Raising Zona
FanSided

Arizona Cardinals Kliff Kingsbury and University of Arizona’s Kevin Sumlin grew together

By Avery Duncan

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 08: (L-R) Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Kliff Kingsbury quarterback Johnny Manziel of the Texas A&M University Aggies and head coach Kevin Sumlin pose after being named the 78th Heisman Memorial Trophy Award winner at a press conference at the Marriott Marquis on December 8, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 08: (L-R) Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Kliff Kingsbury quarterback Johnny Manziel of the Texas A&M University Aggies and head coach Kevin Sumlin pose after being named the 78th Heisman Memorial Trophy Award winner at a press conference at the Marriott Marquis on December 8, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury and University of Arizona’s head coach Kevin Sumlin grew as coaches together.

Coaches Kliff Kingsbury and Kevin Sumlin are on top of the Arizona football world. As the newly hired head coach for the Arizona Cardinals, Kingsbury is expected to revolutionize NFL offensive schemes. On the other hand, Kevin Sumlin struggled in his first season coaching for the Arizona Wildcats, but there is promise for his future in Tucson.

Both are already coached in Arizona, but what many don’t know is that the two coached and grew together back in Texas. Specifically, at the University of Houston.

In 2008, Sumlin was named as the head coach of the Houston Cougars. He brought the program to prominence with the help of two well-known coaches; Dana Holgorsen and Kliff Kingsbury. The three brought the Air Raid offense to Houston and saw immediate results as the team posted eye-popping statistics.

Led by Case Keenum, the Sumlin/Holgorsen/Kingsbury Air Raid offense was nothing short of dynamic. In the first two years of the trio, the team went 18-9 and posted two straight 5,000+ passing yard seasons. Most importantly, the team won a bowl game for their first time since 1980.

Holgorson was the offensive coordinator for the famed Keenum led team while Kingsbury was the offensive control coach. After Holgorsen moved on, Kingsbury along with Jason Phillips shared co-offensive coordinator duties and proceeded to continue the thriving Cougar offense.

The first year without Holgorsen was shaky. The Cougars went 5-7 as the offense’s hot streak ended when Keenum tore his ACL in the third game of the season. But, when he came back, the offense was as fiery as ever, and the team went 12-1 while Keenum broke NCAA passing records to the tune of 5,631 yards and 48 touchdowns to five interceptions.

Up until 2011, Kingsbury and Sumlin proved to be one of the hottest pairs of coaches in the nation and their valiant efforts were rewarded. The two moved on to Texas A&M in 2012 as Sumlin became head coach and Kingsbury was named his offensive coordinator.

Their schematics and coaching continued to prove fruitful in the college ranks. The results of their offense was a Heisman winning quarterback by the name of Johnny Manziel. After their successful season together, Kingsbury moved on to become the head coach at Texas Tech while Sumlin remained in College Station up until 2017.

Next. Tracking Patrick Peterson’s dramatic off-season. dark

Although Sumlin and Kingsbury will likely not be coaching together anytime soon, it’s interesting to see how their paths’ both wounded up in Arizona. In his first season as the head coach of the Wildcats, Sumlin went 5-7. Hopefully, Kingsbury could best his former mentor’s success in his first season as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.

Home/Cardinals News