Following a disappointing season in which the Ducks defense ranked third-worst nationwide, Oregon officially hired Jim Leavitt to replace Brady Hoke as defensive coordinator.
The new hire became official just over a week after the Ducks hired former South Florida coach Willie Taggart to replace Mark Helfrich as head coach.
In 2015, Leavitt left his position as the San Francisco 49ers linebackers coach to take the defensive coordinator job at Colorado. Before he arrived in Boulder, the Buffaloes ranked second to last in the Pac-12 in both scoring defense and total defense, allowing 6.55 yards per play and 39.0 points per game. Under Leavitt in 2016, the Buffaloes ranked second and third in the Pac-12 in those categories. Colorado ranked eighth nationally in yards per play allowed (4.69) and 18th in scoring defense (20.5).
Leavitt was also previously the defensive coordinator at Kansas State and the first head coach at South Florida from 1996–2009. He led the Bulls to their first-ever bowl game victory over East Carolina in 2006.
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