By Anthony Gimino
FOXSportsArizona.com
TUCSON -- If Arizona wants to know what kind of football man it has in new defensive tackles coach Joe Salave'a, a story from 1994 will do the trick.
The Wildcats, in the midst of their Desert Swarm heyday, were having a tough time with two-touchdown underdog UCLA on Oct. 22. Salave'a, a 255-pound sophomore defensive tackle, was whisked by ambulance at halftime to nearby University Medical Center for X-rays on his wrist, fearing it was broken.
"Hurry," he told the emergency room staff. "I've got to get back to the game."
The staff obliged, X-rays turned out negative, and Salave'a returned to the field in time for the fourth quarter, able to play with a dislocated left wrist.
With the Wildcats protecting a 24-17 lead, Salave'a sacked UCLA quarterback Wayne Cook, knocking the ball loose. The Bruins recovered for an 18-yard loss. Two plays later, Salave'a chased receiver Avery Anderson 12 yards downfield, knocking the ball loose again.
This time, Arizona recovered and returned the ball to the UCLA 26.
Arizona players rushed off the sideline to mob Salave'a.
The Wildcats went on to win 34-24.
That never-say-die, gotta-play-hurt attitude marked Salave'a's Arizona career, from 1994 to 1997. When coach Dick Tomey affectionately referred to some of those hard-hat teams as "A bunch of Joes," he wasn't specifically talking about Salave'a, but the first name sure fit.
And now the ex-Wildcat is a Wildcat again.
Coach Mike Stoops moved quickly to hire Salave'a after defensive tackles coach Mike Tuiasosopo left after the regular season for Colorado. Big Joe worked a few practices in Tucson before the team took a holiday break, with the Wildcats reconvening in San Antonio on Christmas Eve in advance of the Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl against Oklahoma State.
"He's awesome. Absolutely awesome," defensive coordinator Tim Kish said of Salave'a. "He's got a lot of juice to him, and he's inspiring. We were very fortunate to get Joe."
Salave'a had a nine-year NFL career and then rejoined Tomey at San Jose State to coach the defensive line in 2008 and 2009. Salave'a was out of a job when Tomey retired and was out of coaching this season.
Salave'a said he was gauging interesting from some Pac-10 schools when the Arizona job opened, and he dropped everything else to pursue this position.
He is taking that passion he had as a player and quickly translating it to the field as a coach.
"The first couple of days he was here, we learned a lot," said senior defensive tackle Lolomana Mikaele. "He got right on us. He taught us some good stuff that hadn't been done at all. I don't think he's shy."
It's unusual to have a new coach in place for a bowl game, but Salave'a is cutting through any awkward getting-to-know-you phase by being himself, being direct.
"I don't have any fluff about me," Salave'a said.
"I'm right to the point and I shoot from the hip. That's why I like Coach Stoops. What you see is what you get. If there is a concern, it's going to be corrected. We're going to lay it all on the table. Guys have to be responsible enough to respond to that.
"If you're one of those soft-hearted kind of players, it's probably not going to work out."
Salave'a, 35, inherits plenty of young talent at defensive tackle.
Justin Washington earned some national Freshman All-American honors this season. Another redshirt freshman, Sione Tuihalamaka, started a couple of games when Washington was injured. Junior college transfer Willie Mobley, who began his career at Ohio State, didn't have a huge impact, but he's only a sophomore.
True freshman Aiulua Fanene -- whose older brother, Jonathan Fanene, plays for the Cincinnati Bengals -- is the team's scout team defensive player of the year.
Fanene, like Salave'a, is from American Samoa. Salave'a, who has already been on the phones working the recruiting game, is expected to maintain -- or improve -- the Polynesian pipeline that has re-flowed to Arizona under Stoops.
Salave'a has instant brand-name recognition in the Polynesian community because of his NFL career and because he has run the Joe Salave'a Foundation, which has held free football clinics in Samoa and Hawaii since 2001.
"Yes, he is ... yes, he is," Mikaele said when asked if Salave'a was well-known among the Polynesian community.
"In the Polynesian community, everyone follows each other, especially if they're doing good. Coach Joe, I had heard of him since I was in Hawaii. I knew who he was, and I had seen him play before. I know he's all about work, man."
Mikaele has that right, even if he's never heard the story from 1994. But that same fire still burns inside Salave'a 16 years later.
"To me, this is a personal thing," Salave'a said.
"Here is a program that gave me more than I gave it back. I'm more motivated in that regard now to really contribute to the success of the program that Coach Stoops and the guys have established."
