Mike Stoops Michael J . Stoops ( born December 13 , 1961 ) is an American football coach and former player . He is currently the defensive coordinator at the University of Oklahoma . Stoops served as the head football coach at the University of Arizona from 2003 until his firing during the 2011 season . He previously served as an assistant coach at the University of Iowa , Kansas State University , and Oklahoma . He is the younger brother of Bob Stoops , the head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners football program , and the older brother of Mark Stoops , head coach at the University of Kentucky . Early life and playing career . Stoops is one of six children born to Ron , Sr . and Evelyn " Dee Dee " Stoops in Youngstown , Ohio . He attended Cardinal Mooney High School in Youngstown , Ohio , where his father was an assistant football coach and defensive coordinator . After high school Stoops played for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes ( 1982 – 1984 ) as a strong safety . He played on the same team with quarterback Chuck Long and was a two - time all - Big Ten Conference selection . Stoops was signed as a free agent in May 1985 by the Chicago Bears of the National Football League ( NFL ) , but was cut on August 27 . In February 1986 he signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Falcons , but he missed the Falcons May 9 – 15 minicamp with a ruptured gall bladder from an auto accident and was later cut by Atlanta . In the summer of 1987 , Stoops became one of the original 80 Arena Football League ( AFL ) players when he suited up for the Pittsburgh Gladiators . Stoops was a key member of the Gladiators that season who went onto play in the inaugural ArenaBowl , losing to Denver , 45 – 16 . Stoops took time off from his job as a graduate assistant at Iowa to play as a replacement player for a limited time in 1987 with the Chicago Bears during the NFL strike . Wearing # 44 , he played safety in three games with the Bears that year , suffering a concussion in the an October 4 victory ( 35 – 3 ) against the Philadelphia Eagles . Other former Iowa players who were members of the National Football League Players Association had harsh words for Stoops . He responded , " I don ' t give a damn what they think . I wasn ' t trying to hurt anybody , and deep down , I think they know that . But if they feel that way , fine , don ' t ever talk to me again " . Returning to the Arena League , in the six - game AFL regular season , Stoops caught 22 passes , scored three touchdowns , made 15 tackles and recorded an interception , playing both wide receiver and defensive back positions . Coaching career . Stoops held assistant coaching positions at the University of Iowa , Kansas State University and the University of Oklahoma . With his hiring by Arizona in November 2003 , Stoops became the school ' s youngest coach at hiring ( 41 ) since Larry Smith . Upon taking over , he hired his brother , University of Miami defensive backs coach Mark Stoops , as defensive coordinator . Stoops then followed and hired Texas Tech co - offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes after the 2006 season . Dykes , named as winner of the All - American Football Foundation ' s Mike Campbell Top Assistant Award and now head coach at Louisiana Tech , has been cited as one of the country ' s brightest offensive minds and top ten college recruiters by Rivals . com . On the hot seat . After going 6 – 6 in 2006 , the Wildcats lost three of their first four games in 2007 , including a 29 – 27 loss at home to New Mexico . In that game , Stoops gained a 15 - yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for his behavior on the sideline , which led to a New Mexico touchdown . Following a 2007 , 21 – 20 home loss to Stanford , dropping the team to 2 – 6 , local media began speculating as to whether Stoops would be fired . However , subsequent statements by the athletic director and the university ' s president indicated that Stoops would return for an additional season . 2008 season . At the beginning of the season , many believed this to be the year Stoops and the Wildcats would reach their first college bowl game in a decade ; a winning season was considered a must in order for Stoops to remain as Wildcats head coach . Under the direction of Stoops , Arizona scored 70 points in the season opener against the Idaho Vandals , falling just four points short of a school record for points scored in a game . They went on to soundly defeat Toledo , UCLA , Washington , and California , but lost close games to New Mexico and Stanford . They went on to defeat Washington State on the road to secure bowl eligibility at six wins , but lost to Oregon on the road after mounting a dramatic second - half come - from - behind rally , and to Oregon State in Tucson on a last - second field goal . The Wildcats ' final game of the regular season was a 31 – 10 victory on December 6 in Tucson against Arizona State in the annual Territorial Cup rivalry game . With that win and a final regular season record of 7 – 5 , Arizona accepted a bid from to the Las Vegas Bowl to face BYU . It was the Wildcats ' first bowl appearance since the 1998 Holiday Bowl . Stoops ' reputation in Tucson was mixed ; while the Wildcats had a winning record and appeared in and won their first bowl game in ten years , many fans were divided during the season on whether he should be retained as head coach , as they expected Stoops to guide the team to an eight , nine or even ten - win season given the talent level and the offensive and defensive systems employed by the Wildcats ( and with the overall talent level in the Pac - 10 conference perceived to be not as strong as usual in 2008 ) . While Stoops brought the Wildcat football program to a level of respectability which was lost during the era of John Mackovic , some fans were disappointed the program was not at the elite level of Stoops ' former program Oklahoma or of perennial Pac - 10 football power USC . However , Stoops was given strong votes of confidence by UA ( later UNLV ) athletic director Jim Livengood , by university president Dr . Robert Shelton , and by several prominent Arizona football boosters . On December 18 , Stoops was rumored to be a candidate for the Iowa State head coaching job , which eventually went to Auburn assistant Paul Rhoads . On December 20 , Arizona defeated BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl . On December 23 , Stoops was given a contract extension through the 2013 season by Livengood . " We ' re very pleased with the progress of Arizona football under Mike ' s direction , " Livengood said . " His personal growth as a coach has been outstanding and we ’ re glad to continue moving forward with him as the steward for Arizona football . " Stoops said on the news of his extension , " I ' m very excited about the extension . . . The administration always has shown a commitment to what we ’ re doing , and this bolsters that support . . . We ’ re working hard to build stability and the commitment from Jim and the university at this time will go a long way to solidify that effort . I ’ m happy to be here in Tucson for a long time as head coach of our Wildcats . This is where my family wants to be . " 2009 season . The Wildcats compiled a 8 – 4 ( 6 – 3 ) record in the 2009 regular season , which earned them a share of second place in the Pac - 10 and a bid to the Holiday Bowl . Stoops was named a semifinalist for the George Munger Award , but was not named a finalist . 2010 season . The Wildcats compiled a 7 – 5 ( 4 – 5 ) record in the 2010 regular season , which earned them a seventh place finish in the Pac - 10 and a bid to the Alamo Bowl . This bid was due , in part , to only four Pac - 10 teams being bowl eligible after USC was sanctioned from bowl eligibility , and Arizona State was denied a bowl waiver from the NCAA , which it needed because two of ASU ' s wins came against FCS teams . Both USC and Arizona State finished higher than Arizona in the Pac - 10 standings . Oregon and Stanford were selected for BCS bowls , and the Rose Bowl selected an at large team , TCU , to pair with the Big Ten champion , Wisconsin , leaving the second highest Pac - 10 affiliated bowl game , the Alamo Bowl , to choose between Arizona and Washington . 2011 season . The Wildcats started the 2011 season losing five of their six games , and their first four games in the newly - expanded Pac - 12 Conference . After a loss on the road to previously - winless Oregon State , Stoops was relieved of his duties on October 10 , 2011 with the announcement made by athletic director Gregory Byrne . Co - defensive coordinator Tim Kish was named as interim head coach . Stoops received a $ 1 . 4 million buyout from Arizona . Return to Oklahoma . On January 11 , 2012 , Stoops was hired as the co - defensive coordinator for the University of Oklahoma . He was to be teamed with Brent Venables , who shortly left to become the defensive coordinator at Clemson . Kish was soon after named as Oklahoma ' s linebackers coach .