UNC Football: North Carolina Hires Arizona State’s Ron West

Inside Carolina is reporting that Arizona State’s co-defensive coordinator Ron West has been hired for the same position under Larry Fedora at the University of North Carolina.

Sep 8, 2012; Winston Salem, NC, USA Wake Forest Demon Deacons head coach Jim Grobe (left) and North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Larry Fedora (right) talks before the start of the game at BB

West will be leaving Tempe after just one year to join the staff in Chapel Hill to run a defense led by Dan Disch alone in 2012.

West was hired to turn the Sun Devil’s defense around. Part of the plan was the development of the “devilback” position. It allowed for Arizona State’s Carl Bradford to begin to show his potential.

Last season the Sun Devils defense, led by both West and Paul Randolph, ranked twenty-seventh in the nation. They allowed 4,560 yards, 4.78 yards per play, and forty-one touchdowns.

North Carolina’s defense ranked fifty-sixth in 2012. Sloppy secondary and lack of defensive pressure from the linebackers can be attributed to that rank.

Known for his defensive knowledge, West comes with over sixteen years of coaching experience. Before Arizona State, he served at: New Mexico, Illinois, Clemson, Tulane, and Baylor among a few other smaller schools.