Foster Impressed by This Iamaleava Trait During Loss

However, his passing left a lot to be desired. He was often over- and underthrowing wide-open receivers while they were in stride. His lone interception came when he missed the hands of wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer, and then fell right into the waiting hands of a Utah linebacker.

Bruins coach DeShaun Foster still has faith in his quarterback. In an appearance on the Bruin Insider Show, co-hosted by Nick Koop and Wayne Cook, he talked about what he saw in Iamaleava amidst all the pressure and scrambling he had to endure.

"This is an elite quarterback," Foster said. "He can do a lot. He can throw the ball, he can run the ball, he leads the guys, he's tough. He didn't slide one time, I would've preferred that a little bit. It just shows you the type of character that he has and he's a football player.

"We'll work on that part in this next phase. But the only thing I can say is that we're excited for this next opportunity. You will see that we're ready for it."

Iamaleava Harboring Blame For Brutal UCLA Loss

As a quarterback and leader of a team, it's not to blame yourself following a loss and performance like the one Iamaleava had against Utah.

But Foster came to his quarterback's defense, assuring him that it wasn't all on his shoulders.

"He's just a gamer," Foster said on how he's seen Iamaleava respond to his brutal performance against the Utes. "Nico's somebody that, as soon as he looked at me, he's like, 'It's on me,' and I had to let him know that it's not one-on-11. That's just the kind of competitor he is. He's going to take full responsibility and full blame for everything.

"But we've got to let him know that, 'You do have people here that are playing with you.' It's the ultimate team game and everybody has to do their part to get the victory."