15 days. That’s how long it took for LSU coach Brian Kelly to rebuild his defensive coaching staff.
Kelly was quick to act to fire defensive coordinator Matt House and three other assistants’ coaches. It happened two days after the bowl win versus Wisconsin.
Kelly was then deliberate and decisive in putting together a new staff.
The first piece was finding a new defensive coordinator. Kelly knew who he wanted. Two days after firing House, LSU announced it was hiring Blake Baker from Missouri. Baker turned around a poor defense at Missouri and made them one of the better units in the SEC.
Kelly then focused on the defensive line, bringing back former LSU Tiger Bo Davis, after successful stints as a D-line coach at Texas and Alabama.
The next domino to fall was Kevin Peoples, who Baker brought with him from Missouri. Peoples will be the edge rushers coach at LSU after doing good work in developing pass rushers at Missouri and previously at Indiana.
It was long rumored former LSU defensive back and ex-secondary and cornerbacks coach Corey Raymond would return to Baton Rouge. The hiring of Raymond was officially announced Wednesday afternoon.
The final piece to the puzzle is the hiring of Jake Olsen, who will serve as safeties coach. He’s another one following Baker from Missouri, where he was a defensive analyst.
All of the coaches on defense have ties to Louisiana. They either were born in the Bayou State, played at LSU, coached at LSU, or coached at another Louisiana school.
Three of the coaches were on LSU’s 2021 staff, Baker, Raymond. and Olsen.
They were not retained when Kelly was hired. You wonder if Kelly has regrets, he didn’t keep them around. If he did, LSU’s defense may not have sunk so low.
LSU executive director of external relations, Verge Ausberry, told me Kelly wanted to keep Baker, who served as LSU’s linebackers coach in 2021, but it just didn’t work out and they lost him because of a numbers game, didn’t have a spot for him.
LSU is paying a heavy price for this new defensive coaching staff, five million dollars for House and three of his assistants to go away. Baker is now the highest paid assistant coach in the country. Davis will be one of the highest paid position coaches.
But Kelly is betting it will work. Based on their credentials, he’s got an All-Star group of coaches on defense, especially when you look at the NFL players that Davis and Raymond developed.
The biggest criticism of the previous coaching staff was the lack of development, especially during the 2023 season. It appears Kelly has solved that problem.
