UCLA fires head coach DeShaun Foster after 0-3 start to second season in charge

UCLA fired head coach DeShaun Foster after an 0-3 start to his second season leading his alma mater, the school announced Sunday. Foster leaves Westwood as the shortest-tenured full-time head coach in school history.

Losses to Utah, UNLV and then New Mexico, 35-10 in front of a sparse crowd Friday at the Rose Bowl, intensified questions about Foster’s future. The Bruins have looked overmatched in all three games, with conference play still ahead, and prompted ridicule from media, the Pac-12, their former conference, and even the Big Sky Conference. Tim Skipper, who was special assistant to the head coach, will serve as interim coach.

After the loss to New Mexico, Foster took the blame and said he looked forward to getting things right ahead of the Sept. 27 Big Ten opener against Northwestern. But with UCLA being outscored by a Football Bowl Subdivision-worst margin of 108-43 and little indication things could improve, UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond acted.

“Ultimately, we weren’t moving in the right direction,” Jarmond told reporters on a call Sunday afternoon. “I know we have more talent than how we performed, but I felt there was no clear path forward to an upward trajectory in conference play. … It’s a signal to our fans that this is not what Bruin football is going to be.”

Foster compiled a 5-10 record after being promoted in February 2024 to replace Chip Kelly. He departs the program he starred for as a running back from 1998 to 2001, later returned to as a longtime running backs coach and ultimately served as head coach for less than two seasons.

Since Foster was terminated before Dec. 1, UCLA owes him 70 percent of his remaining deal, which ran through 2028, an estimated $7.8 million. Compared with other Big Ten programs, that figure is manageable. For example, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule’s deal carries a buyout of about $56.2 million. UCLA said it will cover Foster’s buyout entirely from its athletic budget.

“Serving as the head coach at UCLA, my beloved alma mater, has been the honor of a lifetime,” Foster said in a statement. “While I am deeply disappointed that we were unable to achieve the success that our players, fans, and university deserve, I am grateful for the opportunity to have led this program.”

Foster, 45, was promoted after Kelly left after six seasons and a 35-34 record to assume offensive coordinator duties at Ohio State. At the time, UCLA billed Foster’s acquisition as an investment in continuity, elevating a longtime position coach despite his lack of coordinator experience.

“What I would remind you is these decisions aren’t made in a vacuum,” Jarmond said. “That said, ultimately, I’m the athletic director. I’m the steward of this program, and the buck stops with me. But I want to reiterate, these kinds of decisions at this level are not made by one person. They’re made by the stakeholders and factors and circumstances that surround that.”

The hire was celebrated as a homecoming story, but drew scrutiny from the outset, with many viewing it as a gamble in UCLA’s Big Ten transition year. Foster’s salary of around $3 million a year ranked near the bottom of the Big Ten.

“I regret putting DeShaun in that situation where we were going into the Big Ten,” Jarmond said. “Getting a start so late really, really disadvantaged his beginning to his coaching career here.”

Foster’s tenure had flickers of momentum. In his debut season last fall, the Bruins faltered to a 1-5 start, the first-year coach acknowledging after his opener against Hawaii that he was nervous in front of reporters — consistent with his awkward performance at last year’s Big Ten media days where all he could deliver was a short quip about UCLA’s location: “We’re in LA.”

But Foster and the Bruins steadied to win four of their final six games and finish 5-7. And by this summer’s Big Ten media days, Foster swapped last year’s embarrassment for a composed performance that touched on recruiting, culture and the program’s trajectory. But the momentum did not carry over.

The dismal ending to Foster’s tenure has also intensified heat on Jarmond. He downplayed that chatter Sunday.

“I’m very confident in my ability to hire coaches to win championships,” said Jarmond, who added that the decision to release Foster was his, with chancellor Julio Frenk’s full backing. “I’ve done it.”

Complicating the search is the program’s broader reality. UCLA has piled up more than $200 million in athletics debt over the past six years, lacks the NIL resources of its Big Ten peers and continues to face apathy at the Rose Bowl, which is about a 40-minute drive from UCLA.

But Jarmond, who plans to take his time in a “thorough” search to replace Foster, said UCLA remains an “attractive job” being in the Big Ten and at one the top academic and athletic programs in the country.

“We’re going to have a search committee that’s going to have some great experience,” Jarmond said, adding that he’s looking for a coach who can take UCLA to the College Football Playoff. “My focus now is the current student-athletes and this coaching staff and this season.”

UCLA has yet to hold a lead in 2025. Foster’s mantra through his time in Westwood was “D.R.E.” — discipline, respect and enthusiasm — yet discipline has proved elusive. The Bruins committed 14 penalties for 129 yards against UNLV and 13 for 116 yards against New Mexico.

UCLA landed five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava from Tennessee this spring — among nearly 60 newcomers to the roster — but the offense has sputtered, ranking 101st in the FBS in total offense. On defense, thin depth and inexperience left the Bruins exposed against more physical opponents, and they rank 111th in the FBS in total defense. They conceded 286 rushing yards in the opener against the Utes and nearly 300 to the Lobos.

Skipper has recent experience as an interim coach, leading Fresno State in that role last season, with the Bulldogs going 6-7. He’s a former defensive coordinator at UNLV and also coached running backs and linebackers at Florida, among other stops.

With the Bruins still fewer than five games into their season, UCLA players are eligible to either redshirt or enter a 30-day transfer portal window — though none can play elsewhere this season. Jarmond said Sunday that after meeting with the team he hasn’t heard of plans to transfer, and that the group is “focused on really turning this around.”

Recruiting is already being impacted, with defensive linemen Yahya Gaad, Anthony Jones and David Schwerzel, linebacker Ramzak Fruean and four-star offensive tackle Johnnie Jones all decommitting from UCLA’s 2026 class, according to 247Sports. Wide receiver Demaje Riley from the class of 2027 also decommitted Sunday afternoon.

Potential names to watch for the role are Florida State defensive coordinator Tony White (a UCLA alum), USC defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn (former UCLA DC), Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea, New Mexico head coach Jason Eck, BYU head coach Kalani Sitake, Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein and Fresno State head coach Matt Entz.

(Photo: Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)

Click here to read article