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Here are three assistants likely to join Rich Rodriguez at Arizona

by on Dec. 04, 2011, under Arizona football

Here are three assistant coaches who likely will show up at Arizona for new coach Rich Rodriguez this week:

The University of Pittsburgh released a statement Sunday saying that Calvin Magee, Tony Dews and Tony Gibson were “departing for other coaching opportunities, effective immediately.”

Arizona wasn’t mentioned, but all three worked for Rodriguez at West Virginia and Michigan.

Magee was the Panthers’ co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach. Dews coached tight ends and was Pitt’s recruiting coordinator. Gibson coaches the secondary and was also Michigan’s special teams coordinator in 2010.

Rodriguez has said he would like to have about half of his staff in place this week, and then the rest by the end of next week.

As for any current assistants being retained, one member of the staff reached last week said he had been told to not talk to the media at this time.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 4th, 2011 at 2:23 pm and is filed under Arizona football. Tags for this post: , , . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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  • Carlos J. M.

    Any thought on Scelfo’s chances of being retained?  This guy’s a hidden gem on the offensive side of the ball.  And of course at QB.  He can recruit, coach ‘em up and has a good rapport.  Hate to see him be given up so easily.

    He and Anae, o-line coach, would be two logical choices to stay and keep things flowing offensively, considering how the o-line is coming back intact and progressing nicely.  This man can also lure ‘em to UA, all the way from Polynesia, which is very much needed in the PAC-12.  Maybe not in the Big East, ACC or Big 12, but definitely the PAC-12.

    Hey Anthony, any word on who in the UA Athletic Dept. is advising Coach Rodriguez on such cultural and social matters?

    • Anthony Gimino

      I am less op

  • Augie

    I hope the Athletic Department is allowing RR to select his staff as he sees fit. I am curious what you mean by how the AD is advising on cultural and social matters.
    Change is good and we’ve never been to the Rose Bowl or able to take the next step as a program. A clean slate is what we need from top to bottom. Scelfo was good while he was here, but he had two stud QBs under him. Can he replicate the same with a QB in RR’s mold?

  • Carlos J. M.

    Haven’t checked the WVU or UM rosters for Samoan players when Rodriguez was at the helm there, but my guess is that there were few, if any.  That was probably the case at most schools in the area.  But out west, and particularly SW to NW and along the left coast, Polynesian players are many.

    And you don’t just walk into their homes and say I’m here, trust me, come with me.  Anae, with his background and reputation, can get this done together with Rodriguez.  My point: Where’s Coach learning the dos and don’ts of heading up a program in a region of the country that’s slightly different in cultural and social mores than West Virginia and Michigan?  That’s all.

  • Jamie X.

    I was an RR supporter in Ann Arbor but it didn’t work out. I had watched WVU games frequently because I loved the spread and shred offense. It’s fun to watch when it works, as we are still reaping the benefits of Denard Robinson’s abilities. Hopefully he’s getting a warm reception and not the cold shoulder he received  frequently from elements of the media, AD, and fan base.

    The article does not mention a defensive coordinator, but one of two things should be done for that hire; either find and hire a DC like Jeff Casteel, who knows and can run the weird 3-3-5 defense Rodriguez likes , or get a standard 4-3 running DC, and don’t let RR mess with it. The failure of the defense at Michigan was trying to have run-of-the-mill DCs running a 3-3-5 (also horrible depth and injuries).

    Good luck with RR. I won’t be the only Michigan fan checking our Arizona games next year.

  • http://stadiumgameday.com rickyk

    A.G.:  I hear RichRod wants Anae but may have to go to a backup in that Frey guy from IU because of Leach.  Have you gotten any indication or reason for pessimism on the move to hire Casteel?  I had read on one of these boards it was close to being locked up but now I hear nothing.  Has he backed out?

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