Inside DeShaun Foster's Maniacal Approach to Discipline at Camp

Head coaching is mostly psychological. And UCLA Bruins coach DeShaun Foster is taking the psychology a step further as he prepares his players for the season in Costa Mesa.

Having camp in August in Southern California, Foster can afford to schedule practices in the middle of the day. The weather permits it, unlike somewhere in Arizona where it's already 105 degrees at 9 a.m.

However, Foster decided on multiple occasions to change the daily start time of camp through the first week. Why? Did it get hotter? Nope. According to defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe, that's just another tool in Foster's discipline toolbox.

"He's just testing the discipline, that's Coach Fos," Malloe said during Wednesday's media availability. "He wants to change things back and forth and see, 'How do we react?' And then, 'Can we stay focused on the task at hand?' He says practice is here, let's get back and stay focused. 'No, we're going to change it, we're going to practice in the morning,' let's stay focused here.

"That's just Coach Fos. He's really testing our team and how disciplined we can be with everything."

Discipline has been a key focus during fall camp. In fact, it's one of the sole reason's why Foster chose to have camp off-campus and in Costa Mesa. That and team connectivity.

Getting Closer Away From Home

The Bruins are practicing in Costa Mesa for the next two weeks because the Wasserman Facility is installing new grass, but Foster views it as a perfect way to bring the team closer together amid a ton of fresh faces on the field and in the staff.