Welcome Back Bo Pellini: LSU football’s new defensive coordinator
By Tony Thomas
Welcome back Bo Pellini: LSU football’s new defensive coordinator. He replaces Dave Aranda, who left to become the head coach at Baylor.
It will be Bo Pellini’s second stint with LSU football, having served the Tigers’ defensive coordinator from 2005-2007 under former head coach Les Miles.
Under Pellini, LSU had one of the best defenses in the country. His fiery demeanor on the sideline will be a complete “180” from the stone-faced, no expression look of Dave Aranda. Based on archived stats from NCAA.com, the Tigers defense played “lights out” during Pellini’s tenure:
Here’s a look at the numbers.
2005 Season
- #3 national ranking in total defense at 266 yards/game.
- #6 national ranking in rushing defense at 91.5 yards/game.
- #3 national ranking in scoring defense at 14.2 points/game.
- #11 national ranking in passing defense at 175 yards/game.
2006 Season
- #3 national ranking in total defense at 242 yards/game.
- #4 national ranking in scoring defense at 12.6 points/game.
- #3 national ranking in passing defense at 145 yards/game.
- #14 national ranking in rushing defense at 97 yards/game.
2007 Season (Won the BCS Championship)
- #3 national ranking in total defense at 289 yards/game.
- #9 national ranking in passing defense at 183 yards/game.
- #12 national ranking in rushing defense at 106 yards/game.
- #17 in national ranking in scoring defense at 20 points/game.
Note that LSU was ranked in top three in total defense in each of Pellini’s three years in Baton Rouge, culminating with a 38-24 win over Ohio State in the BCS Championship Game in January of 2008.
He coached many standouts on the Tigers defense, such as Glenn Dorsey, Tyson Jackson, and Craig Steltz, just to name a few.
The old adage goes “defense wins championships.” Indeed! The numbers shown above certainly reflect that.
When Pellini was here last, the LSU offense was productive as well, giving the team a balanced attack on both sides of the ball. Statistically, 2006 was their best year, according to NCAA.com. LSU ranked #9 in scoring offense (33 points/game), #11 in total offense (417 yards/game), #18 in passing offense (251 yards/game), and #31 in rushing offense (165 yards/game).
A look at the LSU roster on cfbstats.com shows Pellini will definitely have some talent to work with. Glen Logan and Tyler Shelvin return on the D-line, Damone Clark, Ray Thornton, and Micah Baskerville will compete at linebacker, and of course the secondary returns Derek Stingley, Kary Vincent Jr., and Jacoby Stevens.
Welcome back Bo Pellini: LSU’s new defensive coordinator. Can he duplicate the success from his first tour? We shall see.