Dave Aranda

David Christopher Aranda (born September 29, 1976) is an American football coach.

Born in Southern California to Mexican immigrant parents from Guadalajara, Aranda graduated from Redlands High School in Redlands, California in 1994, where he was a linebacker.

After high school, Aranda retired from playing football due to injuries, so he became an assistant coach at Redlands High in 1995.

He tried to join the U.S. Navy, but his football injuries—specifically the aftereffects of a shoulder fracture he had suffered in high school—caused him to fail the physical.

While coaching at his old high school, he also worked night shifts as a security guard.

During this time, Aranda visited a friend who was attending California Lutheran University, and soon enrolled there in an attempt to return to play.

While his injuries made it impossible for him to play, he got an opportunity to become a student assistant while an undergraduate, serving as linebackers coach for the Kingsmen from 1996 to 1999.

Aranda was also the roommate of Tom Herman.

It was Wisconsin's first road shutout since 1998.

Aranda graduated from Cal Lutheran in 1999 with a bachelor's degree in philosophy.

He also sought out coaches to talk about the profession, and became enamored with the book Thinking Body, Dancing Mind by sports psychologist Jerry Lynch, who has consulted with numerous championship teams in several sports and whose thinking has influenced coaches such as Phil Jackson and Steve Kerr.

In 2000, Aranda enrolled in graduate school at Texas Tech University and served as a graduate assistant for Texas Tech Red Raiders football from 2000 to 2002 under Mike Leach.

While back in Southern California during an offseason break in 2001, Aranda cold-called Lynch and asked for a face-to-face meeting with him in Santa Cruz, about 300 miles from Redlands.

In a 2022 ESPN story, Lynch, who normally works with teams instead of individuals, recalled, "There was something about Dave when he contacted me. I felt, through his words, a sense of being genuine, authentic and vulnerable. Those are the three keys that attract me to people. It's almost like, OK, I don't want to let this opportunity go by so I saw it as an opportunity for me to learn about this young man."

From 2003 to 2004, Aranda was linebackers coach at Houston.

He then returned to Cal Lutheran as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach, positions he held for the 2005 and 2006 seasons.

In 2007, Aranda was defensive coordinator and secondary coach for Delta State.

Following stints at California Lutheran and Delta State University, in 2008 he was tapped by his coaching mentor, Greg McMackin, to serve as the defensive line coach for the University of Hawaii Warriors.

In Aranda's first season, he cultivated a talented unit that included David Veikune, Joshua Leonard and Keala Watson.

In 2009, Aranda was credited with developing a creative defensive scheme that stymied Navy's vaunted rushing attack and allowed the Warriors to earn a 24–17 victory over a Midshipmen squad that defeated Notre Dame two weeks earlier.

The following year he was elevated to defensive coordinator.

He helped lead the Warriors to victory in nine of their last ten regular season games.

In those wins, Aranda's opportunistic defense limited the opposition to 16.1 points per game, only allowed 2.4 yards per rush and held Colin Kaepernick in check en route to handing the Nevada Wolf Pack its only loss of the season.

Under Aranda's guidance the Warriors led the nation in turnovers caused (38) and tied a school record for most defensive touchdowns (5).

Although the Warriors struggled to a 6–7 record in 2011, Aranda's defense was particularly impressive in a 34–17 drubbing of Colorado.

Leading up to the game, Colorado coach Jon Embree boasted that as to Hawaii's defense, the Buffaloes were going to "run the ball down their throat."

Aranda, who later acknowledged that he took Embree's comment personally, met the challenge head on and limited the boastful Buffaloes to just 17 net rushing yards on the night.

In 2012, Aranda was the defensive coordinator for one year for the Utah State Aggies under Gary Andersen.

When Gary Andersen was hired as the new Wisconsin Badgers head coach, following the 2012 football season, Aranda followed him to Wisconsin.

Aranda turned down offers from Texas Tech and California.

Aranda changed the Badgers' base defense from a 4–3 to a 3–4 and developed a more aggressive defense, putting pressure on the quarterback.

His first year as defensive coordinator the Badgers defense ranked in the top 20 in all four major defensive categories; scoring defense (6th), total defense (7th), rushing defense (5th) and passing defense (17th).

Aranda spent three days with Lynch, and they have maintained their relationship ever since, with Aranda having written the foreword to Lynch's 13th book, Everyday Champion Wisdom.

Week 10 of the 2014 football season Aranda was named Coordinator of the Week by Athlon Sports after his Wisconsin Badgers defense shutout Rutgers Scarlet Knights 37–0.

For the year, Aranda's defense led the Western Athletic Conference and was tied for 15th in the FBS in sacks (35).

At the conclusion of the season, he found himself on the wrong-side of the ledger and was fired after head coach Greg McMackin resigned.

Despite the circumstances, Aranda said later "I miss the family atmosphere there. I miss the people."

That same year he was a nominee for the Broyles Award as the Aggies defense finished in the top 15 of all FBS schools in all four major defensive categories; seventh in scoring defense (15.4 points per game), 13th in rushing defense (113.8 yards per game), eighth in pass-efficiency defense (14 interceptions, 12 touchdowns, 54.1% completion rate, 5.7 yards per attempt) and 14th in total defense (322.1 ypg).

He is the head football coach at Baylor University, a position he has held since 2020.

He previously served as the defensive coordinator at LSU, Wisconsin, Utah State, Hawaii, Delta State, and Cal Lutheran.