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LSU has one of the highest-profile openings in college football as they search for a new defensive coordinator. John Chavis, who had been the defensive coordinator since 2009, left the Tigers last week to take a three-year deal with a pay bump at Texas A&M.
What should the Tigers be looking for in their search for a new defensive coordinator, one that already has several rumored and reported candidates?
- Coordinator experience — This should be somewhat of a given in the rough-and-tumble SEC West. The Tigers can’t afford to strike out on someone with little to no track record of success as a coordinator or head coach, as any misstep can spell doom in the toughest division in college football. Nearly all of the rumored candidates have experience as a defensive coordinator at the college or professional level, including current LSU defensive line coach Brick Haley, while the one big name who doesn’t, Ed Orgeron, has twice been a head coach. With LSU’s assistant coaches salary budget, Miles should be able to get whoever he wants for the job.
- A hot name — LSU can’t afford to just nab a flavor-of-the-month coordinator; the Tigers need someone that will get defensive players and fans excited with their track record. Fans are always restless when it comes to LSU football, and a strong hire would help to stop some of the howling about LSU’s coaching performance. More importantly, LSU needs someone who will get defensive recruits excited and the current crop of defensive players to stay in school.
- Strong recruiting track record — LSU sits in the middle of a recruiting hotbed, and it needs to be able to continue to take advantage of that. The Tigers have made a big jump in the recruiting rankings over the last week, thanks to a commitment from five-star wide receiver Tyron Johnson, but the defensive side of the ball has been struggling over the last week. LSU was scheduled to get a visit from five-star defensive tackle Daylon Mack, but Mack cancelled after the Chavis news. LSU also lost out on four-star defensive end Kyle Phillips over the weekend, despite recent commit Ugo Amadi’s claim that Phillips would be joining him at LSU. Miles needs to find a guy who can help give the recruiting class the final push it needs.
A former freelance journalist from Philadelphia, Brett has made the trek down to SEC country to cover the greatest conference in college football.
