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10 New College Football Defensive Coordinators Under Most Pressure
With all the new coaching changes, which new defensive coordinators are going to be under the most pressure? They're the ones expected to make the new head coaches look great.
January 21, 2016
With all the new coaching changes, which new defensive coordinators are going to be under the most pressure? They’re the ones expected to make the new head coaches look great.
E-mail Rich Cirminiello | Follow me … @RichCirminiello
As the old saying goes, you can’t fire the team. You can, however, make widespread staff changes to change a program’s course. It happens at the end of every fall, and not just with the men in charge.
Somewhat lost in all of the hoopla surrounding Georgia’s hiring of Kirby Smart and Justin Fuente’s move from Memphis to Virginia Tech are the arrivals of a new class of defensive coordinators from coast-to-coast sharing a familiar goal—get out of the gate quickly and be an instigator of change.
Each promoted coach has been tasked with adjusting to new personnel and responsibilities, and improving a challenging situation. Their predecessors have been dismissed, not retained, or promoted to another job. For the new coordinators, there’s a big opportunity to bolster their resume and make the new boss look positively brilliant. Miss the mark, though, and there’ll be no place to hide on these high-profile campuses.
Top 10 New Defensive Coordinators Under Pressure
10. Manny Diaz, Miami
Last Gig: Coordinator at Mississippi State
He’s here because … head coach Mark Richt is going to concentrate on coaching the Cane offense. And he wanted someone he could trust overseeing his D. Despite being only 41, Diaz is already a well-traveled coordinator, with stops at Middle Tennessee, Texas, Louisiana Tech and Mississippi State. Yes, his unit’s results have been mixed. But his aggressive approach will be well-received by the Canes, and as a native son of the city he’ll be doubly effective when hitting the recruiting trail.
9. Bob Shoop, Tennessee
Last Gig: Coordinator at Penn State
He’s here because … defensive success has followed him wherever he’s coached. And Butch Jones was seeking a new direction after his Vols squandered three big leads in 2015. It’s been a very good past decade for Shoop, who’s helped to elevate the defenses at William & Mary, Vanderbilt and most recently Penn State. There’s nothing particularly exotic about his approach, but improved results are essentially built-in. Shoop’s two defenses in Happy Valley were solid, and it didn’t hurt that he’s already coached in the SEC East and knows the state of Tennessee.
8. Clancy Pendergast, USC
Last Gig: Linebackers coach with the San Francisco 49ers
He’s here because … he already owns the blueprint for transforming Pac-12 defenses. Twice in the last five years, Pendergast’s units led the conference in total D, 2010 with Cal and 2013 with USC. He did a bang-up job in his lone season with the Trojans, but got was whisked off the coaching carousel after Steve Sarkisian was hired as the head guy. Pendergast has already worked with many of Troy’s upperclassmen, and his penchant for attacking will be embraced by a roster brimming with good athletes.
7. Kevin Steele, Auburn
Last Gig: Coordinator at LSU
He’s here because … he’s a solid X’s and O’s guy, with a ton of big-game experience in the SEC. And that’s what Gus Malzahn was looking for after Will Muschamp took the South Carolina job. Steele is a safe, sound hire for a program bracing for its third defensive coordinator in the last three years and eager for a stretch of stability. This will be his fourth team in the SEC, a league he knows intimately well, and it says a lot that Nick Saban hired him on more than one occasion.
6. Mel Tucker, Georgia
Last Gig: Defensive backs coach at Alabama
He’s here because … he has a deep and impressive resume, including coordinator jobs with three different NFL franchises, the Browns, Jags and Bears. He’s also been with Nick Saban on three separate occasions, most recently connecting with and coaching up a very young group of Crimson Tide defensive backs. New Bulldog coach Kirby Smart was impressed by Tucker’s in their one year together in Tuscaloosa, though it’s hard to imagine he won’t still have a hands-on approach with the Georgia D.
5. Dave Aranda, LSU
Last Gig: Coordinator at Wisconsin
He’s here because … he’s one of the finest and most cerebral young defensive coaches at this level. That Aranda lives under the radar is no reflection on his ability to coach. And no indication of how he might be perceived in a year or two now that the spotlight is getting bigger. Aranda’s impact has been evident in the play of his last four defenses, one at Utah State and three at Wisconsin. He’s an emerging star, with a future as a head coach, though he is about to enter the unfamiliar—and high-pressure—terrain of the SEC.
4. Don Brown, Michigan
Last Gig: Coordinator at Boston College
He’s here because … Jim Harbaugh is adept at evaluating—and attracting—talent. Actually, Harbaugh didn’t know Brown until recently. But he knew of the veteran’s work, namely turning a BC defense not stacked with next-level players into the nation’s top-ranked unit in 2015. Brown is a skilled motivator, with the no-nonsense toughness that’ll fit in real well in Ann Arbor. If nothing else, the Wolverines will build off D.J. Durkin’s work with a fundamentally sound group that plays downhill.
3. Greg Schiano, Ohio State
Last Gig: Head coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2013)
He’s here because … you can never have too much talent or experience on a coaching staff. Schiano brings both to Columbus, along with the passion to retrieve what’s been lost since leaving Rutgers four years ago. After being humbled by two years in the NFL, Schiano is determined to be Ohio State’s version of Lane Kiffin, reviving his career as a coordinator. And that’s good news, both on Saturdays and on Signing Day, for the Buckeyes, who’ll benefit from his intensity and leadership.
2. Brady Hoke, Oregon
He’s here because … the Ducks were in dire need of fresh ideas on defense after yielding a school-record 37.5 points per game a year ago. While Oregon remains just fine on offense, the D must be reconstructed for the team to get back to winning Pac-12 titles. In Hoke, Mark Helfrich has added someone with a dozen years of head coaching experience. However, now that Hoke doesn’t have to deal with head coaching minutiae, he can get back to focusing on his forte, building defenses that are stout up front.
1. Jeremy Pruitt, Alabama
Last Gig: Coordinator at Georgia
He’s here because …he’s one of the premier defensive coordinators in the game. And he’s spent six years in Tuscaloosa, most recently in 2012, so he knows the program, the expectations and even some of the fifth-year seniors. Pruitt, still just 41, has already been a part of three national championship squads, including 2013 Florida State, which topped the FBS in scoring D. Nick Saban knows coaching talent, and he knows Pruitt has the right temperament, acumen and track record to begin filling Kirby Smart’s sizable shoes on the Bama staff.
MORE: Top Ten Offensive Coordinators To Watch
