Walker will stay at UCLA

Rick Neuheisel, hired as UCLA’s coach last weekend, sat in the Rose Bowl watching USC roll up 49 points in a victory over Illinois on Tuesday.

A day later, he announced Bruins defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker will be retained with a raise in pay. Defensive line coach Todd Howard and linebacker coach Chuck Bullough will stay as well, bringing back the nucleus of a defensive staff that has held the Trojans to 33 points in two games.

Walker had been a finalist for the head-coaching job.

“There are a lot of familiar faces in the athletic department from when I played at UCLA and coached here,” Neuheisel said. “Everyone in the department raved about these three guys.”

Neuheisel said that Walker “is a proven, top-notch defensive coordinator. I’m elated he has chosen to stay.”

The benefits go beyond Xs and O’s. By keeping Walker, Neuheisel stands a good chance of hanging onto a large chunk of the 2008 recruiting class. Walker and wide receiver coach Eric Scott were key to landing many of the local recruits, who have wavered some since Coach Karl Dorrell was fired.

The recruiting “was a very important part of keeping DeWayne,” Neuheisel said. “He was an integral part of getting many of these youngsters.”

Neuheisel was hopeful that many of the local recruits would visit UCLA this weekend. He will also continue to meet with assistant coaches to decide whether any others will remain.

The announcement ended days of talks between Neuheisel and Walker, who had a two-year offer from the University of Washington. Huskies Coach Tyrone Willingham was also prepared to hire Howard and Bullough.

Walker said that he was close to accepting the Washington deal but held off on a final decision because “I wanted to give Rick time to see if he could make it fit.”

The key to that was the retention of Howard and Bullough. Neuheisel signed off on keeping them after meeting with the two Wednesday.

Walker said that “Tyrone Willingham did a great job recruiting me and Todd and Chuck.”

But, he said, “at the end of the day, we had unfinished business. Apart from my family and the players and the recruits, I am confident we can get this thing done. I had to sit down and listen to Rick’s commitment to getting this program to a championship level. The reason I came back to college football was to be a defensive coordinator, but it was also to win a championship.”

Walker had held the program together after Dorrell was fired. He was the Bruins’ interim coach for the Las Vegas Bowl, which they lost, 17-16, to Brigham Young.

Neuheisel said that Walker, who made $330,000 last season, would receive a raise.

“Certainly, we want to reward him for the great work he has done here,” Neuheisel said. “We want DeWayne to feel appreciated.”

Neuheisel said Howard and Bullough were “two cornerstones of the defensive staff that have proved their mettle the last couple seasons. All three were coveted by other programs. The neat thing is they decided their work wasn’t done here.”

Walker arrived in Westwood and gave CPR to a defense that ranked 113th out of 117 Division I teams in total defense in 2005. The Bruins rose to 35th in the nation, with their masterpiece being a 13-9 victory over USC in 2006. It was the first time in 63 games that the Trojans had been held under 20 points.

The offers poured in after that game. Notre Dame’s Charlie Weis wanted Walker to become the Irish’s defensive coordinator. Stanford, which was looking for a head coach, also called. Walker had NFL offers to mull over as well.

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chris.foster@latimes.com