Jordan Paopao (born June 25, 1986) is American football coach who is the current

tight ends The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

coach and special teams coordinator for the Washington Huskies. He previously coached at Arizona, UNLV, Azusa. He also was a recruiting assistant for

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...

. Paopao played college at San Diego Toreros as an offensive lineman.

Coaching career

Stanford Cardinals

Paopao served as a recruiting assistant under

Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh (; born December 23, 1963) is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current and 20th head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines. He played college football at Michigan from 1983 to 1986. He play ...

, who coached him during his playing career at his time playing during college at the San Diego Toreros.

Azusa Pacific Cougars

In 2010, Paopao served as the recruiting coordinator, offensive line coach and run game coordinator for the

Azusa Pacific Azusa Pacific University (APU) is a private, evangelical Christian university in Azusa, California. The university was founded in 1899, with classes opening on March 3, 1900, in Whittier, California, and began offering degrees in 1939. The unive ...

Washington Huskies

In 2011, Paopao was hired as the graduate assistant and tight ends coach for the Washington Huskies. In January 2013, Paopao took on the role of UW tight ends coach, following two seasons as a graduate assistant at Washington. During his time as a graduate assistant, he also had responsibilities overseeing the tight ends. Paopao played a key role in coaching the Husky offense during the record-breaking 2016 season. The team achieved a remarkable 12–2 record, secured the Pac-12 Conference title, and earned a spot in the College Football Playoff. Notably, the Huskies set school records for touchdowns (77) and points (585), surpassing previous marks. Their scoring average of 41.8 points per game ranked first in the

Pac-12 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

and eighth nationally, just 0.1 points shy of the 1991 school record. Additionally, two of the team's tight ends, Darrell Daniels and Sample, received honorable mention All-Pac-12 recognition. During his two years as a graduate assistant, Paopao mentored various players, including tight end

Austin Seferian-Jenkins Austin Edward Seferian-Jenkins (born September 29, 1992) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Washington. He also played fo ...

. Seferian-Jenkins made significant contributions, breaking numerous UW single-season and career records for the tight end position. He holds school records for season (69) and career (110) receptions, season (850) and career (1,388) receiving yards, and career touchdowns (13) by a tight end. In the 2017 season, Paopao guided a talented group of tight ends, featuring Will Dissly, a fourth-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft and a second team All-Pac-12 selection. This marked the second occasion a tight end had been drafted under Paopao's guidance. Notably, Dissly was one of four former UW tight ends coached by Paopao participating in

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

fall camps the previous year. Unfortunately, Dissly's impactful season was cut short by a season-ending injury. Despite this setback, he had swiftly become a crucial element in the Seahawks' offense, scoring touchdowns in each of Seattle's first two games in the 2018 season. In 2018, Paopao's tight ends group comprised a substantial roster of contributors to Washington's offense. The team often deployed two or three tight ends simultaneously on the field. Senior Drew Sample received honorable mention All-Pac-12 recognition, showcasing his valuable contributions. Additionally, redshirt freshman

Cade Otton Cade Otton (born April 15, 1999) is an American football tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played college football at Washington before being selected by the Buccaneers in the fourth ...

emerged as a promising talent, while sophomore Hunter Bryant's return from injury later in the season played a pivotal role in the Huskies securing their second Pac-12 Football Championship Game in the last three years.

UNLV Rebels

Paopao joins UNLV Rebels football following a seven-season tenure as the tight end coach at Washington. His primary responsibility will be addressing the challenges of a special teams unit that ranked 111th nationally in 2019, according to FPI. Throughout his tenure with the Huskies.

Arizona Wildcats

In 2022, Paopao became part of

Jedd Fisch Jedd Ari Fisch (born May 5, 1976) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at the University of Arizona. Fisch previously served as the quarterbacks coach for the New England Patriots and as an assistant offensive coordinato ...

newly forming coaching staff at Arizona. During his short time at Arizona, he helped turn Tanner McLachlan into an all-conference pick.

Washington Huskies (second coaching stint)

On January 16, 2024, Paopao left Arizona to go follow coach

after the news that Fisch would be taking the head coaching job. Paopao was hired as the tight ends coach and the special teams' coordinator.

Personal life

Paopao is the nephew of former BC Lions quarterback,

Joe Paopao Joe Paopao (born June 30, 1955) is a former professional Canadian football quarterback and coach in the Canadian Football League (CFL). Paopao played 11 seasons in the CFL and was a member of the BC Lions, Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Ottaw ...

References

External links

San Diego Toreros player bioWashington Huskies coaching profileArizona Wildcats coaching profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paopao, Jordan 1986 births Living people Players of American football from Oceanside, California Coaches of American football from California American football offensive linemen San Diego Toreros football players Stanford Cardinal football coaches Azusa Pacific Cougars football coaches Washington Huskies football coaches UNLV Rebels football coaches Arizona Wildcats football coaches