Coaching carousel: Grading the coordinator hires at Arizona, Cal, UCLA, Utah and the Washington schools

December has become the busiest month in college football with the expanded playoff, early-signing period and  transfer portal.

Unless head coaches are involved, it’s difficult to track staff movement.

The Hotline is here to help. We identified six coordinator hires across the West that will play a vital role in shaping the 2025 season.

Arizona

Position: Offensive coordinator
Out: Dino Babers
In: Seth Doege
Comment: We still aren’t sure who called the plays (and when they called the plays) during Arizona’s lost season, which says everything about a poor operation that generated even worse results. With that as the baseline, anything and anyone would constitute an upgrade for coach Brent Brennan’s program next season. Doege is a former Texas Tech quarterback from the Mike Leach era and a proponent of the Air Raid scheme, but he has called plays at the major college level for just one season. Although Marshall’s production improved markedly under his guidance in 2024 — and crucially, the Thundering Herd averaged 202 rushing yards per game — Doege’s limited experience gives us pause considering the number of superb defensive coordinators in the Big 12. (So, too, does Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita’s year-over-year regression.) We view Doege as a risky hire by Brennan, whose tenuous job status beyond 2025 could have impacted the candidate pool. Doege could mesh with Fifita and provide huge benefits or mix poorly and add to the headwinds facing the Wildcats.
Grade: C

Cal

Position: offensive coordinator
Out: Mike Bloesch
In: Bryan Harsin
Comment: The revolving door of playcallers continues in Berkeley as coach Justin Wilcox struggles to find the consistent production needed to elevate his program. Harsin will be the Bears’ fourth offensive coordinator in four years, following Bill Musgrave, Jake Spavital and Bloesch, and we are absolutely fascinated by this experiment. Hiring former head coaches for coordinator or assistant coach positions brings a degree of risk — are they hungry to succeed or looking to cash a paycheck? — and the uncertainty factor doubles with Harsin, who has been out of coaching for more than two years following his in-season termination by Auburn. That said, the boom-or-bust narrative probably isn’t fair because Harsin likely will be working with an inexperienced starting quarterback in Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele. How will they fit stylistically and personally?
Grade: B

UCLA

Position: offensive coordinator
Out: Eric Bieniemy
In: Tino Sunseri
Comment: Second-year coach DeShaun Foster had no choice but to move on from Bieniemy and, to a certain extent, any hire would have been viewed here as an upgrade. Upon naming Sunseri to the post, Foster noted: “He puts quarterbacks in position to succeed.” But there’s more to this job: Sunseri will be the Bruins’ primary playcaller — a role he has not held at any level of coaching. In his four years working with Curt Cignetti (three at James Madison, one at Indiana), Sunseri served as quarterbacks coach but not playcaller. And frankly, Foster’s own inexperience with hiring coaches gives the Hotline no choice but to adopt a wait-and-see approach.
Grade: C+

Utah

Position: offensive coordinator
Out: Andy Ludwig
In: Jason Beck
Comment: After one of the most disappointing seasons of his two decades in charge — and with escalating doubts about his ability to adapt to the sport’s new world order — coach Kyle Whittingham delivered one of the smartest hires of the offseason for any school in any conference. Beck, the former Brigham Young quarterback, is important for the Utes on both practical and symbolic levels. His plug-and-play scheme produced 483 yards per game for New Mexico and is well-suited for the transfer portal era. (It’s also a stark contrast to the intricate, pre-portal system Utah deployed under Ludwig.) As a bonus, Beck brings a quarterback who’s perfectly comfortable in the scheme: Devon Dampier, the dual-threat dynamo who generated 1,166 rushing yards and 2,768 passing yards for the Lobos. Beck was in high demand once the coaching carousel began spinning in late November, while Whittingham was mulling retirement after a bowl-less season. Their partnership in Salt Lake City — for at least one season — should propel the Utes back into contention in the Big 12.
Grade: A

Washington

Position: defensive coordinator
Out: Steve Belichick
In: Ryan Walters
Comment: Belichick’s departure (to North Carolina) is an undeniable blow to the Huskies, whose defense outperformed the offense throughout the mediocre first season in the Big Ten. But coach Jedd Fisch hired one of the few candidates capable of preventing a major regression on Montlake. Walters was fired by Purdue in December after his second season in charge, but that chapter in his career seems largely irrelevant. Instead, the Hotline focused on Walters’ two stellar seasons (2021-22) as Illinois’ defensive coordinator. Before his arrival in Champaign, the Illini were 108th nationally in yards-per-play allowed. (We view yards-per-play as the best measure of offensive and defensive efficiency.) In Walters’ first year running the defense, the Illini improved to 34th nationally. And in his second, they were second. And while Illinois didn’t play Ohio State either year, Walters’ unit was matched against both Penn State and Michigan and held those Big Ten powers under 20 points each time. A Southern California native who played (defensive back) for Colorado, Walters would have been a shrewd hire by Fisch regardless of UW’s conference affiliation. His deep familiarity with Big Ten coaches and schemes only adds to the likelihood of success.
Grade: A

Washington State

Position: offensive coordinator
Out: Ben Arbuckle
In: Danny Freund
Comment: Context is required given all the changes in Pullman. Yes, Arbuckle bolted for Oklahoma (with quarterback John Mateer in tow) prior to coach Jake Dickert’s departure. But the Hotline doesn’t view the resulting void as too large for the Cougars to fill. Whether Freund is the right coach for the job is another matter entirely — and judgment likely should wait at least two seasons. Also, we opted to concentrate on Freund, not defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit, because new head coach Jimmy Rogers has a defensive background and likely will hand near-complete control of the offense to Freund. His Pro Style scheme worked well for South Dakota State, which averaged 37 points per game in 2024. That hardly guarantees success at the FBS level, however. Freund must be flexible, not only with the specifics implemented in spring practice but also with his in-season approach. We envision a fast start for the Cougars. But how will they execute in the second half of the season, after opponents have seen enough film to identify tendencies? Success in November depends not on initial tactics but on the countermoves.
Grade: B-

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