This post was updated Aug. 28 7:30 p.m.
As UCLA football gears up for its second year under coach DeShaun Foster and second season in the Big Ten, Daily Bruin Sports will preview the personnel of each of the Bruins’ position groups and predict their 2025 outlook prior to the season’s official start. Assistant Sports editor Grant Walters continues the series with a dive into the squad’s running backs.
Personnel
Irony is often used to amuse. It is a common party trick that reflects someone’s ability to deliver witty remarks.
But UCLA football’s rushing attack was the butt of the joke in 2024.
Former Bruin running back DeShaun Foster – who holds the fifth-most career rushing yards in program history with 3,049 – completed his first season at the helm with a 5-7 record. But his win total was not what left a paradoxical imprint.
UCLA’s tailbacks did not mirror Foster’s rushing success.
The rushing unit posted just 86.6 rushing yards per contest last season, which ranked dead last in the Big Ten. Former Bruin running back TJ Harden was the team’s sole rusher who eclipsed four-plus yards per carry.
The Inglewood local looked poised to break out in his first campaign as the Bruins’ go-to tailback after averaging 6.4 yards per attempt and racking up over 1,000 rushing yards across his first two collegiate seasons.
Yet, even Harden struggled to generate backfield production, boasting just one 100-plus yard performance on the ground, which came in UCLA’s 20-17 victory against Iowa last November. Harden didn’t just struggle with efficiency, though.
The now-SMU tailback only reached paydirt twice and barely eclipsed 500 rushing yards in 2024.
And Harden was not the only ball carrier who disappointed.
Redshirt senior Jalen Berger arrived in Westwood with the expectation that he would complement Harden’s prowess and solidify a formidable backfield duo.
But the former Michigan State running back recorded just 178 rushing yards in his debut season at UCLA, playing in only eight contests. Berger did not seem fully acclimated to the team’s offensive scheme, perhaps because he arrived at fall camp just a few weeks before the start of the 2024 campaign, leaving him less time to acclimate.
Despite failing to reach the endzone on his 48 ground attempts, Berger flashed his potential as a backfield receiving threat. The sixth-year player only caught 10 passes but reached the endzone twice on those opportunities.
Foster further restructured the tailback room heading into the 2025 season, hiring AJ Steward as UCLA’s running backs coach last January.
Steward completed a one-year stint leading the Kansas running backs, helping spearhead a ground attack that notched 211.4 rushing yards per game – 13th-most in the nation – prior to accepting the UCLA role. The Kansas alumnus also mentored Devin Neal, who rushed for 105.5 yards per contest and logged 16 touchdowns – both of which ranked 15th in the NCAA.
And Steward will helm a new-look running back arsenal in Westwood.
UCLA secured commitments from a pair of transfers – redshirt junior Anthony Woods and junior Jaivian Thomas.
Woods transferred to Utah from Idaho prior to the 2024 campaign but sustained an ACL injury that sidelined him for the entire season.
The 2023 First Team All-Big Sky selection excelled in his two-year stint with the Vandals, accruing 2,003 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns.
Thomas’ commitment came late in the portal window as one of the spring transfer acquisitions. The former California tailback averaged 6.3 yards per carry in 2024 and reached the endzone seven times.
The running back flashed his ability to tantalize opposing defenses with his 169-yard performance on the ground in California’s 31-10 triumph over San Diego State last September, a mark he reached on just 17 carries.
But most successful running back units need budding contributors to soak up veteran tutelage.
Freshman running back Karson Cox could earn considerable playing time in his debut season with the Bruins, despite his lack of collegiate experience.
The former four-star recruit embraces a balanced rushing approach that combines his speed and power from the backfield. Cox’s versatile speed may set him apart, since he boasts the agility to exploit open gaps in the trenches but also has the downfield acceleration to dash away from defensive backs. The Victorville, California, local often uses this swiftness to reach the flats, but he also has the power to charge through contact between the tackles.
Predictions
Dynamic and powerful running backs have defined the Big Ten throughout its existence.
But UCLA played in a Pac-12 environment that rewarded air raid approaches, with West Coast offensive schemes proliferating.
Therefore, the Bruins focused on bolstering their talent on the edges rather than relying on downfield rushing attacks.
But the 2025 rushing unit may alter the team’s trajectory, especially with the acquisition of a dual-threat quarterback.
Many rave about the passing ability of redshirt sophomore signal-caller Nico Iamaleava but fail to acknowledge his ability to impact the game with his legs. The former Tennessee quarterback rushed for 358 yards and three touchdowns last season.
Iamaleava’s versatility will likely allow Foster – along with first-year offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Tino Sunseri – to implement read-option backfield sets that mask the ball carrier’s identity, deceiving opposing defenses while spurring ground production and efficiency.
The Bruins may boast a committee approach at running back with Berger, Woods, Thomas and Cox all seeing action next to Iamaleava to open the season, given Harden’s departure and Steward’s implementation of an unfamiliar backfield system.
Berger has the most collegiate experience out of the tailback options, so he could earn the majority of the snaps during the non-conference slate.
Yet, Woods and Thomas seem poised to challenge Berger for the starting role, since both have impressive resumes from their stints at Idaho and California, respectively. Thomas has emerged as the favorite to eventually steal the top running back spot after impressing the coaching staff at fall camp
Cox may be the most intriguing tailback to watch heading into the 2025 campaign, since he may have the opportunity to showcase his raw skillset. The former four-star recruit could cement his status as a freshman phenom if he excels in early chances and thrusts himself up the depth chart. Still, the first-year running back faces an uphill battle.
The Bruins do not have the pure rushing talent or offensive line to compete with many of the Big Ten’s stalwart ground attacks, but the team’s tailback depth, along with the presence of a swift field general, will help spearhead a collective rushing performance in the middle or upper-middle end of the pack.
But UCLA may sew together a formidable tailback room for the future, especially if Cox blossoms across his four years of eligibility.
Foster could turn the joke on its head with the emergence of a nationally renowned running back program.
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