Arizona Football: Looking at Potential Replacements for Don Brown

With Arizona Football needing to replace Defensive Coordinator Don Brown, we look at some potential candidates for the Wildcats. 

Well, it is a day that came quicker than I’m sure many had hoped or anticipated as Arizona Football Defensive Coordinator Don Brown is moving on from the Wildcats after spending just one season in Tucson.

Leaving Arizona to become the next head coach at UMass, his departure leaves a big hole for Jedd Fisch and the Wildcats to replace him, and it comes with less-than-impeccable timing too as there is just one week left on the season.

Nonetheless, Arizona is already in search of a new defensive coordinator. And while there may be a few names and rumors out there for the Wildcats, it is still very early in the hiring process.

So, with a few candidate names popping up, we take a comprehensive look at some of the early, potential candidates that we could take over for Brown (FYI – this list is largely opinionated and is in no way an official list for Arizona). With that said, here we go…

Joe Salave’a

Age: 46
Position: Associate Head Coach/Defensive Line Coach/Co-Defensive Coordinator at Oregon
Alma Mater: Arizona

Resume:

• Arizona -1994-97
• Drafted by the Tennessee Oilers/Titans in 1998
• Oilers/Titans – 1998–01
• Baltimore Ravens – 2003
• San Diego Chargers – 2003
• Washington Redskins – 2004–06
• San Jose State (Defensive Line Coach) – 2008–09
• Arizona (Defensive Line Coach) – 2011
• Washington State (AHC/DL) – 2012-16
• Oregon (AHC/DL/Co-DC) – 2017–Present

Pros:

• He’s a young, steadily rising coach in the College Football ranks, and most likely, he is going to be hungry and ready for the opportunity to prove himself with a potential step up at Arizona.
• He has Arizona ties being a former player here himself, so he understands the history, culture, and tradition at Arizona, which to me is a fairly important element in this hire here since Arizona needs a longer-term candidate as DC.
• He’s also a strong recruiter. There’s no doubt that the Wildcats have needed help desperately in the recruiting department, having signed classes ranked towards the bottom in the conference for about the past 10 years. If he can bring just a little bit of that success from Oregon to Arizona, it is going to raise the level of play and talent on defense immensely.
• Lastly, he was a tough-nosed player at Arizona, and that seems to translate into his coaching style. At Washington State, he seemed to put together some solid Defensive Lines, and at Oregon, it is more of the same as well, which could be huge at Arizona should he come.

Cons:

• Is he ready to make the next jump? It has been rumored that Joe doesn’t call his own plays at Oregon, and hasn’t had the opportunity to do so in the past either. Would that be too much for him at Arizona?
• Does Arizona have the money and prowess to pull him from Oregon?
• Also, could he potentially be holding out to be a head coach somewhere eventually?

Tosh Lupoi

Age: 40
Position: Defensive Line Coach with Jacksonville Jaguars
Alma Mater: Cal 

Resume:

• Cal – 2000-05
• Cal (Defensive Line Coach) – 2008-11
• Washington (Defensive Line Coach) – 2012-13
• Alabama (Defensive Analyst) – 2014-15
• Alabama (Outside Linebackers Coach) – 2016
• Alabama (Co-Defensive Coordinator & Outside Linebackers Coach) – 2017-18
• Cleveland Browns (Defensive Line Coach) – 2019
• Atlanta Falcons (Defensive Line Coach & Run Game Coordinator) – 2020
• Jacksonville Jaguars (Defensive Line Coach) – 2021

Pros:

• He is an up-and-coming coach who has risen through the ranks and may finally be ready to take on an even bigger role with the Wildcats.
• He was a strong recruiter when he was in college, which is something that the Wildcats need continued focus on.
• He has a reputation of being a strong defensive-minded coach, having put together some good units at just about every coaching stop he’s been at.
• Lastly, he has a championship pedigree, having won two national titles with the Crimson Tide (2015 and 2017).

Cons:

• Having spent the last three seasons in the NFL, would Arizona be able to entice Lupoi enough to leave the NFL and rejoin the college ranks?
• I can imagine that being in the NFL, Lupoi has a nice paycheck. So would Arizona be able to give Tosh enough money to keep him happy?
• With Tosh steadily climbing the coaching ranks, what would be his commitment to staying with the Wildcats long-term? Arizona badly needs stability, and will always have to combat other poaching programs, so that has to be a concern with a bigger name like Tosh.

