Bleacher Report gives UofA an A for defense hires

[ValleyCat]

This is by Bryan Fischer, National Football Columnist for Bleacher Report

Arizona

Who moved: Donte Williams (from San Jose State), Marcel Yates (Boise State)
New position: Williams will likely handle the secondary, while Yates is the Wildcats’ new defensive coordinator.
Grade: A
The skinny: Williams is a dynamic recruiter who has already made waves since his hire. Given a much bigger stage in the Pac-12, he’ll be a key asset for Rich Rodriguez and the team’s new DC. Speaking of Yates, he also has a good reputation as a recruiter but really impressed those in the coaching community with his work at his alma mater the past two seasons, as the Broncos were really good on that side of the ball during his tenure in Boise

Oregon

Who moved: Brady Hoke (out of coaching, but formerly of Michigan)
New position: Defensive coordinator
Grade: B-
The skinny: The ending of Hoke’s tenure in Ann Arbor (and general slippage of the program each year with him as head coach) is likely the thing that sticks out most to Ducks fans who are skeptical of the hire. Then there’s the fact that his last coordinator gig was…with a high school. That’s reason enough to doubt this move, but it can pay off. The Ducks need some fresh blood on the defensive staff, and it’s hard for the team to get much worse than it was this past season. Plus, Hoke (three-time conference coach of the year in three different leagues) can help serve as a sounding board for head man Mark Helfrich.

Oregon State

Who moved: Kevin Clune (Utah State)
New position: Defensive coordinator
Grade: B
The skinny: Clune and Gary Andersen go way back, and that kind of relationship can be key given how many lumps the Beavers figure to take during this program rebuild. Clune has shown that he can turn around a defense in a hurry with mostly the same group of players, and he’ll be asked to do that again in Corvallis.

USC

Who moved: Clancy Pendergast (San Francisco 49ers)
New position: Defensive coordinator
Grade: A
The skinny: Pendergast was responsible for some of the most successful USC defenses in the Pac-12 era and should bring plenty of coaching acumen to a team that has the talent and just needs to get on the right page to be successful. He isn’t known as a recruiting wonder, but at USC, you don’t need him to be.

Utah

Who moved: Morgan Scalley (promotion)
New position: Defensive coordinator
Grade: A-
The skinny: With the retirement of John Pease (again), Kyle Whittingham needed somebody to run that side of the ball when he can’t be hands-on and rightfully rewarded a longtime staff member in Scalley. He's a quality recruiter and impressive former player for the Utes, so one shouldn’t be surprised if the team gets a little more aggressive in key situations with a younger coach in charge of the defense.

[El Gato]

Go AAA All Stars!

[Stu Gotz]

... to be the OC at ....

.... wait for it ....

Middle Tennessee.


Whaaaaat?

[Wildcat Jones]

Reading about Pendergast at USC and Yates at UA, it goes EXACTLY to what El Gato was saying earlier about how a coach has to "fit" the school.

I would have been thrilled had RR hired UA grad Pendergast, who is a proven DC in the Pac12. That said, this article suggests he's not a big time recruiter and doesn't have to be at USC (which is obviously so true). After reading both of those, it truly looks like Yates is a better "fit" at UA than Pendergast would have been.

Bearing Down on our new AAA DC!

[Vandal]

Some people knew where to look for the official DC coordinator posing and the date it was posted. Is there a posting for the last open spot and, if so, when it was posted so that we might know when a hire might be announced.