Ikaika Malloe is shown coaching for the UW against Penn State in the 2017 Fiesta Bowl. Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Pushed Out at UCLA and UW, Malloe Needs Stable Situation

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley | Last updated Sep 17, 2025 5:35 PM ET

Memo to Ikaika Malloe: you deserved better than what DeShaun Foster and Jimmy Lake brought you in terms of career advancement.

Foster, with Malloe as his UCLA defensive coordinator, lasted just 15 games as the Bruins head coach before he was fired this past Sunday with his team 0-3 this season.

Lake, who employed Malloe as his University of Washington defensive-line and edge-rusher coach, was let go after just 13 games as the Huskies football leader, cut loose in 2021 with his team 4-5.

Malloe, went from the UW's messy situation to UCLA's soon-to-be chaotic program and was put out on the street each time.

On Wednesday, three days following Foster's ouster, it got even worse when the California school fired Malloe rather than let him finish out the season with the rest of the coaching staff.

No doubt school administrators pointed to the Bruins' miserable No. 132 nationally in rush defense and 121st in scoring defense, and decided the defensive coordinator had to go right away, too, on the shirttails of Foster.

UCLA interim head coach Tim Skipper announced Wednesday that the Bruins have mutually parted ways with defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe.

"I want to personally thank him for all he's done. ... Great man right there."@UCLAOn3 https://t.co/fFRJFmA2k3 pic.twitter.com/KsGUZiCUAj
— Matt Moreno (@MattRMoreno) September 17, 2025

It wasn't all that long ago that Malloe was hailed as a UCLA savior. He brought former UW edge rusher Laiatu Latu with him to the Bruins where Latu bounced back from a serious neck injury that ended his career in Seattle to become a first-team All-America selection and a first-round NFL draft pick.

As a former UW safety and linebacker himself, Malloe always has been one of those coaches who was well liked by his players and able to relate to them.

Malloe had a fairly stable situation at the UW for four seasons with coach Chris Petersen until the latter unexpectedly retired immediately following the 2019 season. Lake was promoted, avoiding a lengthy coaching search.

Malloe no doubt thought he and Lake would work together more than a COVID-interrupted season shortened to four games and two-thirds of another season.

On the rebound, he next went to work at UCLA for Chip Kelly, unaware Kelly was growing increasingly restless on the job and wasn't long for Los Angeles, and eventually would leave to become Ohio State's offensive coordinator two years later.

Part of the problem for Malloe was he signed on with a pair of former assistant coaches who were promoted in a hurry, but couldn't handle the job and he and everyone else paid for it.

This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: