Editor's note: This story is part of the Star's Aug. 27 college football preview section.
The Arizona Wildcats’ new linebackers coach is the all-time winningest BASEBALL coach at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
The Wildcats’ new special teams coordinator/defensive ends coach was an undersized option quarterback at Air Force.
Their new receivers coach grew up in Louisiana, played college ball in South Dakota and was brought to Arizona for his connections in Texas.
The additions Rich Rodriguez made to his staff this offseason don’t appear to have much in common. Unlike last year, when Rodriguez rebuilt his defensive staff with hires and promotions geared toward getting younger, being more aggressive in recruiting and having ties to Southern California, this year’s hires don’t have an obvious overriding theme.
But if you compare the résumés of Scott Boone (linebackers), Brian Knorr (special teams/ends) and Theron Aych (wide receivers), you’ll find a specific experience they all share.
All three have been coordinators at the college level. All know what it’s like to be in charge of an offense or defense. Their presence has led to more ideas being exchanged at a time when Rodriguez is seeking to refresh his program after a 3-9 season.
“I do think it’s a bonus,” Rodriguez said in spring, when the staff became whole. “If you’ve called plays before … it helps, particularly when you’re putting together a game plan.”
Before joining the UA staff in December, Boone spent three seasons as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Nevada. He served in the same capacity for William & Mary for three years before that, capping a 10-year run at the FCS school under legendary coach Jimmye Laycock.
As the head coach at Division III Randolph-Macon in Ashland, Virginia, Boone occasionally would drop in on West Virginia’s practices when Rodriguez coached there. They stayed in touch over the years. In late 2016, they officially became co-workers.
“I always thought if I ever had an opportunity to work for him,” Boone, 58, said, “it would be a no-brainer.”
This year marks Boone’s 35th as a college football coach. He didn’t necessarily envision a career in the sport growing up. He described baseball as his first “real love.”
Boone played football (receiver), baseball (center field) and basketball (off guard) at Wabash, earning a place in the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
“I was way skinnier and way younger,” Boone says now, laughing.
He served as a football assistant there from 1983-96 and as the head baseball coach from ’86-’97, compiling a record of 212-207-1. He left baseball behind when the opportunity arose to lead Randolph-Macon.
Twenty years later, Boone is coaching in the Pac-12.
“It feels like a natural progression,” he said. “It just took a long time to get there. I’m just happy the relationship I had with Coach Rodriguez made him think about me.”
Rodriguez’s relationship with Urban Meyer led to the hiring of Knorr, who spent last season as a quality control coach at Ohio State.
Rodriguez initially brought Knorr aboard to coach special teams. But Rodriguez quickly realized he’d be “wasting his talents” by limiting Knorr to that role. So Rodriguez added edge rushers to Knorr’s responsibilities.
As the defensive coordinator at Indiana and Wake Forest, Knorr had tutored defensive ends and outside linebackers. The move made sense. It also gave Arizona five defensive assistants, furthering Rodriguez’s efforts to devote more resources to that side of the ball.
“I think it’s really paid off,” Rodriguez said. “Those guys do a great job communicating. It’s worked out well so far.
“The proof is always in the season, but I really like where we’re at with our defensive staff.”
Knorr is working in conjunction with Vince Amey, who’s focusing on the interior defensive linemen. The arrangement has drawn praise from the players, who appreciate the individual attention Knorr and Amey are able to give them.
The two men share a positive approach to coaching. Knorr has honed his style over 26 years in the business, taking bits and pieces from coaches with disparate personalities.
Knorr played for Air Force teams that won 30 games from 1983-85, the most successful stretch in school history. The Academy gave him a chance to play quarterback. There weren’t many comparable opportunities for the 5-foot-10-inch native of Shawnee Mission, Kansas.
“I wanted to play at the highest level,” Knorr, 53, said. “At that time, that was the highest level I could play at.”
Knorr played for Ken Hatfield and Fisher DeBerry at Air Force. He coached under DeBerry at the Academy and then under Jim Grobe at Ohio, where Knorr served as head coach from 2001-04.
The head-coaching gig didn’t go well; Knorr was fired after going 11-35. He returned to coach at his alma mater, then Grobe hired him again at Wake Forest. Knorr spent two seasons under Kevin Wilson at Indiana before working for Meyer for about 10 months.
How did all those experiences shape Knorr’s coaching philosophy?
“What I learned is there’s all kinds of ways to do it,” he said. “There’s not one approved solution of coaching, how you run a program. The biggest thing is everybody’s on board with however the leader’s doing it.”
Aych’s coaching career began in places you probably never have heard of: Northern State University (his alma mater) in Aberdeen, South Dakota; Aberdeen Central High School; Mesabi Range College in Virginia, Minnesota; and Fort Scott (Kansas) Community College.
Aych is from Zachary, Louisiana. The father of one of his high school teammates played at Northern State, leading Aych to Aberdeen. The move was a shock to the system in many ways.
“Definitely,” Aych, 46, said. “Especially the weather. Nothing prepares you for 50-below.”
But playing at Northern State led to coaching opportunities that eventually brought Aych to Houston, Washington, Central Missouri (where he coached future NFL tight end Delanie Walker), Angelo State and UTEP.
With Aych as its coordinator, Angelo State led Division II in total offense in 2015. He spent last season coaching the receivers at UTEP before Rodriguez reached out to him. The opportunity to work for one of college football’s most innovative offensive minds was too good to pass up.
“I know the tradition (at Arizona),” Aych said. “The defense gets a ton of credit from the ‘Desert Swarm’ days. But to be able to join an offense like this with Coach Rodriguez, … there was no way I was going to turn this down.”
