Nebraska defensive back Malcolm Hartzog runs after an interception against Ohio State, Oct. 26, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio.
Jay LaPrete, Associated Press
“Losing those guys in the secondary between Genesis, Dalton and Treydan, and then you lose guys on the outside in Michael Dansby and Ayden Garnes, those are five players who did a phenomenal job for our football team, so we had to address that — and I thought we did an outstanding job of what we brought in,” Gonzales said.
Between the transfer portal and the ’26 recruiting class, the Wildcats signed nine defensive backs — seven from the transfer portal.
Austin (Oregon), Hartzog (Nebraska), Boss (Wyoming), Chapa (Northern Colorado), Molette (UConn), Bootle (Charlotte) and Watson (Howard) are Arizona’s newcomers from the transfer portal.
Between Hartzog (1,700 defensive snaps), Chapa (1,495), Molette (1,354), Boss (643), Watson (598), Bootle (461) and Austin (248), Arizona is adding a combined 6,499 defensive snaps of experience to its defensive secondary via the transfer portal, according to PFF.
Hartzog, Molette and Chapa — who all play safety — are the most experienced defensive backs the Wildcats are bringing in. Hartzog and Austin, “those guys have played at the Power 4 level and have significant snaps,” Gonzales said earlier this year.
Hartzog, who had a game-sealing interception against Cincinnati in 2025, recorded 108 tackles, 4½ tackles for loss, 21 pass deflections and eight interceptions during his four-year career at Nebraska. Hartzog played multiple positions in Nebraska’s secondary, including 909 snaps at cornerback, 474 snaps at slot cornerback, 237 snaps at strong safety and 67 at free safety.
The 6-foot, 194-pound Austin — despite having a limited role in Oregon’s secondary for the last three seasons — was a highly touted recruit in 2023.