UCLA football promotes Jeff Ulbrich to defensive coordinator

After spending two seasons on coach Jim Mora’s staff as a special teams coordinator, linebackers coach and associate head coach, Jeff Ulbrich was announced as UCLA football’s defensive coordinator by the UCLA Athletic Department Friday.

Ulbrich’s hiring comes less than three weeks after former defensive coordinator Lou Spanos announced he would be leaving UCLA to serve as the linebackers coach for the Tennessee Titans.

“Coach ‘Brick’ is a natural fit for this position, having run an NFL defense for years as a player while honing his abilities to get the most out of his players as a coach,” Mora said in a statement. “We couldn’t be more excited about this move.”

As a linebackers coach, Ulbrich’s proudest achievement was the development of his players. In just two years, senior Anthony Barr went from an H-back to an explosive outside linebacker to a likely first round draft pick. Jordan Zumwalt, an inside linebacker, showed noticeable improvements during his senior season, earning a trip to the Senior Bowl.

Another inside linebacker, redshirt junior Eric Kendricks, struggled with injuries throughout the 2013 season but was the Pac-12’s leading tackler in 2012. Last but certainly not least among the 2013 starting linebackers was outside linebacker Myles Jack, who could eventually garner some serious Heisman Trophy consideration and earned Pac-12 Offensive and Defensive Freshman Player of the Year honors for the 2013 season.

In addition to the promotion of Ulbrich, UCLA announced offensive line coach and run game coordinator Adrian Klemm will add associate head coach to his list of titles, while passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach Demetrice Martin has been named assistant head coach.

Compiled by Andrew Erickson, Bruin Sports senior staff.

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