TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State University Head Football Coach Todd Graham has hired Joe Seumalo as the program’s defensive line coach, Coach Graham announced Tuesday.
“While Joe’s accomplishments and accolades over the years, especially during his time in Corvallis, speak for themselves, it’s who he is off the field that will truly benefit this program,” Coach Graham said. “He’s a gifted recruiter with deep ties across the West, and a proven developer of young men who gets the most out of his players. Joe will be a great fit in both this defense and this community.”
Seumalo (pronounced “say-u-MAH-lo”) spent nine seasons as the defensive line coach at Oregon State and his position group from 2006-14 was one of the most dominant units in the nation. He served as the defensive line coach at UNLV during the 2015 season.
“There is a long list of reasons why I decided to become a Sun Devil, but some of the aspects that really stood out to me were Coach Graham’s defensive philosophy, the diverse and talented staff he has established, and a school and community that truly love their football program,” Seumalo said. “I’m looking forward to getting to work.”
In nine seasons with the Beavers he produced 17 Pac-10/12 All-Conference recipients, including five first-team honorees, five National Football League draft picks, three All-Americans, two freshman All-Americans, and six conference all-academic first-team selections. At least one defensive lineman earned all-conference honors in each of Seumalo’s seasons in Corvallis, including all four starters in 2007.
Seumalo, who was ranked by Rivals.com as one of the top recruiters in the Pac-12 in 2013, mentored some of the most imposing defensive lineman in conference history, including Stephen Paea, a second-round draft pick by the Chicago Bears in 2011, and 2014 third-round selection Scott Crichton.
Paea, who played for the Beavers from 2008-10, was a two-time Morris Trophy winner, a consensus All-American and Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 2010, and two-time First-Team All-Pac-10 honoree. Crichton, a three-time all-conference defensive lineman from 2011-13, was a freshman All-American in 2011 as he set a school record with six forced fumbles and went on to earn honorable mention All-America recognition in consecutive seasons from 2012-13.
The Beavers ranked second in the conference and 20th in the nation in scoring defense in 2012 as they held opponents under 21 points per game and nearly set the school record for fewest overall points allowed for a 13-game season. The defense held four opponents under 10 points, the most for the program since 2000, and were third in the Pac-12 in both total defense and rushing defense as Crichton and Andrew Seumalo, Joe’s son, earned All-Pac-12 First Team and Honorable Mention recognition, respectively.
A pair of freshman All-Americans on the defensive line paced OSU in 2011 as Crichton forced a school-record six fumbles and Dylan Wynn recovered a school-record five fumbles. OSU’s rushing defense ranked among the top 25 in the nation in 2009 and Paea, who earned the first of his two Morris Trophy, helped the Beavers play in its fourth consecutive bowl game.
In 2008, OSU ranked second in the Pac-10 in fewest yards allowed per game and sacks, and fifth in yards lost via tackles for loss behind a trio of All-Pac-10 recipients, including fourth-round selections Victor Butler and Slade Norris. Butler set a school record with 21.5 tackles for loss and tied the program’s top marks in both sacks with 12 and forced fumbles with four to lead a defense that was the only unit that season to hold an opponent scoreless in a bowl game as they shutout Pittsburgh in the Sun Bowl.
OSU led the nation in run defense in 2007 as it held opponents to just under 71 yards per game and ranked fourth in sacks, sixth in tackles for loss, and eighth in total defense. Seumalo’s line led a defensive charge that kept 12 of the Beavers’ 13 opponents under their season average for rushing yards.
The Beavers were first in the Pac-10 in sacks and led the nation in tackles-for-loss yardage in Seumalo’s first season in Corvallis, which produced two of the most memorable plays in OSU history. Defensive linemen Ben Siegert block a school-record two kicks in a win over Oregon, and Jeff Van Orsow deflected John David Booty’s two-point conversion to preserve the team’s 33-13 win against USC and end the Trojans’ 38-game regular season and 27-game conference winning streaks.
Seumalo’s Pac-10/12 All-Conference Honorees
2014
Dylan Wynn (Second Team)
2013
Scott Crichton (Second Team)
2012
Crichton (First Team)
Andrew Seumalo (Honorable Mention)
2011
Crichton (Honorable Mention)
2010
Stephen Paea (First Team)
Gabe Miller (Honorable Mention)
2009
Paea (First Team)
2008
Victor Butler (First Team)
Slade Norris (Honorable Mention
Paea (Honorable Mention)
2007
Dorian Smith (First Team)
Jeff Van Orsow (Second Team)
Chris Coker (Honorable Mention)
Gerard Lee (Honorable Mention)
2006
Ben Siegert (Honorable Mention)
Van Orsow (Honorable Mention)
Seumalo’s NFL Draft Picks
Scott Crichton – 3rd round (72nd overall) – 2014
Stephen Paea – 2nd round (53rd overall) – 2011
Gabe Miller – 5th round (140th overall) – 2011
Victor Butler – 4th round (110th overall) – 2008
Slade Norris – 4th round (126th overall) – 2008
Chris Gocong – 3rd round (71st overall) - 2006
Prior to his stint at OSU, Seumalo was the defensive line coach at San Jose State in 2005 and spent four years as the defensive line coach at Cal Poly from 2001-04.
He helped put together one of the top defenses in Division I-AA at Cal Poly as the Mustangs finished third in the nation in rushing defense and ninth in scoring defense in his final season in 2004. He mentored All-American Chris Gocong, who led all I-AA players with 17.5 sacks and was second in tackles-for-loss at 21.5. Overall, the Mustangs averaged 39 sacks per season in Seumalo’s four years.
Seumalo began his coaching career in 1994 Kaiser High School in Honolulu, and also served as a guest coach for the Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League in 1996 and the Hawai’I Hammerheads of the Indoor Football League in 1999.
He returned to his alma mater in 1999, where he was a graduate assistant for two seasons from 1999-2000 and worked with defensive ends and special teams.
A 1995 graduate of Hawai’i, Seumalo played defensive line for the Rainbow Warriors from 1985-88 and earned Second Team All-Western Athletic Conference honors as a senior. He made three stops in the Canadian Football League, including the Calgary Stampeders and Ottawa Roughriders in 1989, and the Edmonton Eskimos in 1994, and played for NFL Europe’s Rhein Fire in 1995.
Seumalo and his wife, Karen, have four sons, Andrew, Isaac, Noah, and Levi, and a daughter, Jessi. Andrew was a four-year letterwinner at defensive tackle for OSU from 2009-12, and Isaac a three-year letterwinner at offensive tackle for the Beavers from 2012-15.