Usually, it’s injuries that plunder specific positions for the Arizona Wildcats.
In 2015, Arizona just about ran out of inside linebackers. In ’16, the Wildcats had to move a wide receiver, Samajie Grant, to running back for the final five games. In ’18, cornerback was the position hit the hardest. Last year, Arizona had to shuffle its offensive line weekly over the second half of the season — and even lost two linemen on the same play.
This offseason, the UA has lost four safeties to the NCAA transfer portal and hasn’t added any in its 2020 signing class — or at least any whose primary position is safety (more on that in a bit).
The departures of Scottie Young Jr., Troy Young, Xavier Bell and Chacho Ulloa leave safety as Arizona’s thinnest position. The number of scholarship players is the same at inside linebacker, but that position boasts seniors Tony Fields II and Colin Schooler, three-year starters who never have missed a game.
The situation is considerably shakier at safety, where none of the players who started there over the final six games will be back for next season — if and when next season happens. Tristan Cooper and Jace Whittaker were seniors. Scottie Young will be one for someone else this year, with 29 starts on his résumé.
The four returning scholarship safeties — Rhedi Short, Jaxen Turner, Jarrius Wallace and Christian Young — have combined for 17 starts.
Below, we’ll examine those players, as well as possible alternatives from within the roster and the transfer portal.
Before we proceed, a few important notes:
- Arizona’s base defense under new coordinator Paul Rhoads will require fewer safeties — two instead of three. Even when the Wildcats deploy a nickel defense, the fifth member of the secondary could be a cornerback.
- With two starting slots, the ideal number of scholarship safeties would be six: two starters, two reliable backups and two young, developmental players. The same holds true at cornerback, where Arizona is projected to have seven scholarship players, including two incoming freshmen — allowing one to possibly shift to safety.
- The UA held only four practices before the remainder of the spring sports calendar was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. New secondary coach Greg Burns, hired last month, has yet to work in person with any of the defensive backs.
- Although it has 23 signees for 2020, including graduate transfers, the UA has room to take three more “initials” in its ’20 class. Kevin Sumlin and his staff found two productive players late in the process last year: high school defensive tackle Kyon Barrs and junior-college receiver Tayvian Cunningham. Both committed to Arizona in May.
- 247Sports.com has assembled an unofficial version of the NCAA transfer portal, and it features 53 uncommitted players who at one time or another played safety. That group includes the four UA safeties who declared their intention to transfer.
Returning safeties
Rhedi Short: Short came to Arizona as a three-star prospect from Los Angeles in the class of 2017. However, entering his redshirt junior season, Short has yet to appear in a game, even on special teams, under two coaching staffs. That’s usually not a good sign.
Jaxen Turner: A three-star recruit from Moreno Valley, California, Turner showed promise as a freshman, playing mostly on special teams. He missed the second half of the season because of a shoulder injury but played in too many games (six) to earn a redshirt. He should compete for a starting job.
Arizona safety Jarrius Wallace has appeared in 36 career games, starting nine of them.
Jarrius Wallace: Wallace will be a redshirt senior in 2020. He has appeared in 36 games, including nine starts. He has had some bright moments – including a nine-tackle, one-interception performance against Cal in 2017 – as well as some struggles in deep coverage. He’d be a reliable option at free safety.
Christian Young: Young (no relation to Scottie or Troy) began last season, his sophomore campaign, as a starter. He started the first six games before Arizona rejiggered the secondary by moving Whittaker from corner to safety. Young started two games at cornerback as a freshman, but his build (6-2, 217) is best suited to a box-safety role. He needs to become more consistent.
Current Wildcats who could switch positions
McKenzie Barnes: Barnes, a junior cornerback, appeared in 17 games in his first two seasons. A regular on special teams, Barnes didn’t play as much in the secondary as a sophomore as he did as a freshman. A shift to safety could lead to more playing time. Barnes possesses the requisite size (6-1, 193) to make that move.
Christian Roland-Wallace signed with Arizona as a cornerback, though his size, straight-line speed and physical play might make him a fit at safety.
Christian Roland-Wallace:: Roland-Wallace showed immense promise as a freshman cornerback, appearing in 12 games and starting eight. He recorded 37 tackles, five pass breakups and one interception. Roland-Wallace has the potential to be a standout corner, but his size (5-11, 198), straight-line speed and tackling ability suggest he could excel at safety as well.
Brenden Schooler: The older brother of Colin Schooler transferred to Arizona from Oregon, where he began his career as a safety before moving to receiver. He has expressed interest in playing both ways, a rarity in modern football. If it were an either/or decision based solely on team needs, it’d be a no-brainer; Arizona has 13 scholarship receivers on its roster, with two more on the way.
Majon Wright: This incoming freshman is one of them — but he’s also a candidate to play safety. 247Sports.com lists him at that position, while Rivals.com calls him an “athlete.” Wright (6-2, 197) comes from a family of defensive backs. Older brother Major played safety in the NFL for seven seasons. Another older brother, Daniel, is a defensive back at Alabama.
Potential transfers with UA connections
Treron Collins: Collins left the Maryland program in November 2019. He appeared in three games as a true freshman. Arizona outside linebackers coach Andy Buh was the Terrapins’ defensive coordinator from 2016-18. Maryland offered Collins a scholarship in March ’17.
Khalil Ladler: Ladler played in 39 games in three seasons at Virginia Tech after redshirting in 2016. He had a career-high 66 tackles in ’18. Texas A&M offered Ladler when Sumlin was the coach there.
DeAndre Pierce: Pierce played in 35 games over four seasons at Boise State. He appeared in only nine games the past two seasons because of injuries and retained a redshirt year. He is the son of former UA linebacker Antonio Pierce, who is now the co-defensive coordinator at Arizona State.
C.J. Pollard spent four seasons at USC, appearing in 27 games before entering the transfer portal. He had 31 tackles in his stay with the Trojans.
C.J. Pollard: A four-star recruit, Pollard spent the past four seasons at USC. He appeared in 27 games, recording 31 tackles. Burns was USC’s secondary coach last season, but Pollard never carved out a consistent role for the ’19 Trojans after battling injuries during the offseason.
