Arizona Athletes Now Head Coaches

Arizona TE Great Brandon Manumaleuna Hired as Head Coach at Southern California High School

Former Arizona tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, who played in the NFL for 10 years after his Wildcat career from 1997 to 2000, has been hired as head coach at Lawndale (Calif.) Leuzinger High School.

The school, in the Centinela Valley Union District in the Southeast area of Los Angeles near Hawthorne, announced the hiring on Wednesday via Twitter.

To which he posted this response:

Manumaleuna, 40, has coached since 2011 right after his NFL career concluded with the Chicago Bears.

He was the wide receivers coach from 2011 to 2013 and the offensive coordinator from 2013 to last season at his alma mater Los Angeles Narbonne High School. He was hired to be the defensive line coach at Playa del Rey (Calif.) St. Bernard High School in March.

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His hire as head coach of the Leuzinger Olympians makes him the 41st former Arizona athlete to become a current head coach.

Manumaleuna, a political science major at Arizona, was a second-team All-Pac-10 selection as a junior in 1999. He was recruited by Dick Tomey and his staff as a defensive lineman out of Narbonne but made the switch to tight end and H-back. He finished his Arizona career with 40 receptions for 544 yards and three touchdowns.

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He was selected in the fourth round of the NFL draft in 2001 by the St. Louis Rams, of whom he played for from 2001 to 2005 before stints with the San Diego Chargers (2006 to 2009) and Bears (2010). He was a member of the Rams team that lost to New England in Super Bowl XXXVI in the 2001 season.

Schools in the Centinela Valley Union District, which includes Leuzinger, Lawndale and Hawthorne, have yet to resume any athletic activities toward a projected season starting with full practices Dec. 14 with the opener in January.

The season was delayed from the fall to the winter-spring because of COVID-19 concerns.

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.
NameUATeam SportStart
Adia Barnes1995-99ArizonaWomen's hoops2016
Heidi Bomberger-Bruschi1993-97Attleboro (MA) Feehan HSVolleyball 2020
Matt Brase2003-05Pallacanestro Varese (Italy)Men's hoops2022
Robert Bonillas1995-98Desert View HSFootball2012
Tod Brown1990-94New MexicoBaseball2022
Casey Candaele1979-82Buffalo (AAA) Blue JaysBaseball2021
Jackie Coburn2002-05Scottsdale Horizon HSSoftball2013
Clark Crist1977-80Pulaski (VA) River TurtlesBaseball2021
Debby Day1989-91Cal-LutheranSoftball2002
Shelley Duncan1999-2001Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA) YankeesBaseball2023
Byron Evans 1983-86South Mountain HSFootball2020
Terry Francona1977-80Cleveland IndiansMLB2013
Tanya Farhat-Villarreal1994-97West Bend (WI) Slinger HSSoftball2015
Brenda Frese1989-93MarylandWomen's hoops2002
Kristie Fox2004-07UNLVSoftball2017
Margo Geer2011-14AlabamaSwimming/Diving2020
Chip Hale 1984-87ArizonaBaseball 2022
Jason Hisey1988-91Canyon del Oro HSBaseball2019
Jack Howell1983Tri-City (A) AngelsBaseball2021
Krista Humphreys1993-96Corona (CA) Centennial HSSoftball2015
Mark Keel1979-82Silverdale (WA) Central Kitsap HSFootball2000
Steve Kerr1983-88Golden State WarriorsNBA2014
Andy Litten1999-03Scottsdale Horizon HSFootball2021
Hunter Long2013-15Douglas HSFootball2019
Caitlin Lowe2004-07Arizona Softball2022
Brandon Manumaleuna1997-00Lawndale (CA) Leuzinger HSFootball2020
Jennifer Martinez-Walls2008-09Abraham Baldwin (GA) JCSoftball2017
Craig McMillan1984-88Santa Rosa (CA) JCMen's hoops2000
Richard Mercado2002-04Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei HSBaseball2019
Leighton Milton1992-93Hollywood (CA) HSFootball2020
Edwin Mulitalo1995-98Southern VirginiaFootball2018
Ronnie Palmer2005-08Monterrey Peninsula (CA) JCFootball2020
Jose Portilla1996-97Heritage AcademyFootball2017
Rebekah Quiroz2002Pima CCSoftball2019
Colt Sedbrook2006-08Crown College (MN)Baseball2024
Jason Stewart1997-99Encinitas (CA) San Dieguito HSBoys hoops2014
Damon Stoudamire1992-95Georgia TechMen's hoops2023
Rafael Valenzuela2008-10Bowling Green (A) RaysBaseball2023
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