Jay Sawvel earned himself some serious praise for the job he did in the Holiday Bowl.

The Minnesota defensive coordinator drew up the perfect defensive game-plan to lead the Gophers to an upset win against Washington State.

Unfortunately for Sawvel, he was a casualty of the Tracy Claeys firing. Fortunately for Sawvel, he landed on his feet just fine.

According to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, Sawvel accepted the defensive coordinator position at Wake Forest. Rittenberg reported that a deal was agreed upon early on Wednesday.

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Sawvel confirmed that news on his Twitter account:

Sawvel was only Minnesota’s defensive coordinator for one season, but he had plenty of success. The Gopher defense finished 21st in FBS in total yards allowed and scoring.

He was previously the Gophers defensive backs and special teams coach from 2011-15. The former Minnesota assistant also had those positions on Jerry Kill’s staffs at Northern Illinois and Southern Illinois.

New Minnesota coach PJ Fleck replaced Sawvel with former Arkansas defensive coordinator Robb Smith.