LSU and defensive coordinator Bo Pelini are expected to part ways this week, multiple sources confirm with The Advocate, ending a reunion that lasted just one season.
More staff changes are expected to occur, including the departure of security coach Bill Busch and the retirement of defense coach Bill Johnson. Cornerbacks coach Corey Raymond, an assistant on staff since 2012, is the only defensive coach left on the staff.
LSU coach Ed Orgeron has previously said he would evaluate his entire staff at the end of the season, which ended Saturday with a 53-48 win over Ole Miss to finish with a 5-5 overall record.
The big stir comes just a year after LSU won its fourth national championship, and it represents Orgeron’s urgency to restore the path to the title fight.
Pelini’s departure was the most anticipated departure in the football program.
The divorce is expected to be costly: Pelini will be guaranteed all of the remaining income in his $ 2.3 million three-year contract, which pegs his buyout to approximately $ 5.2 million.
LSU, like most athletics programs, has taken a huge financial hit as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and expects to lose $ 80 million in revenue this year. Orgeron was given a limited budget to buy out his staff, multiple sources said, and the Pelini buyout will take up most of it.
Orgeron expressed his frustration and disappointment with the discipline and schedules of the defense several times this season, although the criticism has often been accompanied by a belief that their overall performance could improve.
Pelini, a 53-year-old Ohio resident, arrived in Baton Rouge in January as Orgeron’s replacement for former defense coordinator Dave Aranda, who left the program to become the head coach at Baylor.
The hiring of Pelini represented Orgeron’s desire to move towards the defense philosophy he favored: a four-man front that attacks enemy backfields and produces a large number of tackles for loss, sacks and turnover.
It was Pelini’s second stint at LSU. He coordinated the Tigers’ defense from 2005-07, and left to be the head coach in Nebraska (2008-14) after LSU won the 2007 BCS National Championship.
Before returning to Baton Rouge, Pelini was the head coach at Youngstown State (2015-19), where he led his hometown college to the FCS National Championship Game in 2016. Pelini, comfortable in Ohio, said the culture of LSU ‘ suits me well. in a press release when he was hired, and the chance to re-coach the Tigers defense was enough to convince him to leave home.
Orgeron said at LSU’s spring coaching clinic that Pelini was the only coach he spoke to about the job. He had consulted their shared mentor, Pete Carroll, who told Orgeron that Pelini has “ the best defensive spirit of any coach I have ever coached with. ”
“We look forward to bringing his vast amount of knowledge and expertise back to LSU to continue to win championships,” Orgeron said in a press release regarding Pelini’s hiring.
Then the coronavirus pandemic canceled spring football practice and Pelini was forced to switch LSU from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 defense through a series of virtual sessions with players.
LSU returned to team activities in June, and the NCAA extended the preseason workout by two additional weeks to partially make up for lost spring workouts.
Orgeron said during the preseason “we are so much better at defense right now than at any part of the season last year,” a quote that led to further public investigation when things went wrong.
Bright spots against Arkansas and Texas A&M aside, the LSU defense recorded statistically historic lows, from the 623-yard record allowed in the Mississippi State opener to the most runs ever scored by Alabama against LSU.
Opt-outs, injuries, and illnesses also hit LSU’s defenses hard. Novice nickel safety Kary Vincent and defensive tackle Tyler Shelvin both declared for the NFL draft before the season began.
All-American cornerback Derek Stingley missed the Mississippi State game after spending the night in a hospital due to an unknown illness causing a reaction, and an injury kept Stingley out of the last two games of the season.
Indeed, Pelini’s plan was more volatile, ranking second nationally with 22 total forced turnovers while in the Top 50 in tackles for loss (63rd, 33rd) and sacks (24th, 32nd). But defense was deeply flawed, known for broken coverages, and registered school lows in points allowed per game (34.9) and yards allowed per game (492).
LSU also ranked last nationally with total plays in excess of 40 yards (14), more than 50 yards (6), and more than 90 yards (1).