UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster aims to make families of recruits a priority

The UCLA spring football camp dates announced this week have two outliers.

The most obvious is the April 27 spring game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, one of the 14 practices open to the public and the only one that will take place away from the on-campus Wasserman Football Center.

It will feature “competitive periods” to give the look of a game, mixed with the typical practice schedule, first-year Bruins head coach DeShaun Foster said.

“That’s huge,” Foster said Friday after the program’s NFL Pro Day. “We gotta have a lot of alumni, players and fans to come together and really support. I just wanted to bring it back to how it was when I played. That’s it. We had a lot of fan engagement. We used to do autograph signings with the fans. Let’s just give people something to want to be a part of.”

Foster also wanted to give recruits and their parents an event of their own to attend more easily. UCLA’s ninth practice has been dubbed “Friday Night Lights,” a 6 p.m. start on April 19 that breaks away from the rest of the 8:30 a.m. starts for on-campus practices.

Foster said the idea is one he brought back from former head coach Jim Mora’s tenure. Foster started his coaching career in 2012 as a volunteer assistant on Mora’s staff and the following year he was a graduate assistant. In 2015, Foster handled the program’s high school relations.

“We practice so early, it’s hard for recruits to get here,” Foster said. “We got guys missing school and stuff, so if I hit up ‘Friday Night Lights’ everybody can get here after school, your parents can bring you.

“I need to get more parents here, too. You know, 7-on-7 coaches can bring guys…but I want to meet parents, too, so that helps us get engaged with the parents.”

Before UCLA officially announced its spring camp dates Thursday, the staff was already spreading the word to recruits.

At the Rivals Camp Series last weekend at East L.A. College, Madden Williams, a 2026 receiver from Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco who has been heavily pursued by the Bruins, already had the event circled.

“We’re planning on going up there for their ‘Friday Night Lights’ thing during spring,” Williams told Bruin Blitz on March 10. “So we’re planning on going up there to watch that and to meet the coaches in person.”

Foster said he and the coaches are “just scratching the surface” with their new, more aggressive approach to recruiting.

The Bruins landed a 2025 commitment from cornerback Kuron Jabari Jr., the first pledge since Foster took over last month, and the program’s first 2026 commitment from wide receiver Jonah Smith just three days later.

Coaches are not allowed to comment on unsigned recruits, per NCAA rules, but Foster generally noted that it matters when “kids want to be here.”

“Just make it welcoming,” Foster said. “Let them come in and see that they want to be a part of this program and just show them what UCLA has to offer. I’m not doing anything different, I’m just showing them what we have. They like what we’re presenting and they want to jump in.”

Much of the Bruins’ buzz has been generated by Foster’s assistant coaching hires, particularly the NFL experience of offensive coordinator/associate head coach Eric Bieniemy, quarterbacks coach Ted White, offensive line coach Juan Castillo and receivers coach Erik Frazier.

In addition, prospective defensive linemen have taken note of defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe’s work the past two seasons with star edge rusher and Lombardi award winner Laiatu Latu, a projected first-round NFL draft pick this spring.

“If that’s your dream, then this should be your dream school,” Foster said.