Danny Gonzales is not one to mince words. He has clear expectations for the defense he’s overseeing. And it all starts up front.
“We will not allow people to run the football,” Gonzales said last week. “That’s a mentality, as much as it is schematics. And we will put enough bodies up front that people will not run the football.”
Gonzales’ 3-3-5 scheme will regularly bring a fourth player to the line of scrimmage, likely either returning edge rusher Chase Kennedy or Montana transfer Riley Wilson, both of whom will also be tasked with playing off the ball. The other three spots, the true defensive line, are under the guidance of former UA great Joe Salave’a.
A mainstay of the Desert Swarm defenses in the mid-1990s, Salave’a has had successful stints coaching the D-line at Washington State, Oregon and most recently Miami (Fla.). The Hurricanes were in the top 20 against the run in Salave’a’s last two seasons.
Arizona was 98th against the run in 2024, allowing 174 yards per game, with five opponents rushing for more than 200.
There are only a few holdovers from last year’s D-line, most notably senior Tre Smith and redshirt sophomore Dominic Lolesio. Almost everyone else is new to the team, which actually may have helped speed up the learning curve during spring ball and into preseason camp.
“To the credit of our players, they’re able to grasp materials a lot,” Salave’a said Monday. “You have to get most of these things in so that you have the ability to be able to kind of decipher what you need each week going into the season. We’re need to get it on film so that we can look at it and see if it works in good if it doesn’t. We just have a lot of guys that haven’t had a lot of game experience overall. I think the way we’re training and the way we’re pushing these guys and setting the tone up front is critical, and so I’m excited for those guys.”
Salave’a is hoping to be at least three deep at every spot up front, both in order to keep guys fresh during games but also to be prepare for the inevitable injuries. There’s also the possibility of reinforcements coming later in camp, as junior college transfers Ezra Funa and Zac Siulepa are in the process of completing academic work in order to be eligible for this season.
“They’re working hard to get here,” Salave’a said. “When they get here, we’ll assess and give them a plan, and the plan that’s pretty going to be a simple one. They’ve also been instructed and given the opportunity to train and stay active while they’re still working to get here.”
Last season Arizona was last in the Big 12 in tackles for loss (61). Miami, which played one more game than the Wildcats, had 84 and registered at least 82 in each season under Salave’a.
“It still comes down to striking, knock back, tear off, pursue and tackle,” he said. “Those are the things that we still have to make sure that our guys are locked in. I’m not about running around people. I think the goal has already been set, the expectations has already been set to the group that we’re going to go after people head up, we’re not going to go round around, we’re not going to trick people.”