Report: Ken Norton Jr. Set to Return to UCLA Football as Inside Linebackers Coach
After a 34-year hiatus, Ken Norton Jr. is on his way back to Westwood.
UCLA football is set to hire Norton as its next inside linebackers coach, according to a report from The Athletic's Bruce Feldman on Thursday. Norton spent the last four seasons as the Seattle Seahawk's defensive coordinator before getting fired in January, but before he got into coaching, he was an All-American linebacker for the Bruins in the mid-1980s.
Don Pellum, who had been UCLA's inside linebackers coach since 2018, is expected to leave the program with his contract set to expire at the end of February.
There was some speculation earlier in the offseason that Norton could be a candidate for the defensive coordinator opening, but that position was filled by Bill McGovern last week.
With Pellum, defensive coordinator Jerry Azzinaro, offensive line coach Justin Frye and tight ends coach Derek Sage leaving the staff this offseason, every member of coach Chip Kelly's initial on-field staff from when he first came to Westwood in 2018.
Norton is a familiar face to the Bruin faithful, though, considering his playing career in the Rose Bowl from 1983 to 1987 and the fact that he went to Westchester High School (CA) just a few miles away from campus.
UCLA won a bowl game in each of Norton's four seasons on the roster, and he broke the century mark in tackles in both 1986 and 1987. Norton ranks sixth all-time in program history in tackles with 339.
1987 – the year quarterback Troy Aikman took over as starting quarterback and won Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year – was the same year Norton was named an All-American and a finalist for the Batkus Award. Prior to a late-season loss to crosstown rival USC by just four points, UCLA was in the race for the national championship, and Norton was at the forefront of that title push.
Norton was picked with the No. 41 overall pick of the 1988 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys, where he would eventually reunite with Aikman and win two Super Bowls. Norton left for the San Francisco 49ers in 1994 and won another Super Bowl there.
Across his 13 years in the NFL, Norton racked up 1,272 tackles, 12.6 sacks, 12 forced fumbles, 13 fumble recoveries and five interceptions in addition to his three Pro Bowl appearances. Norton was inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998 alongside Florence Griffith-Joyner, Eric Karros, Tom Ramsey and Reggie Miller.
Norton became a high-level coach within four years of retiring as a player, joining Pete Carroll's staff at USC in 2004 as linebackers coach. He followed Carroll to the Seattle Seahawks in 2010, taking the same position there and eventually winning a fourth Super Bowl before taking the defensive coordinator job with the Oakland Raiders in 2015.
Carroll came calling once more in 2018, and he hired Norton to be his defensive coordinator in Seattle in a move that prevented him from becoming the assistant head coach of the San Francisco 49ers. Norton's defenses didn't rank in the top or bottom 10 in scoring or yards against in 2018, 2019 and 2020, but his 2021 unit allowed the fifth-most yards in the league as the Seahawks finished last in the NFC West at 7-10.
Norton was fired both times he was a defensive coordinator, but has not been ousted as a linebackers coach throughout his career on the sidelines.
Through his stints at USC, the Seahawks and the Raiders, Norton has recruited, developed and coached Clay Matthews, Rey Maualuga, Lofa Tatupu, Brian Cushing, Bobby Wagner, KJ Wright, Malcolm Smith, Bruce Irvin, Khalil Mack and Shaquem Griffin.
The inside linebackers currently on the Bruins' roster include Caleb Johnson, Kain Medrano, Ale Kaho, JonJon Vaughns, Damian Sellers and Jeremiah Trojan, among other young pieces.
UCLA's defensive staff is now made up of Chad Kauha'aha'a at defensive line coach, Ikaika Malloe at outside linebackers coach, Norton at inside linebackers coach, Brian Norwood at defensive backs coach and McGovern in charge as defensive coordinator.
Follow Connon on Twitter at @SamConnon
Follow All Bruins on Twitter at @SI_AllBruins
Like All Bruins on Facebook at @SI.AllBruins
Subscribe to All Bruins on YouTube
Read more UCLA stories: UCLA Bruins on Sports Illustrated
Read more UCLA football stories: UCLA Football on Sports Illustrated
