COSTA MESA — Jerry Neuheisel was at his highest of highs.
Every UCLA football fan remembers the story. The backup quarterback, son of the former Bruins’ football coach, marched down the field against Texas and connected with Jordan Payton for a game-winning touchdown pass to win 20-17 in Jerry’s world.
Neuheisel, in 2014, after the game, said there was no need to be afraid. When Brett Hundley exited the game with an injured elbow, Neuheisel was ready. His entire career backing up Bruins quarterbacks led to this moment. And he delivered — ultimately lifted on his teammates’ shoulders after the game like a movie moment, one to savor and remember.
“They don’t write it much better than that,” the now-Bruins tight ends coach said after leading No. 12 UCLA to the comeback win over Texas.
What Neuheisel never shared was how crushing, how difficult the next part of his career was. UCLA football coach DeShaun Foster was already a graduate assistant on the sidelines in 2014.
Yet, Foster never knew about the anxiety, the pressure Neuheisel felt over reaching the same highs whenever that next opportunity to play in a game arose. Almost 11 years since the game, and eight years since they’ve coached on the same staff, Foster learned of Neuheisel’s struggles to follow up that success during this fall’s camp.
“You would have never thought that with Jerry with how he is as a person,” Foster said Saturday.
In Costa Mesa, during UCLA football’s fall training camp, Foster introduced Brotherhood meetings, in which coaches would explain their why. Every coach told their story and dove into their backgrounds and struggles to show that everyone has vulnerabilities and that football careers aren’t smooth sailing, Foster said.
The result? Deeper connection with Bruins and their teammates — as they would then split up into breakout groups and have players share stories with one another — and yes, tears.
“A lot of tears,” Foster said. “I just like that the players were being vulnerable and letting their guard down because they saw the coaches do it. I just think that really brought us together.”
Offensive line coach Andy Kwon told his story, one about needing to finish things, offensive lineman Julian Armella said.
For a player who joined the Bruins’ program from Florida State as a spring transfer, brotherhood meetings allowed Armella to get to know his coach — and teammates — better, he said.
“As a unit, you need to be able to know that nobody cares if you’re tired, nobody cares if you’re hurting, nobody cares if you have an injury that’s pushable,” Armella said he learned from Kwon.
He continued: “You have to have a mentality each and every single day that you know that there’s going to be somebody that lines [up] across from you that wants your position, that wants to take the food off your family’s plate to be able to go and provide for theirs.”
Foster said that some players — Croix Stewart, JuJu Walls, Jaivian Thomas, and Jalen Berger — shared personal stories that resonated with the Bruins head coach, but noted that it would ultimately be up to them to share publicly.
In breakout groups, an assistant coach would be matched with the position groups that are not their own. For example, defensive line coach Jethro Franklin could lead the offensive line breakout group. Matching the theme of Costa Mesa camp hotel rooms — matching offensive players with defensive — the goal was to get the full team meshing more fluidly. Kicker Mateen Bhaghani said he believes the brotherhood meetings had the intended impact.
“Coach Fos has done a great job in installing brotherhood in us,” Bhagnani said. “We have brotherhood meetings, like, damn near almost every night. So, we’re really just getting — compared to last year, like, it’s so much, the team is so much closer.”
For tight end Hudson Habermehl, the brotherhood meetings connected with the team’s 2025 season theme:
“We over me.”
And with less than two weeks until the home opener, it’s almost time to see if the “we” rises above the surface.