On Sunday, after a horrific 0-3 start for UCLA, they fired Head Coach DeShaun Foster. Foster went 5-7 last year, but they looked worse this season. On Saturday, they got beaten 35-10 by New Mexico in the mostly empty Rose Bowl Stadium. They were outscored 108 to 43 in the 1st 3 games as they looked like an awful football team. Now they are facing possibly a winless season the rest of the way, so UCLA decided to pull the plug and fire Foster.
Matt Campbell, Head Coach, Iowa State
This would be my 1st phone call. Matt Campbell has been a hugely successful head coach at Iowa State. He is 68-51 while at Iowa State, a program that has struggled for decades before he arrived. He is coming off an 11-win team last year and is 4-0 this season. He has built a great culture at Iowa State as he has been able to sustain a successful program. He has also done a nice job of developing quarterbacks. The word on the street was that if Lincoln Riley turned down USC, Campbell would have gotten the job instead. He would be a great hire for UCLA.
In 2020, Matt Campbell led Iowa State to its best season ever, finishing No. 9 in the nation. Two years later, ISU went 4-8. The program’s culture had slipped. How’d ISU get it back to win a program best 11 games last year? The answer starts with this guy. (The little one.) pic.twitter.com/EU10uFRea9
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) September 4, 2025
D'Anton Lynn, Defensive Coordinator, USC
D’Anton Lynn was at UCLA two years ago as a defensive coordinator, and he did a great job. He continued his success at USC as well as the defensive coordinator. He would be a young (35 years) fresh face who could energize the program. The only concern is that he has no head coaching experience.
D’Anton Lynn would probably be my No. 1 pick if I were the UCLA Athletic Director. Otherwise I’d choose a quarterback coach in the NFL or one of the top coaches in the FCS.
— Dane Miller (@DaneMiller_SWS) September 14, 2025
Tosh Lupoi, Defensive Coordinator, Oregon
Tosh Lupoi is another talented defensive coordinator who has done a good job in Oregon. He is also known as a great recruiter, and he is a fresh face for the program to help them break through on the recruiting circuit. Lupoi could be an exciting candidate as he is known as a dynamic personality. Like Lynn, he has no head coaching experience, which could be a detriment for a program that needs a ton of help.
Dan Mullen, Head Coach, UNLV
Dan Mullen is known as a program builder who did a good job at Mississippi State, where he went 69-46. He started hot at Florida by winning 10 and 11 games in his 1st two seasons while in Gainesville. It did go sideways after that when he won 8 games and then 5 games the following year, but Mullen seems energized and has done a nice job so far this year at UNLC, starting 3-0, including beating UCLA. He is a good offensive mind who knows how to build a program.
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