Ed Orgeron talks up LSU's new assistant defensive line coach Manny Michel
Just when you thought LSU’s rotation of defensive line coaches couldn’t get any stronger, Ed Orgeron has gone out and added another veteran assistant to his staff in Baton Rouge.
The latest coach to land a spot on the defending national champions coaching staff is defensive line coach, Manny Michel. Michel comes to Baton Rouge with nearly 30 years of coaching experience, which includes two stops at Louisiana-Monroe in addition to experience working at Nicholls State, McNeese State and John Curtis Christian High School.
The way Ed Orgeron tells it, during a recent appearance on ESPN Baton Rouge radio show “Off The Bench,” Michel has a reputation similar to another former LSU defensive line coach.
“Manny Michel is a longtime assistant football coach in the state of Louisiana, started at John Curtis. Everybody calls him the little Pete Jenkins, he knows all of Pete’s stuff… been a tremendous recruiter, knows Louisiana in and out, he’s with us as an analyst,” Orgeron said during his appearance on the show. “I think him, along with Bennie Logan — who I think is phenomenal to have on our staff, Christian LaCouture, Bill Johnson and myself, the defensive line is going to get a lot of attention — which it needs to.”
Considering Orgeron’s outstanding track record of coaching the position, praise coming from the LSU head coach means more than it would from most other coaches from around the SEC. It also says a lot about Michel’s ability to coach the position that Orgeron was willing to add him to the staff in Baton Rouge given all the other defensive line coaches on staff for 2020.
With the Tigers moving to the 4-3 defense under Bo Pelini’s leadership, one thing is certain, LSU won’t lack the necessary coaching on the defensive line to excel in the new system.