CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Head football coach Mario Cristobal announced Friday the hiring of Joe Salave’a to the position of Miami Hurricanes’ defensive line coach, associate head coach – defense and defensive run game coordinator. Salave’a’s hire is pending completion of a standard University background check.Salave’a arrives in Miami after spending the previous four seasons working in a similar capacity at the University of Oregon under head coach Mario Cristobal.
“The University of Miami is committed to physicality and controlling the line of scrimmage,” Cristobal said. “Coach Salave’a’s eight years in the trenches of the NFL and his college coaching experience are the driving forces behind an elite recruiter, coach and developer of the talent. Coach Salave’a is a tremendous leader of men, and I know that mental and physical toughness will be traits of the Miami Hurricanes defensive line. He will make his impact felt in the culture and identity of our program.”
Salave’a and Cristobal both came to Oregon as assistant coaches in 2017, and when Cristobal was named head coach, Salave’a stayed with the program and added co-defensive coordinator and run-game coordinator to his title.
Salave’a spent the final four seasons of his time in Eugene as associate head coach.
“What an honor,” Salave’a said. “I’m blessed to have the opportunity to continue to work for Coach Cristobal. The opportunity here is tremendous. I want to get to work – I want to get to know our guys in the building and connect with them, start putting together the pieces and really start this entire process.”
In his most recent season in 2021, two of Salave’a’s top defensive linemen – Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brandon Dorlus – earned first-team Pac-12 recognition. Thibodeaux delivered a dominant three-year career in Eugene, becoming the program’s first player in history on the defensive side of the ball to earn consensus All-American in his final season. Thibodeaux tied for seven in program history with 19 sacks in 31 career games and finished with 34.5 career tackles for loss.
“Having played the position collegiately and in the National Football League as a professional athlete, the University of Miami is where it starts for defensive linemen,” Salave’a said. “I’m very excited and looking forward to adding to the history of this room. Those are the things that we’re already working on – making sure we identify the right guys that fit the culture here that we’re going to establish. The standard is the standard, and we’re excited to contribute to that and build on the history of greatness.”
During his five seasons at Oregon, the Ducks’ defense showed marked improvement. After inheriting a defensive line that was part of a defense that finished near the bottom nationally in nearly every statistical category in 2016, UO finished the 2019 season among the top 25 in scoring defense, rushing defense, total defense, sacks and tackles for loss.
The Ducks ranked 126th in scoring defense in 2016, before improving to ninth in 2019 while allowing nearly 25 fewer points per game. Oregon’s rush defense finished third in 2019 after ranking 121st the season before Salave’a arrived in Eugene, holding opponents to over 135 fewer yards on the ground. In total defense, UO improved from 126th the year before Salave’a arrived to 22nd in 2019 while allowing over 189 fewer yards per contest.
In the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Oregon’s defensive line continued to make big plays finishing fourth in the Pac-12 in both sacks and tackles for loss. Thibodeaux earned first-team All-Pac-12 Conference honors after finishing third in the league in TFLs with 9.5 and eighth in sacks with three. Thibodeaux led Oregon to a win in the Pac-12 Championship game, earning Most Valuable Player honors after harassing the Trojans finishing with five tackles (3 solo) with two TFLs and a sack with a pass break up.
With Salave’a in charge, Oregon’s defensive line has increased its big play output significantly over the last four seasons. After having just 25 sacks in 2016, Oregon finished 2019 with 41 sacks. Oregon had 33 in 2017 and 29 in 2018, before increasing its total by 12 during its Pac-12 championship 2019 season. In the seven-game 2020 season, Oregon had 12.0 sacks. In addition to sacks, the Ducks have also been much more effective in making tackles for loss. Oregon finished its Rose Bowl championship 2019 season with 97 TFLs, 25 more than the 2018 season and 36 more than the 2016 season. In 2020, the Ducks made 35 tackles for loss.
