Arizona signs San Jose State's Brent Brennan as Wildcats' next football coach (2024)

Arizona's next head football coach is connected to the winningest coach in program history.

San Jose State head coach Brent Brennan signed to become Arizona's next head coach to succeed Jedd Fisch, who left for the same role at Washington following three seasons with the program. Brennan's contract, which was officially signed on Tuesday, is a five-year deal, pending approval from the Arizona Board of Regents.

Arizona athletic director Dave Heeke posted a picture on X with Brennan and a signed contract on Tuesday in San Jose with the caption, "Got our guy!" Brennan is the 31st head coach in UA football history.

Arizona signs San Jose State's Brent Brennan as Wildcats' next football coach (2)

Several UA players, including All-Pac-12 linebacker Jacob Manu, posted "#StayingWithNansen" on X Monday night to campaign for former defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen, who accepted a co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach role at Texas, as head coach.

Brennan was a finalist for the coaching vacancy at Arizona in 2020, before Fisch was hired to replace the fired Kevin Sumlin.The 50-year-old Brennan has a 34-48 record at San Jose State since he was hired in 2017. The Spartans had back-to-back seven-win seasons in ’22 and ’23.

In 2020, San Jose State won a Mountain West title for the first time since 1991; the Spartans started the ‘20 season 6-0, the best start since 1939. SJSU lost to Ball State in the Arizona Bowl in Tucson to end the '20 season. Current Arizona wide receivers coach Kevin Cummings coached under Brennan for four seasons in San Jose; he also played wide receiver for Brennan at Oregon State.Brennan also coached OSU star receivers James Rogers, Brandin Cooks and Markus Wheaton.

Cummings and Brennan's relationship could potentially keep Cummings — and star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan and quarterback Noah Fifita — at Arizona. However, Cummings flew to Seattle along with several other UA staffers and was in attendance for Fisch's introductory news conference on Tuesday.

Before San Jose State, Brennan, a former UCLA wide receiver, coached at Hawaii, Washington and Arizona as a graduate assistant. The late Colt Brennan, a former Hawaii star quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist in 2007, is Brent Brennan's cousin.

At the UA in 2000, he was a GA under Dick Tomey, the all-time wins leader (95) in program history, before the former UA boss was fired. Brennan's brother, Brad Brennan, played wide receiver for the Wildcats from 1996-2000.

More:Arizona football's hire of Brent Brennan as head coach praised, criticized

Brennan followed former Arizona defensive coordinator Rich Ellerson to Cal Poly for four years and then reunited with Tomey at San Jose State in 2005 as a wide receivers coach.

Between their time together at Arizona and San Jose State, Brennan learned two Tomey-isms: “The harder it gets, the better we play” and “Football’s not complicated; people are.”

Brennan was among the key speakers at the late Tomey's funeral service at McKale Center in 2019.

“He is more than my football dad. He was just a really important man to me. I was incredibly honored to speak at his service," Brennan said leading up to the Arizona Bowl in 2020. "I wish there were more speakers; I felt like I could have sat there all day and listened to people tell stories about him and what they meant to him.

“I think about Coach every day. ... I talk about him all the time. He’s always been a real point of reference for me as I’m building our team and getting ready for games. I miss Dick Tomey dearly. What a great influence he had on my life."

'Fraud':Arizona football fans turn on Jedd Fisch after coach leaves for Washington

More:Jedd Fisch's Arizona comments resurface after news he's headed to Washington

More:Jedd Fisch 'broken hearted' to leave Arizona football for Washington coaching job

Arizona signs San Jose State's Brent Brennan as Wildcats' next football coach (2024)

FAQs

Arizona signs San Jose State's Brent Brennan as Wildcats' next football coach? ›

Arizona

Arizona
The Arizona Wildcats football program represents the University of Arizona (UA) in the sport of American college football. Arizona competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of the Pac-12 Conference.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Arizona_Wildcats_football
has hired San Jose State's Brent Brennan to serve as head football coach, the school announced on Tuesday. Brennan steps into the role to replace Jedd Fisch, who left to take over at Washington
Washington
The Washington Huskies football team represents the University of Washington in college football. Washington competed in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a charter member of the Pac-12 Conference, but will be joining the Big Ten Conference by the 2024 season.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Washington_Huskies_football
after Kalen DeBoer departed for Alabama following Nick Saban's retirement.

How much is Arizona paying Brennan? ›

TUCSON, Ariz. -- The Arizona Board of Regents approved a five-year contract that will pay new Arizona football coach Brent Brennan $2.7 million next season. The contract approved Thursday will increase each year to $3.6 million in 2027 and includes incentives of up to $1.2 million a year.

