UCLA DB Reveals Tim Skipper’s Locker Room Habits After He Speaks Out on DeShaun Foster Exit

UCLA is undergoing loads of change. But it’s nothing new. The last three years have just been turbulent for the program. The Bruins wanted to enter the Big 10 with a bang, but so far, it has been anything but that. After a glaring 0-3 season with the defense hitting rock bottom, head coach DeShaun Foster and defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe parted ways with the program. However, Tim Skipper filled the shoes of the interim head coach, and the leader of the defense, Key Lawrence, talked about their new leader (for now).

The past week’s developments at UCLA have been a bittersweet affair. But the players understand the circumstances and have “taken it on the chin,” as Lawrence put it. College football is no stranger to head coaches getting fired, but it still sent a jolt across. However, as the gridiron philosophy goes, next man up! Skipper will lead the offense to yet another challenging Big 10 crunch, and Lawrence has nothing but a positive opinion of coach Skipper.

“Really just having enthusiasm with everything,” Key Lawrence said to the press about Tim Skipper’s locker room mindset. “He been preaching everything coach Foster has been saying, but it’s just a bigger emphasis because it’s crunch time now. Like it’s starting the Big 10 play.” Coming up next, they have Northwestern, but some real powerhouses remain on their schedule. The likes of Penn State, Ohio State, and the USC Trojans won’t make it easy for the team in transition. A team that is yet to win a game will also square off against Curt Cignetti’s Indiana Hoosiers and Matt Rhule’s Nebraska. Naturally, the fans are wondering whether the Bruins will even win a game this season.

Lawrence is one of the veteran defensive key pieces on the Bruins’ roster. In the 2025 season so far, he has tallied 19 tackles, 10 solo and nine assisted. It’s hard for Coach Tim Skipper to completely transform the roster in a week. Hence, the focus is on the fundamentals. “He [Skipper] wants everybody to understand their assignment, their alignment, and their keys; However, it looks like just being all in and just buying into whatever it looks like.”

Skipper boasts a 7-7 career head coaching record and an NFL pedigree. On the other hand, Coach Foster’s hiring seemed a rushed decision last year. Chip Kelly went to Columbus for the Buckeyes, and three days later, Foster signed on as the UCLA head coach.

With Nico Iamalava’s entry, the Rose Bowl peaked with unprecedented optimism. However, bleeding into the first three games, both offensive and defensive units had glaring holes in execution. A 108-43 record, with 30 penalties and giving up 1,293 offensive yards, dimmed the hopes. The defense allowed an average of 36 points per game and ranked 124th out of 136 teams. The Nico-led offense was no better, touching the bottom at No. 126. Key Lawrence added, “It might not be what you want, but just being a sacrificial lamb if that’s what it takes. Take it with a grain of salt. Just move on, and let’s just keep going.” 

To save the struggling defense, Skipper found his new defensive assistant in Kevin Coyle, and the roster is adjusting to the new development. The new mindset? “Just with this new start, we just think of the mindset of being 0-0 this week,” revealed Lawrence. Coyle has been in Westwood since Monday, and after some drills, Lawrence is pumped up. “If I have some juice and some guys may not, some days, especially in camp, why not pour it to somebody else so they can affect myself as well?”

However, Foster’s absence is a pulsing void for Key Lawrence.

Key Lawrence breaks the silence on DeShaun Foster’s exit

DeShaun Foster’s time at UCLA was marked by a promise that was never fulfilled. The talks of D.R.E. never materialized into actual results. However, his players loved him. “I totally believe in Coach Foster,” Nico Iamaleava had said following a 10-35 loss to New Mexico. “I’m definitely grateful for Coach Foster and everything he’s done for me,” said Key Lawrence to the press on Wednesday.

Foster became UCLA’s head coach in 2024 after checking off the Bruins’ laundry list. Being the UCLA running back coach from 2017-2023, a UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, and more. “DeShaun checks all of those boxes and then some,” AD Martin Jarmond had said. But he couldn’t revive the program. The heartbreaking loss to New Mexico was his lowest point during his time in Westwood. “Yeah, It is pretty low right now. I have been around this program for a long time, and it’s just unfortunate what is going on at this moment, just not executing,” he said after the loss.

For Lawrence, it’s nothing but respect for the former coach. “(And) grateful to be in the position I am. He (Foster) believed in me when I was in the portal at Kansas State,” he said. Foster plucked him straight from the transfer portal in 2024, after Lawrence parted ways with the Ole Miss Rebels. “It hardens me that he’s gone, but also just knowing that he would want us to keep moving forward and to keep doing and to prove him right on the decisions he made in the room,” he concluded. Foster’s firing created costly ripples as well; 21 commits from the Class of 2026 backed out of their pledges in the wake of the uncertainty that is looming large in Los Angeles.