenure so far is Nico Iamaleava, who ties for the highest-ranked recruit in UCLA history.

The desire to return home was the driving factor in Iamaleava’s decision. Foster has made it his agenda to revolutionize the Bruins’ recruiting strategies, using UCLA’s academic and athletic prestige – combined with its opportune location – to bring attractive prospects home to Westwood.

And just a year after that promise, it’s looking like he is going to deliver.

Strong Finish

UCLA’s 2024 campaign is often looked at as a disappointment.

The Bruins went 5-7 with a shiny new offensive coordinator and the bulk of their offensive weapons returning. And many looked poised for breakout seasons after strong performances in 2023.

But do not let the lopsided losses and defeat to arch-rival USC at the Rose Bowl muddy the water. It was the Bruins’ first season in the Big Ten – leaving the Pac-12 behind in a leap reminiscent of David and Goliath – and they relied on a first-year coach along with two novel coordinators.

But UCLA also had to travel the most miles in the country at the 22,048 mark, all while facing the second-hardest strength of schedule in the FBS, featuring away games against Penn State and LSU and home fixtures against Oregon and Indiana – which included three teams that made the College Football Playoff.

Despite the obstacles that plagued the Bruins, the squad rose to the challenge in the second half of the season. UCLA won four of its final six games and held four of those teams to 20 points or fewer to finish the 2024 campaign. A malfunctioning offense allowed the defense to shine, a unit who allowed the sixth-fewest rushing yards per game in the nation. And even with the stagnancy of the Bruins’ offense, the group flashed its potential in the final stretch.

The Bruins posted at least 20 points in all four wins, including 35 against Rutgers last October. The Bruins seemed to hit rock bottom in 2024, but the 2025 squad appears far more capable and well-positioned from just a year ago.

Old Traditions

Foster has been a proud Bruin ever since he set foot in Westwood, calling the opportunity to come back and lead UCLA football a dream come true.

Part of the package of helming his alma mater was reinstituting the traditions and culture that made UCLA a powerhouse not so long ago.

Terry Thompson, a 1985 UCLA football alumnus, said it best: “Everyone’s excited about DeShaun because he’s one of us.” Bringing UCLA back to the pedigree it once had includes making the team feel like Bruins.

Along these lines, one of his first decisions as head coach was to reinstate the Bruin Walk – a procession in which the players, sporting powder blue suits, make their way from the buses to the Rose Bowl as thousands of enthusiastic fans cheer them on. Foster reestablished the tradition at his first Spring showcase back in 2024 and has since continued it at every home game.

Foster also implemented a rule that all players wear the same outfit to and from the game – no matter who they are playing or whether it’s a win or a loss. At Big Ten Media Day in Las Vegas, the three attending Bruins wore matching powder blue suits – an allusion to the program’s throwback jerseys honoring the 1954 national championship team – to portray a united front.

Foster does not care if you are a transfer, a freshman or a four-year veteran. You are a Bruin if you wear blue and gold. Embracing past traditions while emanating UCLA pride are fundamental Bruin attributes.