Another day, another defensive back added to Arizona's secondary.
The Wildcats added former Charlotte cornerback Dwight Bootle II, who committed to Arizona on Sunday. Bootle will have two years of eligibility remaining.
Bootle, a 5-10, 180-pound Miami native, started his career at Nebraska and played two seasons for the Cornhuskers before transferring to Charlotte, where he was a starter in 2025.
Bootle had 38 tackles and a pass deflection for the 49ers this past season.
Bootle, who took an official visit this weekend, is among the several pickups at defensive back for Arizona this offseason, along with Nebraska safety Malcolm Hartzog, Wyoming cornerback Tyrese Boss, Northern Colorado safety Cam Chapa and Fresno College transfer Brandon Holmes.
Arizona is bolstering the secondary following the departures of veterans Treydan Stukes, Dalton Johnson and Genesis Smith — who combined for 6,700 defensive snaps at the UA — along with cornerbacks Michael Dansby and Ayden Garnes. The Wildcats also had safety Jack Luttrell, cornerback Gianni Edwards and Marquis Groves-Killebrew — who started six games for the UA in 2024 — enter the transfer portal.
Arizona returns starter cornerback Jay'Vion Cole, who's entering his senior season. Cole was second in the Big 12 with four interceptions. Cole had a pick-six in Arizona's 48-3 win over Weber State. Other returners include freshmen Swayde Griffin and Dajon Hinton, who started in place of Stukes in the Holiday Bowl and suffered a leg injury. Redshirt junior Johno Price, who played 81 defensive snaps in 2025, is expected to return.
The Wildcats signed four-star cornerback Xaier Hiler, a 6-4, 180-pound Dallas-area product, and Chandler Hamilton cornerback Kingston Spivey, the younger brother of Tre Spivey and son of former Tucson Sidewinders star Junior Spivey. The youngest Spivey is joining Arizona as a preferred walk-on.
Arizona's safety group includes redshirt junior Gavin Hunter, redshirt freshman Kason Brown and sophomore Coleman Patmon, who started Arizona's 24-19 loss to SMU in the Holiday Bowl. Arizona signed three-star Georgia safety Hannibal Navies for its 2026 high school recruiting class.
Find out the latest updates on Arizona football's activity in the transfer portal with the Star's tracker on Tucson.com and The Wildcaster mobile app.
