What Is Going On With The UCLA Defensive Coordinator Search?

Sep 25, 2014; Tempe, AZ, USA; UCLA Bruins defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Sun Devil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Last week, former defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich left the football program after National Signing Day rumors claimed he was halfway to the Atlanta Falcons. Though they were rumors on February 4, it was confirmed on Friday, February 6. That left Bruin head coach Jim Mora looking to hire a new DC, yet other news has come out regarding the UCLA defensive coaching staff. We have not heard anything out of the football program about the hiring of a defensive coordinator, but rather another coach being let go.

Going back to Ulbrich, you have to keep in mind that he was not only at the helm of the defense, but was also in charge of the inside linebackers. He shared the LB responsibility with Mike Tuiasosopo who handled outside linebackers. In addition to that, Tuiasosopo was in charge of special teams, a coaching position that Ulbrich handled before the 2014 season.

On Tuesday, we found out that Tuiasosopo had been let go, leaving not only the DC spot vacant, but also that of any and all linebacker and special teams coaches.

So as it is, the exit of Ulbrich has set up a chain of events that would usually send a football program and their fan base into a panic. But that is not the case at UCLA.

The Bruins had a decent 2014 season as the third best defense in the Pac-12, but it seems that with the amount of talent they had, they could have done a lot more.

Nov 1, 2014; Pasadena, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich (right) talks to his players during the first quarter against the Arizona Wildcats at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

For it being Ulbrich’s first year as defensive coordinator, he did a fine job, but there were a few things left to be desired. For example, it took the Bruins a while to develop a decent pass rush, the secondary (which was often based in a nickel defense) gave up way too many yards and they often had trouble containing superb individual athletes. With Mora’s attention to detail, you could be sure those problems were going to be addressed in the off-season.

UCLA Bruins

But those issues have to wait as Mora has a bigger job on his hands… reshaping the defense and this seems like the perfect opportunity to do so.

Though it has been five days since UCLA has been left without a defensive coordinator and the only thing we have heard out of Westwood is that Tuiasosopo has been asked to leave, it is probably for a good reason. Something big could be Bruin.

It could be that Mora has found a replacement DC and is waiting for the right time to divulge that information. Maybe he has found another linebacker and special teams coach and is waiting to announce their hiring along with that of the new defensive coordinator. Whatever is happening, it is possible Mora just might have found the coaches UCLA needs to take them to the next level. That would include beating Stanford and Oregon (who the Bruins do not see in the regular season in 2015), winning the Pac-12 South once again and finally claiming a conference championship. That would also put Mora and UCLA in good position to capture something that the Bruin head coach has talked about the last few seasons… winning a National Championship.

For now, we will just have to wait-and-see.