Jay'Vion Cole 'has emerged as a great leader' for Arizona football

In Arizona's 52-31 win over West Virginia in Morgantown nearly two weeks ago, the Mountaineers were looking to cash in just before halftime and score a game-tying touchdown — and capture momentum and get the ball to start the second half. 

Cole, crashing down to stop a run at the line of scrimmage and prevent West Virginia from scoring, punched out the football from running back Cam Cook. Arizona linebacker Taye Brown recovered the fumble on the UA 3-yard line, halting West Virginia's seven-play, 72-yard drive that almost tied the game.

"…It was a big play for us and the defense at the time," Cole said.

Cole is constantly looking to force takeaways on every play.

"I'm thinking ball all the time," he said. "The biggest thing is to get the ball carrier on the ground. My first thought was to go for the tackle, but then I felt the ball loose, went for the ball and made a play." 

Arizona head coach Brent Brennan, who also coached Cole at San Jose State, said the cornerback and Bay Area native "has good awareness and that's one of the things we like about him."

"The moments are never too big for him and he has really great anticipation and timing," Brennan said. "That's just who he is. ... He's always been around the football." 

As a fifth-year senior, Cole is one of Arizona's top defensive backs this season. Cole is Arizona's highest-rated defensive player (81.9) and has the best coverage grade (75.9) for UA defensive backs (with a minimum of 100 snaps), according to Pro Football Focus. Cole has the most stops (7) behind the line of scrimmage among UA defensive backs and has the best rushing defense grade (90.7) on PFF.

"He's playing great football, isn't he? Wow," Brennan said. "He has always been a confident kid. That part of it was impressive and showed up right away." 

Arizona defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales said Cole is "one of the three best corners in FBS right now."

"I think J-Cole is playing at an elite level and I still think he's the best corner in the Big 12," Gonzales added. "We get to prove it over the second half of the season. He's been unbelievable in the run game and pass game.

"He's been elusive and we've been able to play him inside at safety when we want to put our best cover pieces out there." 

Cole has 13 combined snaps at free safety and slot cornerback this season, according to PFF. Cole shifted to safety in the second half of Arizona's loss to SMU in the Holiday Bowl last season; he was one of four cornerbacks in Arizona's secondary that night. 

Even though Cole is considered Arizona's top cornerback, he's been targeted the most this season. Cole has been targeted 30 times this season. The second-most targeted Arizona defensive backs are cornerback Tyrese Boss, Lee Molette III and Malcolm Hartzog, who each have 18 targets this season. 

Cole has only allowed 14 receptions on 30 targets (46.7%) and is the only UA starting defensive back with a sub-50% reception rate, per PFF.

"That's what I'm out there for, is to win my one-on-one," Cole said. "My biggest thing out there is to not fall asleep even when they're not throwing the ball at me. When the opportunity presents itself, just make a play on the ball." 

Cole is also the only starter in Arizona's defensive secondary that hasn't allowed a reception of longer than 20 yards. Cole only has one missed tackle in coverage this season. 

"What that young man has done is unbelievable," Gonzales said. "He shows up every single day like a professional and I'm super glad he's on our team. Keep throwing at him, please, he'll continue to make you pay." 

Cole's experience as a college football player and accrued reps have been critical to his personal success. 

"There's a confidence that he's playing with because he has a bunch of experience and a bunch of reps stacked behind him," Brennan said of Cole. 

Brennan and his staff always saw that potential in Cole when he was a standout cornerback opposite former Arizona cornerback and Seattle Seahawks rookie Michael Dansby at McClymonds High School in Oakland, California — the alma mater of NBA legend Bill Russell and Pro Baseball Hall of Famer Frank Robinson.

Cole was named the Oakland Athletic League (OAL) Player of the Year as a standout wide receiver and defensive back in 2021, 18 years after running back Marshawn Lynch won the award. 

"There have been so many good players that have come through there," Brennan said of the OAL. 

McClymonds has been a football program on Brennan's radar since former UA running backs coach Alonzo Carter, who's now the head coach at Sacramento State, was the head coach of the Oakland high school from 1993-2006. 

When Brennan examined Cole's highlights, he displayed a "unique maturity and anticipation for someone who was young," said the UA head coach. 

Cole started his college football journey at Cal Poly in 2022, then joined Brennan and cornerbacks coach Chip Viney at San Jose State the following season. Cole had 68 career tackles, 14 pass deflections, five interceptions and a touchdown at SJSU. After Brennan left for Arizona in 2024, Cole transferred to Texas for a season. 

Cole, who seldom played at Texas, reunited with Brennan and Viney at Arizona and tied for the second-most interceptions (4) in the Big 12 last season. Cole played an essential role in Arizona having one of the best passing defenses in college football last season and leading the Big 12 in takeaways.  

This past summer, Cole credited his mental journey for his play improving on the field. Cole started to speak to a therapist at C.A.T.S. Clinical and Sport Psychology weekly. Going to therapy "has helped me grow mentally, especially coming here," Cole said in July. 

"I was so against (therapy)," Cole said. "I've talked about it with so many people. I was against it. Talking to someone and getting intimate, I guess, with them was something I was against. My therapist, I love her dearly. I can talk to her about anything. It helps me become a better player and get stuff off my chest. Holding all of that in makes everything bad, so it was good to get stuff off my chest."

Less than a week after Cole started seeing a therapist, the cornerback had a pick-six in Arizona's win over Weber State.

Over a year since going to therapy, "I feel like I'm in a great spot mentally," Cole said.

"I think it played a part going into this year and helps me stay leveled as far as my mentality as a ball player," he said. "It's been my biggest resource for me." 

Next in line for mental and emotional support for Cole is Viney, who recruited Cole and has now coached the cornerback for three seasons. Arizona is the only school Cole has played at for more than a season and Viney has been the most consistent voice in Cole's college football journey. 

"How hasn't he (helped me)?" Cole said. "He's crazy. It's a love-hate relationship, for sure. But he's my mental support. Outside of my therapist, I can go to him for anything mentally.

"He knows my goals and I know his goals as a coach. Him knowing my goals and knowing what we want to achieve, he pushes me to that standard no matter what it takes, whether it's getting up early or being here late at night. His motivation and my motivation together, I feel like it's unstoppable."

Cole has played the third-most defensive snaps (307) this season behind Hartzog (382) and Brown (347). After losing five defensive backs to the NFL, including a program-record four draft picks, the Wildcats have the seventh-best passing defense in the Big 12 and the Wildcats are tied with TCU for the best red-zone defense. 

"I think we've been decent, but there's a standard that I don't think we've upheld, honestly," Cole said. "I think we've done a great job keeping them out of the end zone so far. Besides Week 2 (against BYU), we've done a pretty good job of keeping them out of the end zone. For where we want to be, we have a long way to go, but we're doing decent so far."

Hartzog and Cole have been the two most consistent defensive backs for the Wildcats this season. Boss and Dwight Bootle have exchanged reps at the other cornerback spot, while Molette beat out Gavin Hunter for Arizona's starting strong safety position, with Cam Chapa recently taking over for Quinn Olson at free safety.

Cole is "an awesome player and he has emerged as a great leader for us," Brennan said.

"He has a really good voice," Brennan said. "You don't hear it all the time, but when he talks, it's impactful. It's been fun to be on this journey with him and to see it in two different places.

"For him to continue to improve and work and grow and achieve, it's awesome."