Indiana Quarterback Coach Tino Sunseri before the start of the Indiana versus Michigan football game at Memorial Stadium on Friday, Nov. 9, 2024. Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Tino Sunseri is Bringing a New Culture to UCLA Football

Originally posted on UCLA Bruins on SI | By Idan Oz | Last updated Aug 3, 2025 7:00 AM ET

We are 3 days into UCLA's Fall Camp and so far it's been looking like a huge success. Coaches are implementing new schemes, players are getting up to speed, but the most important thing is that everyone is bonding and working cohesively.

Hosting practices off-campus in Costa Mesa has allowed players from both sides of the ball to get more acquainted with each other as they prepare for their first game against Utah at the end of the month. This also gives the guys time to get acclimated to new coaching styles and personalities.

One of the biggest moves that UCLA made on its staff was the hiring of former Indiana co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Tino Sunseri. He, along with 2nd-year head coach DeShaun Foster, is adopting a new culture for UCLA Football.

Sunseri has made it clear from the beginning that he's here for the players and to make sure that everyone understands there's "no i in team".

"It's about being able to make sure that you're giving those guys information," Sunseri told the media after UCLA's practice. "It's about being able to have it to where, as much as they're self-assessing themselves each day, you're self-assessing yourself as a coach. 'Did I articulate this the right way? Is he receiving the information?' It's not about what I know, it's what he [the players] knows and what he can apply. And so, the biggest thing is making sure that you don't overload the computer, and it shuts down. You want to make sure that you're consistently being able to give it data, that he can be able to give you the information that you need when you need it."

He already has a plan in place for how he wants to run this offense: balance. Sunseri wants "everything."

"You gotta be able to make sure that it's conducive to your players," Sunseri said when asked about the type of offense he's bringing to UCLA. "So our system adjusts to what our players can do; our players don't have to adjust to our system...Every single day to us is being able to make sure that our guys are understanding and putting them in the best scenarios to be able to have success."

This article first appeared on UCLA Bruins on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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