National Signing Day is a month away. The Arizona Wildcats are scheduled to start spring practice two days later. So Rich Rodriguez needs to act fast to fill the staff openings created Monday when he parted ways with defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Jeff Casteel and defensive line coach Bill Kirelawich.
There’s no doubt Rodriguez will beat those deadlines. From the way he runs his offense to his preferred setup for team meals (buffet-style), Rodriguez is all about speed and efficiency. It’s how he rolls.
The direction he’s leaning to restructure his defensive staff is less clear at this point. What follows is a list of eight possible candidates for the two openings.
That number – two – is important to keep in mind. As things currently stand, that’s how many slots Arizona has available per NCAA rules, which limit FBS programs to nine full-time assistants. But the Wildcats essentially have three jobs to fill: defensive coordinator, defensive line coach and linebackers coach.
People are also reading…
So one of two things will have to happen: (1) One of the new guys will have to coach a position in addition to being defensive coordinator; or (2) the current staff will have to be restructured further. (Example: Safeties coach Matt Caponi coaches linebackers, while new cornerbacks coach Jahmile Addae coaches the entire secondary.)
Anyway, on to the candidates, listed in alphabetical order:
VINCE AMEY
The connection: Currently serves as a football analyst for Arizona after three years with the strength and conditioning staff
The skinny: Rodriguez promoted from within in elevating Addae and could do the same with Amey, who’d be a candidate for the D-line job. Amey played defensive tackle at Arizona State and coached at Chaparral High in Phoenix, so he’d be an asset in recruiting there. He’s also familiar with the UA’s players, and vice versa.
CHUCK CECIL
The connection: Cecil starred at Arizona as a defensive back in the 1980s, earning Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year honors in ’87.
The skinny: Cecil is currently a senior defensive assistant with the St. Louis Rams after serving as their secondary coach from 2012-14. Cecil spent the previous 10 years with the Tennessee Titans, including two seasons as defensive coordinator. He is clearly qualified to be Arizona’s DC, and I’m told he’d be interested in returning to the UA in the right situation. Whether there’s mutual interest is the question.
PETER HANSEN
The connection: Hansen played football for the Wildcats from 1998-2001, mainly excelling on special teams, and was a member of the basketball team as well.
The skinny: Hansen is the inside linebackers coach at Stanford, where he tutored Tucson’s Blake Martinez the past two seasons. Hansen also spent three seasons as a defensive assistant with the San Francisco 49ers under Vic Fangio. Coaching Arizona’s linebackers and/or serving as defensive coordinator would represent a step up on the career ladder. Worth noting, though: Hansen is a native of Palo Alto.
RICKY HUNLEY
The connection: Hunley was an All-America linebacker at Arizona in the early 1980s and is considered one of the best players in program history.
The skinny: Hunley just finished his second season as the defensive line coach at Memphis. But Memphis just changed head coaches, and Hunley has not been retained. We’re told he’d be very interested in coaching the D-line at his alma mater. He obviously could coach linebackers as well, having played the position and having served as the Cincinnati Bengals’ LB coach from 2003-07.
OSIA LEWIS
The connection: Lewis is from Tucson and graduated from Tucson High.
The skinny: Lewis has spent the past five years as the defensive line coach at San Diego State, which ranks fifth in the nation in total defense this season. Lewis has experience as a college defensive coordinator, having served as New Mexico’s DC from 2003-07 and UTEP’s from 2008-09. Lewis also played and coached at Oregon State. Like Hunley, we’re told Lewis is fond of the idea of coming home. Worth noting: According to USA Today’s database, Lewis made $164,228 in 2015, about $100,000 less than Kirelawich.
CLANCY PENDERGAST
The connection: Pendergast is a UA graduate.
The skinny: Pendergast spent this past season coaching linebackers for the San Francisco 49ers, who just fired head coach Jim Tomsula. So staff changes are coming. Pendergast was USC’s defensive coordinator in 2013 after spending the previous three seasons in that capacity at Cal. Before that, he was the DC for the Kansas City Chiefs and Arizona Cardinals. No one on this list has a better résumé. But it’s unclear whether Pendergast wants to return to college. And if reports are true that USC wants to rehire him, it’s unlikely the UA could win a bidding war with deep-pocketed ’SC.
JOE SALAVE’A
The connection: Salave’a was an all-conference defensive tackle, team MVP and team captain for Arizona from 1994-97 and was the school’s DL coach in 2011.
The skinny: Salave’a has spent the past four seasons as the defensive line coach for Washington State. His connections to Arizona run deep, as do his ties to his native American Samoa, a hotbed of football talent. Here’s the problem: Salave’a last month signed a two-year contract extension with WSU. It doesn’t seem likely that he’d leave after doing that, although stranger things have happened in the wacky world of coaching.
RON WEST
The connection: West coached at Clemson from 1999-2008, overlapping with Rodriguez’s two-year stint there as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.
The skinny: This one comes courtesy of our colleagues at Wildcat Authority. Rodriguez obviously knows West, who most recently served as North Carolina’s co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach (2013-14). He spent the 2012 season as the co-DC at Arizona State, which ranked in the top five nationally that year in tackles for losses, sacks and interceptions. He is credited with implementing the “Devil” linebacker position at ASU, so if Rodriguez wants to keep the 3-3-5, West could be a fit.
