The Arizona Wildcats’ newest assistant coach is a familiar face.
Robert Anae, who coached the UA’s revamped offensive line to a mostly positive performance in 2011, has been retained by new coach Rich Rodriguez. He is the fourth offensive assistant hired this week, joining offensive coordinator/running backs coach Calvin Magee, co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Rod Smith and wide receivers coach Tony Dews. All three worked with Rodriguez at West Virginia and Michigan before being hired by the UA this week.
Anae said tonight that he's "thrilled to be back and eager to join Coach Rodriguez and the rest of his staff in shaping a new direction for Arizona football."
"We have a great opportunity to be a fine team," he said. "I'm ready to bear down with Rich's staff."
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The 53-year-old Anae joined Arizona’s staff last spring after spending time as the offensive coordinator and inside receivers coach at BYU (2005-10); before that, he spent five years at Texas Tech. Anae is an 18-year coaching veteran who started his career as a graduate assistant at Hawaii in 1986; the Rainbows’ head coach at the time, Dick Tomey, moved on to Arizona after Anae’s first season.
Rodriguez was happy to retain Anae, who is so far the only former UA assistant to be retained.
"I'm happy to re-hire Robert to join this staff," Rodriguez said. "He has a wealth of knowledge and expertise to add to our offensive package and is a great fit for our program."
