Kevin Sumlin did not last three seasons at Arizona as he was fired this weekend following the Wildcats’ 70-7 loss to Arizona State on Friday night. He finishes at 9-20 overall and 6-17 in Pac-12 play. Here is a look at five realistic candidates for Arizona's vacancy.
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MORE: Arizona embarrassed by rival ASU, 70-7, in Territorial Cup
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2022 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
COVERAGE: Rivals Transfer Tracker | Rivals Camp Series
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BRENT BRENNAN, SAN JOSE STATE HEAD COACH
In seven-straight seasons, San Jose State has not had a winning record and there were a couple lean years under Brent Brennan but he has the Spartans undefeated and headed to the Mountain West title game for the first time in program history. After Mike MacIntyre had an 11-2 season in 2012 he got the Colorado job and Brennan could be in line for a move to the Pac-12 as well in Tucson. He has all the West Coast connections. Brennan played at UCLA and then he's coached at a few schools in the conference including Arizona for a year as a grad assistant. Brennan certainly knows the recruiting territory and has built San Jose State back from the ground up.
KENNY DILLINGHAM, FLORIDA STATE OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Dillingham is young, a fantastic offensive mind and he also has tremendous connections to the state. He has no head coaching experience even on the high school level but Dillingham has climbed the coaching ladder quickly from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral to Arizona State, Memphis, Auburn and now Florida State before he got into his 30s. Dillingham would be young and energetic, could recruit offensive playmakers especially with his connection to the state and bring a new vision to the desert. From no head coaching experience to the Pac-12 is a leap but one maybe worth taking.
ALEX GRINCH, OKLAHOMA DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Grinch does not have any ties to the state of Arizona but he’s one of the up-and-coming young defensive coaches in college football, he has a terrific coaching pedigree and this could be his opportunity to run a Power Five program for the first time. Grinch has made Oklahoma’s defense more than respectable in only two seasons with the Sooners which is an impressive feat. He definitely has head coach written all over him, this could be an opportunity to start fresh with a defensive mind and Grinch could be a home run.
CHARLIE RAGLE, CAL SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR
Ragle is only 44 years old and he has tremendous connections throughout the state of Arizona as he was a star high school coach at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral before coaching for the Wildcats and now at Cal. He also had a short stint at Arizona State as well. During his time with the Golden Bears, Ragle has shown the ability to dip back into Arizona for key recruits and that will be crucial if he gets the Arizona job. With his high school success in the state, his past experience coaching at Arizona and Arizona State and now from his time at Cal, Ragle would have the ability to keep more local talent home.
RICH RODRIGUEZ, FORMER ARIZONA HEAD COACH
In six seasons at Arizona, Rodriguez had only one losing season along with a 10-win campaign where he led the Wildcats to the Fiesta Bowl. There would be some issues to consider including that Rodriguez was fired after sexual harassment and hostile workplace allegations but an internal investigation found Rodriguez was not at fault. Rodriguez was the offensive coordinator at Ole Miss last season but was not retained when Lane Kiffin took over. He’s well-known in the state, he could recruit off name recognition alone and Rodriguez has proven he can win in Tucson but there are also some off-field considerations.
