Arizona Training Camp Defensive Takes

Arizona football is officially BACK in action and the long offseason is finally coming to an end as the Wildcats have opened up their 2025 training camp to get things geared up for the season with the team set to face Hawaii on Aug. 30 at home at 7:30 p.m. (MST) on TNT.

After an underwhelming 2024 season under Brent Brennan where Arizona went 4-8 after starting the year in the preseason AP Poll at No. 21 and ending the year losing 7 out of its last 8 games, the Wildcats made changes to the roster and their coaching staff.

Brennan revamped his coaching staff by hiring Seth Doege as the offensive coordinator and promoting Danny Gonzales to the defensive coordinating job. Plus, he was able to bring in defensive line coach Joe Salave’a, who is regarded as one of the top recruiters in the nation and a former Wildcat as well.

“When we go through a tough season like we did a year ago, you got to find a way to fix what was broken, fix what wasn’t working and put those pieces together,” Brennan said. “And part of those pieces are how we’re going to do things in terms of how we’re going to coach, what we’re going to do schematically and the other part is who are the players that are going to play those roles.”

The energy at practice was high, loud despite the team not even in full pads, or in shells at this point in time. The pace of play was a complete 180 from the previous season and matches the mindset and mentality that the coaching staff wasn’t to bring to the 2025 season.

Throughout camp, we have seen the defensive side of the ball take shape as Gonzales has gotten his system in place and the unit is starting to figure things out against the offense and learning how to work as a unit.

Three Defensive Takes

Genesis Smith

One of the top players on the roster to return to Arizona this season is safety Genesis Smith, who might be the top NFL prospect on the Wildcats.

Smith decided to come back another season even with the changes at the defensive coordinating position from Duane Akina to Gonzales.

So far in camp, the now upperclassman has been a stud in coverage and helping in the running game. Smith has the ability with his size to be an elite run stopping safety and a ballhawk in the secondary.

In a secondary filled with veteran leadership and a high number of snaps played, Smith has grown as a leader and helped the freshmen defensive backs develop in training camp and understanding the stands of the program.

Growth at the Defensive Backs Position

Arizona last season had its depth tested in the secondary with numerous injuries to the unit forcing players to see the field that weren’t ready for Power 4 game time action. This offseason, Brennan and the coaching staff added talent through the transfer portal and from the incoming recruiting class.

The two players that have stood out and have made plays this training camp have been Ayden Garnes and Gavin Hunter. Both have seen time with the starting unit and have been able to break up passes and even have come away with a few interceptions.

Now, I’m not 100% sure if that will result in the two being on the starting unit at the beginning of the year. But, Arizona will rotate defensive backs at times and play in formations where there could be a high number of defensive backs on the field.

So, having guys like Hunter and Garnes develop ahead of the season will be critical for the success of the defense.

Youth in the secondary

One of the larger groups from the 2025 recruiting class is the defensive backs room where Brennan and his staff brought in Dajon Hinton, Swayde Griffin, Coleman Patmon, Gianni Edwards, Kason Brown and Elijah Brown.

What has stood out about this group is the speed and athleticism that they have brought to camp day in and day out.

Some of them were extremely underrated and have shown that they could find their way in the rotation maybe further down the road in the middle of the season.

The future is bright for Arizona’s secondary with the haul of talent the staff was able to land in the recruiting class.

Please be sure to share your thoughts on the Wildcats' defensive improvements throughout camp. To do so, follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.