Who will be the next football coach at San Jose State? ›

San Jose State has hired Ken Niumatalolo as its next head football coach, it was announced Sunday. Terms of the deal were not announced, but sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel that it is a five-year deal through the 2028 season.

Who is the next football coach for the Arizona Wildcats? ›

Brent Brennan became the next Head Coach of Arizona Football in January of 2024. Brennan enters his first season following seven seasons leading the San José State University football program where he steered the Spartans to three bowl game appearances and earned 2020 Mountain West Coach of the Year.

Who will replace Brent Brennan? ›

San Jose State didn't take long to replace Brent Brennan as its head football coach. Less than a week after Brennan left the Spartans to take over the Arizona program, SJSU on Sunday named Ken Niumatalolo as Brennan's successor.

Who is the highest paid employee of the state of Arizona? ›

The highest-paid state employee, Michael Viteri, made an annual salary of nearly $330,000 as the chief financial investor for the State Retirement System. The three next highest-paid employees work for either that system or the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System.

How much does the president of Arizona State University make? ›

How much does ASU President Michael Crow earn? After Thursday's vote by the regents, Crow's base salary is approximately $834,000. He also receives a roughly $175,000 contribution to his retirement fund annually, a $70,000 annual housing stipend and a $10,000 annual automobile allowance.

How much do San Jose State University coaches make? ›

The estimated total pay range for a Head Coach at San José State University is $52K–$96K per year, which includes base salary and additional pay. The average Head Coach base salary at San José State University is $69K per year.

How much does Brent Brennan make? ›

Not including bonuses and separate agreements, Fisch's base salary in his first two years with the Wildcats (2021-2022) was $2.3 million, which isn't too far off from Brennan's salary on his five-year, $17.5 million deal that pays him $2.2 million in 2024 before extra payments.

Has San Jose State ever been ranked? ›

In 1975, San Jose State appeared in the national rankings for the first time in over 30 years when the team was ranked No. 20 in the AP Poll in week 13. SJSU later earned its first post-season national ranking in 1990 when the Spartans finished No.

Who is Rick Pitino coaching next year? ›

Rick Pitino
St. John's Red Storm
2018–2020Panathinaikos
2019–2021Greece
2020–2023Iona
2023–presentSt. John's
33 more rows

How much do University of Arizona football coaches make? ›

New Arizona coach Brent Brennan's contract will pay him $17.5 million over five years, though his initial salary will be below what Jedd Fisch was set to earn in 2024. Brennan's base salary in his first season is $2.2 million, increasing by $200,000 annually to $3 million in 2028.

Who will Arizona hire as a football coach? ›

Brent Brennan has agreed to a five-year deal to become Arizona's new head coach, the school announced Tuesday.

Who will replace the football coach at San Jose State? ›

Navy Midshipmen head coach Ken Niumatalolo looks on during a game between Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Navy Midshipmen on November 6, 2021, at Notre Dame Stadium, in South Bend, IN. San Jose State has hired former Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo to replace Brent Brennan as the Spartans head coach.

Who replaced Brent? ›

Many Dead Heads never warmed up to Brent's replacement, Vince Welnick (just as thousands of mostly older Heads never warmed up to Brent during his 11-year stint with the band). Vince had a lot of things going against him when he joined the group.

Who will replace Fisch in Arizona? ›

Brent Brennan agrees to be next Arizona Wildcats head coach, Jedd Fisch's replacement. The Arizona Wildcats have reportedly agreed to a five-year deal to make San Jose State head coach Brent Brennan the school's head football coach, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel and 247 Sports' Jason Scheer.

What is Brennan Johnson salary? ›

2023-2028. Brennan Johnson signed a 5 year , $18,200,000 contract with the Tottenham Hotspur F.C., including an average annual salary of $3,640,000. In 2024, Johnson will earn a base salary of $3,640,000, while carrying a cap hit of $3,640,000. Source: EPL contract specifics generally collected from verified reports.

What is Brent Brennan's salary? ›

Not including bonuses and separate agreements, Fisch's base salary in his first two years with the Wildcats (2021-2022) was $2.3 million, which isn't too far off from Brennan's salary on his five-year, $17.5 million deal that pays him $2.2 million in 2024 before extra payments.

How much do local news anchors make in Arizona? ›

How much does a News Anchor make in Arizona? As of May 24, 2024, the average annual pay for a News Anchor in Arizona is $42,627 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $20.49 an hour. This is the equivalent of $819/week or $3,552/month.

What is Tommy Lloyd's salary? ›

Lloyd will earn a base-salary of $5.25 million per year that climbs to $6 million by year five. Lloyd will make $4.1 million this season. Arizona hired Lloyd to replace Sean Miller in 2021. The former Gonzaga associate head coach has led the Wildcats to an 81-16 overall record and a 43-11 record in Pac-12 play.

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