With Arizona’s secondary carrying plenty of uncertainty into camp, Jay’Vion Cole stands out as the one piece the Wildcats can count on. That’s why he lands at No. 5 on the list of Arizona’s most important players for 2026.
Cole’s first season in Tucson was a productive one. The redshirt junior played in 11 games and made three starts, earning Third Team All-Big 12 honors.
He tied for the team lead with four interceptions and added four pass breakups, finishing with 23 total tackles - 16 solo and seven assisted - along with three tackles for loss, one sack and one forced fumble. His picks came against Weber State, Oklahoma State, at Colorado and at No.
22 Cincinnati.
He was a big reason Arizona’s secondary put together one of the strongest statistical seasons in the country. The Wildcats finished first nationally in team pass efficiency defense at 97.20, second in interceptions with 22 and seventh in pass defense at 165.3 yards per game. Cole also logged multiple tackles in five straight games and posted an 86.3 PFF grade for the season, the second-best mark on the team.
The case for Cole in 2026 is simple: Arizona has questions almost everywhere else in the back end, but not here. The Wildcats have to replace nearly all of their starting safeties and multiple corners, and Cole gives them a proven presence at a critical spot. There will be competition for the other corner job, and younger players will get chances, but Cole is the one player who can steady the group from the start.
That stability matters even more because the coaching staff clearly expects him to be one of the better cornerbacks in the Big 12. This isn’t just a veteran being handed a role because of his age. Arizona believes Cole can be a difference-maker, and that confidence shows in how the staff talks about him.
Cornerbacks coach Chip Viney put it this way: " He is a young man who was really a part-time starter for us and accepted that role, but was able to take the field when we needed him whether it was as a starter or coming off the bench and perform," Arizona cornerbacks coach Chip Viney said. "He ended up becoming all-conference, but he has matured and taken full control of that room.
He is leading these guys into the season. Limited or not, Jay'vion is gaining as much experience off the field because now he is like a coach and sitting in on all the meetings.
We go to position meetings and he is spending time with the defensive line, linebackers, and safeties really learning the system because he has time to right now. We expect big things from him come this year.
I am really excited for him in his last season."
The list also includes Zach Henning at No. 13, Gavin Hunter at No.
12, Giovanni Richardson at No. 11, Malcolm Hartzog Jr. at No.
10, Tristan Bounds at No. 9, Chase Kennedy at No. 8 and Tre Spivey at No.
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Even with those two penciled in, the real intrigue is behind them. Several backups and newcomers are set to compete for snaps, and Everett Roussaw Jr. is among the names to watch as camp opens. For Arizona, the value of that battle goes beyond depth chart curiosity, because the Wildcats still need dependable answers in a room that could look much deeper by the time August settles in. [Read more 🡒]