The DBU architect is heading back to the Forty Acres.
By god, that’s Duane Akina’s music.
The longtime defensive backs coach for the Texas Longhorns is returning to Austin to replace defensive passing game coordinator and secondary coach Terry Joseph, who departed for the New Orleans Saints on Monday, according to multiple reports.
Anwar Richardson of Orangebloods was the first to report the news.
According to my sources, veteran defensive backs coach Duane Akina has been hired to replace Terry Joseph. Akina spent more than a decade with the Horns from 2001-2013. He coached at Arizona last season. pic.twitter.com/P3tCMQFINJ
— Anwar Richardson (@AnwarRichardson) February 24, 2025
The architect of DBU who coached under Mack Brown from 2001 to 2013 was nearly brought back to the Forty Acres last year as an analyst after Texas hired Arizona defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen to serve as the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach under Steve Sarkisian, but Akina ultimately decided to remain in Tucson under new head coach Brent Brennan as Nansen’s replacement.
It was a disappointing first season for Brennan as the Wildcats went 4-8 and 2-7 in the Big 12, prompting Brennan to remove all three of his coordinators, including Akina, who moved back into a role coaching the secondary.
Arizona finished 12th in the 16-team conference in passing yards allowed per game, 14th in interceptions, 11th in passing touchdowns allowed, 13th in passer rating allowed, and 13th in yards per attempt allowed in 2014.
It was Akina’s first season as the lone defensive coordinator in more than 40 years as an assistant, including three years as the co-defensive coordinator for the Longhorns from 2005 to 2007, although he did spend four years as the offensive coordinator at Arizona in the 1990s.
But despite the struggles for the Wildcats in his second stint, Akina is well regarded around college football as a high-level defensive backs coach whose specializes in man-to-man coverage. In addition to Akina’s experience at Texas, he also has a familiarity with Nansen after serving as a defensive analyst in 2023.
On the Forty Acres, Akina developed Michael Huff and Aaron Ross into back-to-back Thorpe Award winners as the nation’s best defensive back, as well as Earl Thomas into a first-round draft pick.
A native of Hawaii, Akina played quarterback at Washington, starting his career as a graduate assistant with the Huskies before spending five years as an assistant at Hawaii and one year as the defensive backs coach for the CFL’s Calgary Stampede.