Walters Introduces Himself, Has Big Task in Putting Together UW Defense

In introducing the newly hired Ryan Walters in a media setting this week, University of Washington football coach Jedd Fisch, prone to hyperbole at times, described him "as probably the best defensive coordinator in the country."

To which a deadpan Walters later responded, "I agree."

The former Purdue head coach went on to elaborate in a more serious vein, saying, "Because that's what I've done. The last time I was in charge of calling plays and running the defense, we did something special."

At face value, what that statement infers is Walters must be a step up from his predecessor Steve Belichick, who spent a lone season in Montlake in that coaching capacity with Fisch's staff before rejoining his father, Bill, last month at North Carolina.

For certain, Walters, who turned 39 two weeks ago, is a vast improvement in the interview process in getting his words across than Belichick, who seemed to find the question-and-answer process challenging or tedious and chose not to directly answer most inquiries -- such as if he was departing the UW for the Tar Heels.

As a former head coach, Walters offered a comfortable and somewhat commanding presence in this new setting as he explained who he was and what he was going to do for the Huskies. Certainly he was humbled by getting let go by the Boilermakers after just two seasons in charge that went 4-8 and 1-11, and he addressed that.

"You learn a lot," he said. "Obviously, I didn't have the type of success I was used to having in my career. A lot of times when you have failure, you grow."

Walters, who was a three-year starting safety for Colorado and an All-Big 12 honorable-mention pick as a senior, brings a sterling reputation with him from his time spent as a defensive coordinator at Illinois (2018-20) and Missouri (2021-22) before he jumped into the head-coaching ranks.

Ryan Walters, as the Purdue coach, shares a moment with Oregon's Dan Lanning. | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

In particular, for an 8-5 Illini team in 2022, he coached cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who became a consensus All-America selection, the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year and a first-round draft pick for the nearby Seattle Seahawks. That season, his defense ranked No. 1 nationally in preventative scoring (12.3 points per game) and No. 2 in total defense (263.8 yards).

While Belichick has been credited repeatedly by others for improving certain UW stat areas, his Husky defense still got lit up multiple times during the recently concluded 6-7 season, giving up 459 yards to USC, 486 yards and 35 points to Penn State, 458 yards and 49 points to Oregon, and 371 yards and 35 points to a Louisville team quarterbacked in the Sun Bowl by a career back-up.

Now comes Walters, who stands to be on the job much longer than his predecessor. While it was a bonus rather than a defining moment in his relocation process to Seattle, Walters now lives in the same city with his parents for the first time since 2009.

His dad Marc Walters, who if online records are correct is 56 and was a young father, has worked for Microsoft for 14 years and holds the title of corporate vice president and deputy general counsel for marketing. He is a former Colorado quarterback and originally from Carson, California.

Family helped get Ryan Walters through his recent and very temporary unemployment. He told how he was fired by Purdue on a Sunday in Indiana and with his wife Tara and two sons at Disney World in Florida the very next day. It was a welcome break, though it offered a certain indicator to the coach's spouse.

"It was day three,' he said, "and my wife was saying, 'I think you have to go back to work.' "

Walters is not the first former college football head coach to come to the UW as an assistant coach. He is preceded by Keith Gilbertson, who did it twice, joining Don James' staff after being the head man at Idaho (1986-88) and Rick Neuheisel's staff after leading California (1992-95); Bob Simmons, who was hired by Tyrone Willingham after earlier directing the fortunes of Oklahoma State (1995-2000); and Chris Tormey, who joined Gilbertson's Husky staff after leading both Idaho (1995-99) and Nevada (2000-03).

Ryan Walters meets with the media in Seattle for the first time. | Dan Raley

Fisch noted how each of the four recent CFP semifinalists had former head coaches serving as coordinators. The roll call: Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, previously the head coach for Oregon, UCLA, the Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers; Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen, who was the Indiana head man; Texas offensive coordinator Kyle Flood, who was the one-time Rutgers head coach; and Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden, formerly the leader at the University of Miami. It should be noted that Kelly, Allen and Golden each have taken new jobs since the season ended.

"I thought to bring in someone with head-coaching experience was going to be critical to our success," Fisch said.

Walters said the UW checked off every box for him in finding a new job. He was drawn to Fisch and his NFL background, plus the coach's insistence on developing his own players if that's possible in this day and age of the transfer portal.

He has plenty of work to do as the Husky defensive coordinator. Just four starters from the defensive unit return from the Sun Bowl. Plus important players such as Jayvon Parker, possibly his best defensive tackle, and Tacario Davis, probably his top cornerback, are recovering from injuries and won't be back until fall camp at the earliest.

Even with his head-coaching stint cut short, Walters was asked if he would consider doing it again someday, and he was diplomatic about this, saying, "We'll see if the opportunity presents itself. Right now, I'm focused on putting the best product on the field to help the University of Washington win football games."

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