LSU Football: Tigers could fill two vacancies if they land Barry Odom

LSU football is still looking for a replacement for Bo Pelini.

LSU football‘s search for a new defensive coordinator continued this weekend after they failed to swipe Marcus Freeman from the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Freeman opted to take the defensive coordinator job at Notre Dame instead of joining the Tigers.

With the search back to square one, I think the most likely top target for LSU is Arkansas defensive coordinator Barry Odom, a coach that Orgeron “covets”.

It was previously reported that Odom is staying on Sam Pittman’s staff at Arkansas.

But anyone who follows college football knows that no assistant coach is ever truly “locked in”. If the money and other factors are right, a coach will make a move.

I don’t know if the Tigers will be able to swipe Odom from Arkansas, but I wouldn’t rule out some conversations taking place.

LSU football could fill two vacancies if they land Odom

If LSU somehow manages to convince Odom to come to Baton Rouge, there’s a good chance they’d also get the Razorbacks’ defensive line coach (the Tigers currently have a defensive line coach vacancy).

Derrick LeBlanc currently works under Odom as the defensive line coach at Arkansas. LeBlanc joined the Razorbacks’ staff in 2020 after a three-year stint as Kentucky’s defensive line coach.

LeBlanc is a Louisiana native who was a graduate assistant at LSU in 2000. He was the Tigers’ assistant strength and conditioning coordinator from 2008-2011.

If Odom comes to LSU, it would certainly be nice — for continuity purposes — for at least one other coach from Arkansas to come along, too.

LeBlanc would be a perfect option, thanks to his existing ties to LSU.

Killing two birds with one stone while getting a coach that Orgeron “covets” would absolutely be a huge win for the Tigers.