Former Michigan defensive coordinator emerging as top target for FBS job

UMass is closing in on their man, according to Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel. Thamel reports that Arizona defensive coordinator Don Brown is emerging as the top candidate to replace Walt Bell as the Minutemen head coach.

Sources: Arizona DC Don Brown has emerged as the top candidate for the head coaching job at UMass. No announcement is imminent. Arizona plays Washington State on Friday night.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 18, 2021

The 1-9 squad parted ways with Bell two weeks ago. The Minutemen face Army on Saturday at noon.

Thamel’s sources claim no announcement is imminent, so there’s no telling when UMass will confirm a new hire. The Arizona Wildcats play Washington State in Pullman this Friday.

Don Brown is in his first year as Arizona’s defensive coordinator. The Wildcats rank 11th in the Pac-12 in scoring defense, giving up 29.5 points per game. Before Arizona, Brown coached the Michigan Wolverine defense for five years.

Under Brown, the Michigan defense finished among the top 12 units in the nation in total defense four straight years from 2016-19, including a trio of top-three performances and a No. 1 ranking in 2016. He was a Broyles award nominee in each of his five seasons at Michigan and a finalist in 2016.

Before Michigan, Brown spent time as the defensive coordinator at Boston College from 2013-15. Prior to BC, he coached at UConn (2011-12), and Maryland (2009-10).

LSU, USC, TCU, Akron, FIU, Virginia Tech, Washington and Washington State are all also looking for new coaches with two weeks left in the regular season. However, Texas Tech and UConn already filled their open jobs.

The UMass job is one of the toughest in the nation given the Minutemen haven’t had a winning season in the modern era.

UMass Minutemen move on from Bell

The Massachusetts Minutemen fired head football coach Walt Bell after Week 10 of the 2021 football season. Bell amassed a 2-23 record in three seasons as the head coach at UMass.

The Minutemen suffered their ninth loss of the season on Saturday. Maine took the win 35-10. UMass’s only win of the season came versus 0-7 UConn, 27-13, on Oct. 9.