The hiring of Jay Dobyns increases the number of former Arizona Wildcats as head coaches to 37 after another former Arizona standout — Brandon Sanders — resigned from his position at Pueblo High School.
Speculation exists that Sanders may coach at a different high school in Tucson or possibly join Kevin Sumlin’s staff at his alma mater. We should know the answer soon.
Dobyns, a Sahuaro grad who played at Arizona under the late Larry Smith from 1982 to 1984, is the third coach in Tanque Verde history with Jim Lawwill coaching from 2007-13 and Jeremiah Johnson from 2014-19. Dobyns faces a tall task: the Hawks went 0-10 this past season and have never won more than three games in a year.
After transferring from Arkansas to Arizona after his freshman season, Dobyns, a wide receiver, became an All-Pac-10 selection in 1983 and 1984.
Dobyns has been around the Salpointe football program for the last six years, as an assistant on the junior varsity team before joining the staff of former Lancer coach Dennis Bene this past season.
Dobyns is one of eight former Arizona football players who is presently a head coach.
Some notes:
— Former Arizona linebacker standout Marcus Bell coached Eagar Round Valley High School to its first state title in his nine years at the school, winning the 2A championship 34-28 last night over Phoenix Christian. Bell has a career record of 80-26 at Round Valley. He coached the school to state championship games in 2013, 2016 and 2018 but came up short.
Round Valley head football coach Marcus Bell joins us now on @1580TheFanatic! Round Valley won the 2A state championship over Phoenix Christian last night 34-28. It’s the Elk’s first state title since 1980! https://t.co/w8GPjJtg0b pic.twitter.com/2OVxuxTffX
— AZPreps365 (@AZPreps365) December 7, 2019
Round Valley coach Marcus Bell on his team winning the 2A state championship. #azreplay #azlive pic.twitter.com/Tq0s1WWhPe
— Evaristo Montoya (@notmontana_) December 7, 2019
“To be here this many times and finally do it (win), it’s awesome,” Bell told the Arizona Republic. “But you got to give credit to those kids and our coaches. We have a great coaching staff. We’ve stuck together for eight years since we’ve been doing this and it’s paid off. It’s just great.”
— The two former Arizona women’s basketball players now coaching — Maryland’s Brenda Frese and Arizona’s Adia Barnes — have each of their teams ranked in the AP Top 25. Frese’s Terrapins are rated No. 9 while Barnes’ Wildcats are No. 20.
Damon Stoudamire has Pacific out to an 8-3 start. People need to appreciate how hard of a job Pacific is. Damon clearly has the tools to be a successful high major head coach.
— Coaching Changes (@CoachingChanges) December 5, 2019
— Arizona hoops legend Damon Stoudamire has coached Pacific to an 8-3 start with one of the losses a triple-overtime defeat against Boise State at home on Nov. 23. The Tigers’ record marks the program’s best start since the 2013-14 season, when they posted a 9-2 record through the first 11 games of non-conference play.
— Mike Bibby is off to an 8-1 start at Hillcrest Academy in Phoenix. How much of an impact did Bibby have on Phoenix Shadow Mountain’s program? Six of his former players are on Division I rosters.
FORMER ARIZONA ATHLETES WHO ARE HEAD COACHES
List of head coaches of various sports and different levels who competed at Arizona. Compiled by AllSportsTucson.com.| Name | UA | Team | Sport | Start |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adia Barnes | 1995-99 | Arizona | Women's hoops | 2016 |
| Heidi Bomberger-Bruschi | 1993-97 | Attleboro (MA) Feehan HS | Volleyball | 2020 |
| Matt Brase | 2003-05 | Pallacanestro Varese (Italy) | Men's hoops | 2022 |
| Robert Bonillas | 1995-98 | Desert View HS | Football | 2012 |
| Tod Brown | 1990-94 | New Mexico | Baseball | 2022 |
| Casey Candaele | 1979-82 | Buffalo (AAA) Blue Jays | Baseball | 2021 |
| Jackie Coburn | 2002-05 | Scottsdale Horizon HS | Softball | 2013 |
| Clark Crist | 1977-80 | Pulaski (VA) River Turtles | Baseball | 2021 |
| Debby Day | 1989-91 | Cal-Lutheran | Softball | 2002 |
| Shelley Duncan | 1999-2001 | Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA) Yankees | Baseball | 2023 |
| Byron Evans | 1983-86 | South Mountain HS | Football | 2020 |
| Terry Francona | 1977-80 | Cleveland Indians | MLB | 2013 |
| Tanya Farhat-Villarreal | 1994-97 | West Bend (WI) Slinger HS | Softball | 2015 |
| Brenda Frese | 1989-93 | Maryland | Women's hoops | 2002 |
| Kristie Fox | 2004-07 | UNLV | Softball | 2017 |
| Margo Geer | 2011-14 | Alabama | Swimming/Diving | 2020 |
| Chip Hale | 1984-87 | Arizona | Baseball | 2022 |
| Jason Hisey | 1988-91 | Canyon del Oro HS | Baseball | 2019 |
| Jack Howell | 1983 | Tri-City (A) Angels | Baseball | 2021 |
| Krista Humphreys | 1993-96 | Corona (CA) Centennial HS | Softball | 2015 |
| Mark Keel | 1979-82 | Silverdale (WA) Central Kitsap HS | Football | 2000 |
| Steve Kerr | 1983-88 | Golden State Warriors | NBA | 2014 |
| Andy Litten | 1999-03 | Scottsdale Horizon HS | Football | 2021 |
| Hunter Long | 2013-15 | Douglas HS | Football | 2019 |
| Caitlin Lowe | 2004-07 | Arizona | Softball | 2022 |
| Brandon Manumaleuna | 1997-00 | Lawndale (CA) Leuzinger HS | Football | 2020 |
| Jennifer Martinez-Walls | 2008-09 | Abraham Baldwin (GA) JC | Softball | 2017 |
| Craig McMillan | 1984-88 | Santa Rosa (CA) JC | Men's hoops | 2000 |
| Richard Mercado | 2002-04 | Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei HS | Baseball | 2019 |
| Leighton Milton | 1992-93 | Hollywood (CA) HS | Football | 2020 |
| Edwin Mulitalo | 1995-98 | Southern Virginia | Football | 2018 |
| Ronnie Palmer | 2005-08 | Monterrey Peninsula (CA) JC | Football | 2020 |
| Jose Portilla | 1996-97 | Heritage Academy | Football | 2017 |
| Rebekah Quiroz | 2002 | Pima CC | Softball | 2019 |
| Colt Sedbrook | 2006-08 | Crown College (MN) | Baseball | 2024 |
| Jason Stewart | 1997-99 | Encinitas (CA) San Dieguito HS | Boys hoops | 2014 |
| Damon Stoudamire | 1992-95 | Georgia Tech | Men's hoops | 2023 |
| Rafael Valenzuela | 2008-10 | Bowling Green (A) Rays | Baseball | 2023 |
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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