Reports: LSU to hire veteran NFL assistant to coach defensive line this season
By Keith Farner
Published:
LSU has reportedly made a hire to fill the void left by one of its assistants being limited while recovering from offseason basketball injuries.
FootballScoop and Bruce Feldman of The Athletic reported that the Tigers will hire Bill Johnson, a veteran NFL assistant, who most recently coached with the Los Angeles Rams. Johnson will step in for LSU’s full-time defensive line coach Dennis Johnson while he recovers from tearing both his patellar tendons playing pick-up basketball in July.
It’s a homecoming of sorts for Bill Johnson, 64, a native of Monroe, Louisiana. He attended Northwestern State, and later coached at McNeese State, Louisiana Tech, Arkansas and Texas A&M.
Bill Johnson has been a mentor to LSU coach Ed Orgeron since he coached him in college, Feldman reported.
Bill Johnson’s NFL resume as DL coach includes:
Falcons (2001–2006)
Broncos (2007–2008)
Saints (2009–2016)
Rams (2017–2018)
Bill Johnson was not retained to the Rams’ staff after last season.
SOURCE: #LSU is hiring Bill Johnson as D-line coach, taking over for Dennis Johnson who’s recovering from leg injuries. The 64-yr old spent the past two decades in the NFL coaching DL. He has been a mentor to Ed Orgeron, going back to his days coaching him in college.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) August 15, 2019
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
