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The Wildcats were confident in their returners, along with the freshmen from the 2026 recruiting class, who are all early enrollees this spring. 

In total, Arizona is returning 3,321 defensive snaps worth of experience to its defensive line, including 1,610 from sixth-year defensive end Tre Smith. Sophomore Mays Pese, senior Leroy Palu and redshirt juniors Dominic Lolesio and Julian Savaiinaea return as mainstays in Arizona's defense. 

The only addition via the transfer portal was Cal Poly defensive end Victory Johnson, who has received second-team reps this spring. 

The 6-4, 250-pound Johnson is a former three-star recruit from San Diego and started his career at Colorado in 2023 following a productive career at Cathedral Catholic.

Johnson transferred to Cal Poly and logged 26 tackles, three sacks, two pass deflections and an interception this past season. Johnson was named a second-team All-Big Sky selection this past season. 

Johnson "has been a pleasant addition," said defensive line coach Joe Salave'a

"He's played enough college football and he's also an older player that gives our room just enough of a veteran mentality." 

Arizona's only other additions on the defensive line this season are junior college transfer Kevin Moorer, who's joining the team in the summer, and freshmen Keytrin Harris, Prince Williams and Kaisi Lafitaga. 

To help the youngsters adapt to Arizona's culture and the Power 4 lifestyle, "we just give them tips and tricks," Palu said.

"Coming out of high school, it's way different to pick up things on the college level," Palu said. "We always tell them to get extra film in, get an extra workout in, get an extra meal in. ... We're always telling them to watch what we do and do it better than us." 

The freshmen "bring an athletic trait to them and they're also going to push some of the older guys for playing time," Salave'a said. 

Williams comes to Arizona following a prolific career at national powerhouse Bishop Gorman High School. Williams was named the Nevada Player of the Year after leading Bishop Gorman to its fifth straight state championship. The 6-3, 264-pound Williams had 265 tackles and 34 sacks in his four-year career with the Gaels. 

Williams "is a young man who is explosive off the ball, good balance, but his tenacity, his physicality, it's one you can't overlook," Salave'a said.

"His short-area quickness and his violence at the point of attack was what drew me three years ago," Salave'a added. "You can tell that he carries himself with a certain presence, but he also brings a lot of joy to the room. As a young player, that's rare. You come in, you're unproven, but he's one that's all about the work. ... Those are ones you don't have to tell him to go.

"Those are the ones you want to recruit. I'm excited for him and looking forward to him getting on the grass and make his case of where he needs to be when we kick this season off. ... He's got overwhelming tenacity to lead by example. ... I'm excited he's in our room. He's being challenged. He's going to be pushed to his limits, but he just needs to be vulnerable and allow me to push him. I think the sky's the limit for that young man." 

Harris, a Los Angeles-area native who finished his high school career at AZ Compass Prep in Chandler, has a college-ready frame at 6-6, 318 pounds, but Salave'a said, "It's unfair to put a whole lot of stock into that young man, because he just got here."

The veterans are taking the freshman defensive tackle under their wing. 

"The neat thing is, you've got Tre Smith, Mays and Leroy pouring into him, because he has those athletic traits," Salave'a said of Harris. "He has a high ceiling, but he also has to earn it. You earn what you keep, but you gotta be on the field. The cool thing about the young man is that he's all about the work. I think we have a good balance in the room with the older and the young (players). ... We gotta continue getting him to football shape. That's the biggest equalizer for Keytrin."

Lafitaga has been "one of the surprises" this spring, according to Salave'a. The 6-2, 301-pound Lafitaga, whose first name is pronounced kah-ee-see, is an early enrollee from Pago Pago, American Samoa. 

Williams, Harris and Lafitaga "truly need an older-brother temperature in the room, so they're always on their Ps and Qs," said Salave'a. "They gotta outplay those guys as well."

Between the returners and the rising newcomers, the UA coaching staff is confident Arizona's defensive line will have a productive unit this season. 

"We're always going to evaluate our guys on the daily, because the line of scrimmage is where we're going to win some of these close wins and lose some of these hard-fought games," Salave'a said. "We've talked about each and every player, about where they stack and how we can improve. We're always looking for the best fit, too. We can't bring talent to Tucson and to the University of Arizona if they don't fit the culture that Coach (Brent) Brennan has established here.

"That is the other piece, we're moving in a very meticulous way and not just getting kids that are talented. That character has to supersede the talent, because this is not a daycare center.

"We work hard, we train hard and it's tailor made for young men that are serious about academics and serious about competing at a high level. ... We're going to continue to recruit at a high level in the room. We're not going to sit and be content. We need to improve and it starts up front."