DeShaun Foster tried every way to keep his UCLA Bruins’ future strong and secure. He organized “brotherhood meetings.” He got the support of his offensive coordinator, Tino Sunseri, who said, “Stop thinking about what other people think about you, and just think about you yourself.” But deep down, Foster could sense that his D-Day was drawing near. And guess what? He was right. In all three games of this season, Foster’s UCLA took a L – starting with Utah, then UNLV, and the latest blow came from New Mexico. So, it’s obvious that the axe dropped a bit lower over Foster’s head. 

Foster signed a five-year, $15 million contract with UCLA in February 2024. While he received a $3 million salary in his first year, in Year 2, he is entitled to receive $3.1 million. Meanwhile, if the head coach is fired, UCLA owes him 70% of the remaining salary before December 1 of a given year. So, if it’s before December 2, 2025, it will be roughly $5.27 million. But if they extend it for yet another season, the buyout figure would drop to $3.35 million. So what’s the latest update on Foster’s longevity in the Bruins’ squad?

On September 13, analyst Gavin Carlson tweeted, “At this point, it seems like everybody with any connections to #UCLA has been told by multiple sources that DeShaun Foster is out in Westwood. I’m hearing the same things everybody else is. We will see if it’s true…” Looks like their latest loss against New Mexico fueled the heat under Foster’s seat. The Bruins have played one good half this season. And what about the five others?

Foster’s squad came off with a paper-thin defense, topped with inexcusable discipline and a completely mismanaged offense. But things looked uglier during their fight against the Lobos. If Foster and co. took a step forward, they had to take 15 yards back. UCLA’s second-half struggles continued in Las Vegas, committing 13 penalties for 116 yards, nearly matching last week’s total. And Foster’s boys’ undisciplined acts came during the worst moments, giving the Lobos more yards from penalties than passing yards in the third quarter.

New Mexico ran for 298 yards on the Bruins on Friday night in the Rose Bowl, after Utah ran for 286 yards in the Bruins’ home opener, a 43-10 blowout loss in Week 1. Foster’s quarterback plan, too, failed. After all, he had high hopes from Nico Iamaleava, who led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season. But at UCLA, the quarterback lacked his lustre, and instead of breathing into UCLA’s offense, the unit averaged fewer points per game (14.3) than they did last year (18.4). Now, what are the analysts saying?

DeShaun Foster remains confident amid signs of his exit

UCLA’s big leap from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten came with not much expectation about their survival. Even though they wrapped up the season without a Bowl appearance in their bag, something kept Foster and co.’s boat of hope floating. For instance, their big wins against Hawaii, Nebraska, and Iowa. But that does not call for any mercy for Foster after they got crushed by New Mexico.

As on the Locked On UCLA podcast, New Mexico insider Sean Reider said, “I didn’t expect UCLA to win the Big 10. I didn’t even know if they would finish in the top six of the Big 10, but I understood kind of the optimism. But I did not think this was going to be a must-win game for UCLA. When New Mexico is treated as a must-win game, that’s usually not a good sign for any program.”

Now that he has picked up “hot seat” buzz, is Foster ready to hang up his boots? No way. During the post-game conference, his voice had that confidence as he claimed on being asked if he is the right fit for the program. “Most definitely. Because I can get these boys to play,” said Foster, even after carrying the 0-3 burden on his shoulders. But he has enough signs to believe that the UCLA fans are already turning their back on him. The biggest example of their frustration with the head coach?

The game day turnout. On September 12, Jacob Davis tweeted his opinion, attaching a screenshot of the Rose Bowl stadium attendance. He wrote, “I don’t think this type of on-field performance combined with fan support is sustainable moving forward at #UCLA. Pitiful showing so far through 2.5 games.” During the UCLA Bruins’ face-off against the Utah Utes, the announced attendance was just 35,502. But later, with further investigation, the final figure reported was 27,785. So, 62,000 seats went empty. Then DeShawn Foster’s program thought of dropping the ticket price to $8, hoping to pull a bigger crowd. But maybe the Bruins fans don’t want discounted seats. Maybe they want a new head coach.