When Joe Gilbert left for a job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in January, Kevin Sumlin suddenly had a major hole to fill on the Arizona Wildcats coaching staff.
Gilbert’s work with a young-and-injury-plagued offensive line was nothing short of phenomenal, as that unit helped J.J. Taylor earned All-America status while the Wildcats led the Pac-12 in rushing for the third straight season.
Three weeks later Sumlin had found his replacement for Gilbert in Ball State OL coach Kyle DeVan. While he was a virtual unknown to almost everyone in Tucson, he wasn’t to Sumlin and other members of his staff like offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone.