We covered LSU Legend Kevin Faulk’s hiring as Running Backs Coach, replacing the great Tommie Robinson, although in replacing Faulk’s former title of Director of Player Development, Orgeron found the perfect man for the job in former LSU and NFL linebacking phenom Kelvin Sheppard.
Ranking as the Tigers’ 9th all-time leading tackler in program history, Shepp is a knockout hire for the position of D.O.P.D:
Kelvin Sheppard is a guy who came to Baton Rouge, Louisiana as a young man, suddenly finding himself a few states away from his native Georgia while still in his teens.
In an interview with Jordy Culotta, Sheppard detailed how he had issues and triumphs adjusting to these new surroundings and the homesickness which came with his arrival on campus in the mid 2000s, even going without seeing his family for 3 months at a time.
Throughout the interview, Sheppard let us all know these experiences uniquely qualify him for this role with a perspective that Faulk, a local boy, may not have uunderstood…and as Orgeron’s recruiting base becomes a vast, national sprawl, this “outsider” vantage point in such a high authoritative position may prove exceedingly valuable.
More than a psychological crutch for these players to lean on, Sheppard is living proof of success’s long, hard road:
This man went from the “guy waving the towel, basically the cheerleader on the bench” in his own words, to a bona fide team leader who played under Pelini and went on to have success in the NFL….he knows the journey, he’s walked the path…
This is the guy who can embrace these new signees and bestow his trials, tribulations, how he grinded to become the ultimate version of himself, in the end helping to guide these kids on how they can best accomplish their goals.
These players will undoubtedly look up to Shepp as Living LSU Proof of what can be done when one works and believes.
While matters in the facility fall into place under AD Scott “Tony” Woodward, the matters on the field geaux up another notch. As far as the coaching / support staff is concerned, if you need any indication of how hungry these 2020 Tigers are right now, just take the testimonial words of Mickey Joseph:
“These guys are in there at 5am working like we just went .500 last year,” WRs / assistant head coach Joseph said during an Off The Bench interview this past week, mentioning the analysts’ role in how increasingly productive the program has become.
As for the analysts, going into the offseason the questions were:
A) “What Do Analysts Do?”
B ) “Why Do They Matter?”
C) “Is This Some New Trend In Football?”
Not only do our analysts double or even triple the amount of work a coaching staff can accomplish in a week, they provide innovative ideas to a staff already rife with ingenuity.
Coming into the post-Championship deathbomb salute, the worrying signs for many were “Why and How are LSU losing so many analysts?”
The answer is simply “The analysts we were hiring were good enough to become coaches…” a stunning rarity and now a growing trend in Baton Rouge.
QBs’ analyst Jorge Munoz and defensive line coach / consultant Dennis “Meatball” Johnson have taken off for Dave Aranda’s Baylor, offensive analyst Blaine Gautier took the WRs’ job at McNeese, and we also lose another well-loved graduate assistant in John DeCoster.
Much like the button pressing Orgeron’s done the last two years, he’s pressed all the right ones in 2020:
Among the 2020 arrivals are two former Orgeron players joining the staff as graduate assistants, former #18 Christian LaCoutoure and fan-favorite Dwayne Thomas. LaCoutoure will help Bill Johnson on the defensive line, while Thomas, the hard-hitting cornerback during his time at LSU, will intern under Corey Raymond in the secondary.
Also, Louisiana-Monroe graduate Alec Osbourne, another coaching prospect with ties to NWState / McNeese State, will work closely with Pelini and the LBs’.
The analysts’ staff, which now blankets the 10 man sideline staff and includes six women led by Assistant AD and Recruiting Coordinators Sharon Lewis and Keva-Soil Cormier (Alabama have 0 women on their staff or support staff), includes Joe Brady’s good friend from William & Mary’s D.J Mangus (the guy always seen on Brady’s right in the booth), 22 year college coaching veteran and former Dallas Cowboy Mark Hutson helping out James Cregg on the offensive line, Russ Callaway, a 2x National Champion as an analyst with Alabama, and even coach’s son Tyler Spotts-Orgeron are now offensive analysts…
Still, for those wondering about Joe Brady’s void in the passing game, we introduced you to Scott Linehan’s expertise in our Offensive Preview, but for the still-skeptical….we really need to announce Carter Sheridan‘s debut upon the LSU scene.
Read the entire article at LSU SPRING PRACTICE OPENS WITH A VENGEANCE
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