UCLA coach DeShaun Foster is more than an awkward moment at Big Ten Media Days

DeShaun Foster was nervous before his first carry in 1998 and he was nervous again Wednesday. But after an uncomfortable press conference, the UCLA head coach showed who he really is

By Brandon Marcello  & John Talty Jul 24, 2024 at 7:25 pm ET• 6 min read

INDIANAPOLIS -- DeShaun Foster's introduction to the Big Ten didn't go down exactly as expected Wednesday. The first-year UCLA head coach opened his appearance at the conference's media days with an awkward and sporadic opening statement filled with pauses, a start-and-stop cadence and nervous laughter. He hit on UCLA joining the Big Ten, and then rattled off the school's achievements (123 national championships), but then paused and seemingly had nowhere else to go. 

"I'm sure you guys don't know too much about UCLA, our football program, but we're in LA," he said, pausing six seconds before continuing. " It's us and USC. We, umm…"

Six seconds later, Foster forced a nervous laugh, which was followed by five more seconds of silence.

"I'm just basically excited, really," he said. "That's it. " 

Foster needed only 64 seconds to catch the attention of the Internet, and the Internet did what you might expect. Fans criticized and laughed at him as the video swept social media in a viral storm. The moment was everything that appeals to chronic social media scrollers: cringe heavily tinged with second-hand embarrassment.