Chuck Cecil will have some help in the secondary as he takes over as a coach at Arizona. The Wildcats announced the addition of defensive backs coach DeWayne Walker on Wednesday in a move that was revealed by head coach Jedd Fisch with a tweet earlier in the week.
Walker is expected to coach the UA cornerbacks while Cecil will handle the coaching duties for the safety group giving the Wildcats plenty of NFL experience on the back end of the defense.
The new UA assistant is someone else who has previous ties to Fisch as the two were together for a time in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Walker has spent a considerable amount of time in the professional ranks with each of his last two jobs coming at that level as he was with the Cleveland Browns after his time with the Jaguars.
"Coach Walker and I have known one another since 2004 and worked together with the Jacksonville Jaguars," Fisch said in a statement provided by the program. "He is a fantastic coach and person who understands the importance of being smart, tough, and fundamentally sound. By adding DeWayne to our program, we have added incredible experience and a great resource for our student-athletes and coaches. I want to welcome Coach Walker and his family to Wildcat Nation."
Walker last coached in college in 2012 when his stint as New Mexico State's head coach came to a close. He also had previous college stops at UCLA, USC, Oklahoma State, BYU and Utah State.
His career started at the junior college level in California at Mt. San Antonio College.
"This is a great opportunity for me to work with Coach Fisch as part of his coaching staff at Arizona," Walker said. "We talked about him eventually becoming a head coach of his own program while we were together with the Jaguars, and it's a special moment to see that dream come to fruition.
"I believe this is where I belong because coaching and developing young men in the college game is where I started and it's my passion. I can't wait to get to Tucson to coach alongside Jedd and his outstanding staff to work with the young men in the program to be successful on the field and in life after football."
Walker has made several stops throughout his career but one of his most successful bodies of work came at UCLA when he was the defensive coordinator for the Bruins from 2006-08. His 2008 squad ranked 11th in the nation and second in the Pac-10, allowing just 167.6 passing yards per game. The Bruins 2007 defense ranked among the nation's top 30 units in rushing defense (14th), total defense (29th), scoring defense (29th), tackles for loss (2nd), third down conversion rate (3rd), and sacks per game (15th).
The trend at UCLA began in Walker's first season in 2006, during which the Bruins ranked ninth nationally in rushing defense and fifth in third down conversion rate.
He also had stints with Washington, the New York Giants and New England Patriots in the NFL. Walker has coached defensive backs since his career began in 1988 at Mt. SAC.
The 60-year-old coach will give the program more ties to Southern California as he is a Los Angeles-area native who played at Pasadena City College before moving on to finish his career at the University of Minnesota.
The Wildcats have not yet named a new defensive coordinator, but Fisch hinted Tuesday night at former Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown being named as the leader of his defensive staff.
So far Cecil, Walker and defensive line coach Ricky Hunley are the three members of the defensive staff that have been made official with the entire offensive staff already being completed earlier this week.
Assuming Brown is named as the defensive coordinator it would leave Fisch with one more spot to fill on his 10-man assistant coach staff. UA has yet to name a linebackers or special teams coach.
****
> DISCUSS the article with other Arizona fans as the Wildcats continue Building The Tradition
> WATCH the latest videos from GOAZCATS.com and subscribe to our YouTube channel
> FOLLOW us on Twitter (@goazcatscom, @MattGOAZCATS)
> FOLLOW us on Instagram (@goazcats)
> LIKE us on Facebook
> SUBSCRIBE for all the latest Arizona Wildcats team and recruiting news (subscribe now)