Back in November of last year, the Washington Commanders made the decision to fire defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. Perhaps it was a move that many saw coming given the team’s poor run under head coach Ron Rivera, who was also fired two months later and replaced with Dan Quinn.
Del Rio spent the offseason visiting various college football programs to work with both coaches and players. One of those programs has snagged him to be on their coaching staff for the 2024 season.
Former Washington Commanders Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio Has Been Hired by the Wisconsin Badgers
According to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, Del Rio is being hired as a special advisor to Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell. Feldman writes, “The 61-year-old Del Rio will assist both sides of the ball, in personnel and be there for Badgers head coach Luke Fickell to bounce ideas off of.”
Fickell is entering his second season as the Badgers head coach and is attempting to turn the program around following a short and steady decline under former head coach Paul Chryst.
When Chryst first took over as the Badgers’ head coach in 2015, he led them to four 10+ win seasons in his first five seasons. However, in 2021 and 2022, Wisconsin failed to reach the levels of success expected of the program.
Chryst was fired after a 2-3 start in 2022 and replaced by his defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard. Many expected Leonhard would take over as head coach when the season was over, but Wisconsin hired Fickell instead before they even played their bowl game. Leonhard stayed on staff until after the Guaranteed Rate Bowl but resigned afterwards.
The Badgers’ first season under Fickell was a bit of a roller coaster as they ended up with a 7-6 record.
Jack Del Rio Brings a Wealth of Experience to the Wisconsin Badgers
Del Rio was a standout high school athlete who was actually drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 22nd round of the 1981 MLB Draft. Instead of pursuing a professional baseball career, Del Rio attended USC where he played both baseball and football. Some of his baseball teammates included Mark McGuire and Randy Johnson.
The talented Del Rio thrived more on the gridiron, though, and was known as one of the best linebackers in the nation. He was eventually drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the third round of the 1985 NFL Draft.
Del Rio ended up playing 11 seasons in the NFL for the Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, and Minnesota Vikings. He also spent some time with the Miami Dolphins in 1996, but never made the active roster.
His coaching career began the season after his playing career ended, with his being hired as an assistant strength coach by the Saints in 1997. He was promoted to linebackers coach in 1998.
From 1999-2001, Del Rio was the linebackers coach of the Baltimore Ravens, where he worked with Pro Football Hall of Famer Ray Lewis and won a Super Bowl ring.
He spent the 2002 season as the defensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers before being hired as the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, with whom he coached until 2011.
After being fired by the Jaguars, Del Rio was the defensive coordinator of the Denver Broncos from 2012-2014. He got another shot as an NFL head coach from the Las Vegas Raiders (formerly in Oakland) from 2015-2017.
After taking a few years off from coaching, Del Rio returned to coaching as the defensive coordinator of the Commanders in 2020.
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