It appears Arizona’s long wait to hire a defensive
coordinator has come to an end.

According to the Arizona Daily
Star, new coach Rich Rodriguez will announce West
Virginia’s Jeff Casteel as his defensive coordinator at a
press conference Wednesday.

Casteel coached under Rodriguez at West Virginia from 2001
to 2007, serving as the defensive coordinator for his
final five seasons in Morgantown.

In fact, it was thought that Rodriguez wanted to bring
Casteel with him to Michigan four years ago, and his
failure to do so helped ruin any chance the new coach had
of succeeding at Ann Arbor. Getting him to come to Tucson,
however, will alleviate concerns many had with Rodriguez
as the head coach.

The hire of Casteel is huge for the Wildcats, who ranked
107th in the nation in points against last season, and
allowed fewer than 27 points just twice in 12 games.

Known for a 3-3-5 defense that values speed over size,
Casteel has guided a West Virginia defense that has been
one of the nation’s better units.

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