Eaton transferred to University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1980, but did not see much action in his two seasons with the Bruins. In his senior season, he played just 42 total minutes, averaging 1.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11 games. Eaton was initially disappointed with his inability to play effectively as a Division I collegiate player. Wilt Chamberlain, who frequently attended UCLA practices after his retirement from the NBA, saw Eaton's frustration and, on one occasion, personally took him under a basket to explain that Eaton needed to focus on protecting the basket, getting rebounds, and passing the ball to quicker guards, rather than trying to compete with smaller, quicker players in scoring. Eaton has cited Chamberlain's advice as the turning point in his basketball career.