LOS ANGELES — The UCLA football team left on Thursday, Oct. 31 to travel to Nebraska for its Saturday game. Players weren’t thrilled about missing out on Halloween, but it was just one sacrifice to make in exchange for a win.
“Anytime you want to be successful in life, you have to sacrifice something,” Foster told reporters on Tuesday. “The more you sacrifice, the more you’ll get back in football.”
The head coach said he missed his daughter’s first Halloween as a result of the travel involved to get to Nebraska. He added that defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe spent most of his time in the office when his family and son visited from Hawaii.
Sacrifice is just one part of Foster’s coaching philosophy, but it’s something that the Bruins are buying into as they look to extend their win streak to three games when they play Iowa at the Rose Bowl on Friday.
Players made another sacrifice when they had to come in for a full practice on Sunday due to the shortened practice week and quarterback Ethan Garbers spoke of the concept after the win over Nebraska.
The team seems to finally be on the same page offensively as a result.
“We’re all starting to understand the offense and get comfortable with it,” freshman receiver Kwazi Gilmer said. “Everyone’s playing football. Before it was like, we can’t mess this up, we can’t do that wrong. But now we keep on having fun. I think the best thing about football is when you have fun and effort and you give it your all, we make plays.”
UCLA has consistently started Garbers at quarterback except for one game when he was kept out due to injury, which may have contributed to the current comfort level of the offense and its increased production.
Eight different players have recorded a touchdown reception this season and although tight end Moliki Matavao has yet to score, he paces the team with 303 receiving yards and an average of 37.88 yards per game.
“(Garbers) is settled down and is staying upright and making plays,” Foster said. “It was mostly doing what I’ve been doing for guys around here. Just supporting them when they’re in certain situations. He’s a good quarterback, he’s a top 10 player in his league and he’s finally able to let everybody know how good he could be.”
Election Day at UCLA
Foster said the coaching staff made a point to address election day on Tuesday morning. They reminded players of the importance of voting and where they could vote on campus — the second floor of Ackerman Union and in two rooms inside De Neve Plaza.
“The majority of the guys had already voted,” Foster said. “I asked who’s already voted and half the hands went up. So it was pretty excited that these guys are actually taking opportunities to make change.”
Schwesinger semifinalist for Butkus Award
UCLA linebacker Carson Schwesinger is one of 15 semifinalists for the Butkus Award, which is annually given to college football’s best linebacker.
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“It’s just a credit to my parents, how they raised me and the values they instilled in me,” Schwesinger said in a press release.
“It’s a credit to the team we built and we’ve stayed strong, piecing together some wins. The whole defense, led by (defensive coordinator) Ikaika Malloe, has been able to all work together as one and make plays.”
The former walk-on and Oaks Christian School product is the Big Ten Conference leader in total tackles per game (10.6), double-digit tackle performances (six), solo tackles per game (6.8) and solo tackles (54) through eight games this season.
Finalists for the award will be announced on Nov. 25.