Jimmy Lake

Age: 44
Position: Former Head Coach with the Washington Huskies
Alma Mater: Eastern Washington

Resume:

• Eastern Washington – 1995-98
• Eastern Washington (Graduate Assistant) – 1999
• Eastern Washington (DB Coach) – 2000-03
• Washington (DB Coach) – 2004
• Montana State (DB Coach) – 2005
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Assistant DB Coach) – 2006-07
• Detroit Lions (DB Coach) – 2008
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers (DB Coach) – 2010-11
• Boise State (DB Coach/Passing Game Coordinator) – 2012-13
• Washington (DB Coach) – 2014-15
• Washington (Co-Defensive Coordinator/DB Coach) – 2016-17
• Washington (Defensive Coordinator) – 2018-19
• Washington (Head Coach) – 2020-21

Pros:

• Fresh off of being let go at Washington, Jimmy is nonetheless a proven defensive coordinator with a ton of skill and defensive coaching prowess.
• He knows the Pac-12 well and has deep recruiting ties in the state of Arizona as well as the Pacific Northwest which could pay huge dividends for the Wildcats.
• He has a lot of coaching experience that extends into college and professional levels, and over that time, he has earned a reputation of being a top-notch defensive coach, which is exactly what Arizona needs.

Cons:

• He is currently a bit “toxic” in the world of college football, as Lake was just essentially fired over physically pushing a player just a couple of weeks ago.
• He could be a bit more on the expensive side, which could be a bit challenging since Arizona can’t compete with some of the bigger programs when it comes to money.
• Additionally, Arizona is going to always have to worry about other teams and programs poaching the coaching staff. Arizona needs a long-term solution at defensive coordinator, and there is a concern that Lake may not be here too long, especially if a bigger program comes along.

Chris Partridge

Age: 41
Position: Co-Defensive Coordinator and Safeties Coach at Ole Miss
Alma Mater: Lafayette College 

Resume:

• Paramus Catholic HS (Associate Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator/ WR Coach) – 2003-04
• Lafayette (DB and Special Teams Coach) – 2005
• The Citadel (Defensive Line and Special Teams Coach) –2006-07
• Paramus Catholic HS (Head Coach) – 2010-14
• Michigan (Director of Player Personnel) – 2015
• Michigan (Special Teams and Linebackers Coach) – 2016-17
• Michigan (Special Teams and Safeties Coach) – 2018-19
• Ole Miss (Co-Defensive Coordinator and Safeties Coach) – 2020-Present

Pros:

• A coach that is steadily rising the ranks, he is becoming a hot name in college football and given his success at Ole Miss and other stops, and this seems like a no-brainer as to why the Wildcats would consider.
• He has ties to Fisch already, as there was some overlap there while they were on staff at Michigan, so the relationship already could be huge.
• Beyond that, this would be a step up in the sense that he would have a bigger role with the Wildcats than what he has at Ole Miss.

Cons:

• He’s a bit on the younger side, and even though he’s been climbing the ranks, is he ready to take on a role at Arizona where he is going to have to revamp and rebuild this defense?
• Being in the SEC means more money typically, so do the Wildcats have enough pull to draw Chris away from the premier football conference in the country?
• Lastly, with him becoming a hot commodity in college football, would Chris be a long-term option for Arizona? As previously covered, the Wildcats need stability here, and if he were to do well, other schools would come calling.

DeWayne Walker

Age: 60
Position: Cornerbacks Coach at Arizona
Alma Mater: Minnesota

Resume:

• Minnesota – 1980-81
• Edmonton Eskimos – 1982
• Oakland Invaders – 1984
• Arizona Outlaws – 1985
• Mt. SAC (DB Coach) – 1988-91
• Mt. SAC (Defensive Coordinator) – 1992
• Utah State (Assistant Coach) – 1993
• BYU (Cornerbacks Coach) – 1994
• Oklahoma State (Defensive Coordinator) – 1995
• Cal (DB Coach) – 1996-97
• New England Patriots (DB Coach) – 1998-00
• USC (DB Coach) – 2001
• New York Giants (DB Coach) – 2002-03
• Washington Redskins (DB Coach) – 2004-05
• UCLA (Defensive Coordinator) – 2006-08
• New Mexico State (Head Coach) – 2009-12
• Jacksonville Jaguars (DB Coach) – 2013-16
• Cleveland Browns (DB Coach) – 2017-19
• Arizona (Cornerbacks Coach) – 2021-Present

Pros:

• Being an “in-house hire”, he would provide consistency and stability with a defense that is in desperate need of it.
• Naming him defensive coordinator

Cons:

• While his hire would provide consistency, it wouldn’t inspire the fan base, and in some ways would feel like a fallback option because the Wildcats couldn’t or didn’t want to try and find any other options.
• DeWayne hasn’t been a Defensive Coordinator in a while, and at 60, would he be ready to take on a massive project like rebuilding Arizona’s defense?