In addition to being defensive coordinator, Danny Gonzales is Arizona’s unofficial historian.

Without blinking he can tell you the last time the Wildcats finished in the top 20 nationally in total defense in consecutive seasons (1993 and 1994) and also the last time the program recorded back-to-back years with at least nine wins (1974-75).

He also knows the UA’s infamous history of struggling to replicate results after a big year, which includes his first season at the school in 2024 when a 10-win performance was followed up by a 4-8 record.

While most other coaches on the staff are looking solely forward, Gonzales makes sure to keep himself aware of the past. And he’s not afraid to use some of the program’s best results—like the Desert Swarm era of the 1990s—and worst ones as motivation.

“Is there going to be a Swarm 2.0? We actually have the opportunity to make that a real thing, and I am excited about that,” Gonzales said Thursday, after Arizona’s second preseason practice. “But I’ve said it several times over the last bit, we can’t be like the ‘94 team, the ‘99 team, the ‘24, the ‘15 team.”

Gonzales was the linebackers coach and special teams coordinator in his first year with the program. Moved to DC in 2025, the results were splendid: Arizona finished 19^th nationally in total defense, allowing 308.5 yards per game, and ranked 7^th in pass defense, 2^nd in turnovers forced and 2^nd in turnover margin.

Those numbers were key to the UA going 9-4, a 5-win improvement from the previous season. But since Jim Young went 9-2 in 1974 and 10-2 in 1975, the Wildcats have traditionally had a backslide the year after. The drop from 2023 to 2024 was just the latest in a long string of them, but Gonzales feels the way Arizona has worked since finishing last season has it uniquely equipped to prevent history from repeating itself.

“Now, there’s there’s not a great expectation nationally, and I don’t even know that there’s a great expectation in our league,” Gonzales said. “But there is an expectation around Tucson when we walk around, and I think that’s cool. That’s that’s the first step in building a major problem here in Tucson for the rest of the Big 12.”

Arizona returns a good chunk of experience in the front seven, maybe more if linebacker Max Harris returns (along with running back Ismail Mahdi) as hoped. But the strength of last year’s defense, the secondary, is almost starting from scratch. Cornerback Jay’Vion Cole and safety Gavin Hunter are the only returners who started multiple games, and 12 of the 20 DBs on the roster are in their first year in the program.

“Everybody keeps asking, ‘well, who are they going to replace, and who are they going to play at corner?,’” Gonzales said. “You lost four DBs to the NFL draft, which is a record, by the way. If the secondary is no good this year, it’s because we stunk up front. Because if those guys get pressure on the quarterback, guys in the secondary will be just fine. We have enough talent back there.”

Arizona intercepted 22 passes last season despite having the 110th-best pass rushing grade out of 136 FBS teams, per Pro Football Focus. The Wildcats’ 21 sacks were 4th-fewest in the Big 12, and they also ranked in the middle of the pack nationally against the run.

The UA rotated heavily on the defensive line last season and that could also become a thing at linebacker and in the secondary. To see if that’s possible, during 11-on-11 periods so far in fall camp the defense has switched its entire unit between plays to help with conditioning.

“They do a great job of of getting in cardiovascular shape for July, but once you get into fall camp and you start practicing, it’s like when you’re in high school and if you play football and then you go to basketball,” Gonzales said. “You might be in great football shape, but you try and play basketball, the first practice, you will die. Well, football is no different. That conditioning piece for the first few days is trying to get their hearts back into it. It’s a one-play role, so they have to sprint 40 yards every single rep, so wherever the ball’s from, they have to sprint all through the sideline.”