UCLA Bruins roar to success under new management

The University of California Los Angeles’ (UCLA) football program has been rife with struggles over the past couple seasons. Most recently, UCLA finished 3-6 within the Big Ten Conference after a transition from the Pac-12 Conference, which was first announced in 2022. A lackluster 0-3 start to the program’s second season in the Big Ten culminated in the firing of UCLA head coach Deshaun Foster on Sept. 14. Foster’s departure from UCLA marked an end to a struggle filled era in Bruins’ history, holding a record of 5-10 through his tenure. Tim Skipper, the special assistant to the head coach, was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season. 

Firing a problematic or bad coach may have sounded like an easy answer to all of UCLA’s problems, but a new coaching staff taking over in the middle of a season comes with a lot of its own issues. A new ideology and playbook can massively impact a team’s synergy, only being expounded with such short notice. This was shown during week four when the Bruins lost 24-38 to Northwestern, dropping them to 0-4 and making them the worst ranked team in the Big Ten. With their troubled start season, most fans were quick to write off the season. Another year of growing pains as they regeared with a more stable coaching situation for next year. 

Jack Waterstone (’26), a student at Samo and hardcore fan of the Bruins, was asked about the importance a coach’s personality has to a team’s success. 

“I think it's super important, especially just bringing the group together, whether it's just high school or even college or pro. I think from a personality standpoint, the coach is the guy that brings the team together. I mean, I saw a video of Jerry Neuheisel after the game in the locker room. He had the whole locker room fired up, they were throwing water bottles, and it just looked like they were having fun. So, yeah, I think coaching personality is super important,” Waterstone said. 

Coming into week five, expectations were low for UCLA as they were slated to face Pennsylvania State University (Penn State), who were now playing with a chip on their shoulder. Penn State was coming off a brutal loss against University of Oregon, reigniting speculation and dropping them four spots by the Associated Press. UCLA was 24.5 point underdogs for their Oct. 4 game and the questions entering the minds of many college football fans was how big of a bounce back James Franklin and Penn State would have, rather than if it would even be close. 

Defying all odds, UCLA stunned the entire world of college football. Penn State was kicked out of the top 25 for the first time in three years as UCLA beat one of the best teams in the nation in a 42-37 shootout win.

Following the massive upset over Penn State, Jerry Neuheisel in particular has gained a lot of traction online for the incredible turn around his offense. Turning an almost anemic offense during the first four weeks into a well oiled machine, scoring a combined 80 points against Penn State and Michigan State. 

These wins don’t happen out of sheer coincidence or luck, coaching plays a crucial role in a team’s success. Being able to make players buy into a culture can make all the difference between winning and losing. Belief in the playcalling and the motivation that can be gained through a good coach can be the needle mover in many of these games.

The recent run UCLA has been on has been a surprise to many, including fans like Waterstone.

“I definitely think there has been, you know, not nobody really knows Jerry's offense. Nobody knows, you know, he could be pulling out anything. So I do think that magic will fade off, but it looks like the team, as a whole, it just feels different. Their quarterback, Nico Imalava, is playing different. I feel like, I'm not saying, you know, they're gonna go make the playoffs, but I do think this is a turning point for UCLA,” Waterstone said.

Firing a head coach is a radical decision, but one that has so far worked out in UCLA’s favor over the past couple of weeks. One thing can be certain though that this change in coaching has reignited something within UCLA’s program that hasn’t been there before. Time will tell if this success will be sustained or if other teams will adapt and react accordingly to stifle UCLA football.