Well this was not the ideal day for this to happen personally as I was out of pocket most of the day traveling. In my first defensive staff update back in November, I mentioned that I was anticipating at least three to four changes on the defensive staff. As you all now know this morning, Brian Kelly informed those he was not bringing back. I've been on the road most of the morning, getting situated now and going to do some digging and start making some calls.
The Buyout - According to Yahoo! Sports' Ross Dellenger LSU is on the hook for a $5.4M buyout for the coaches they let go.
Here's what we've known and some reminders on what I've previously shared here in The Quad and some other notable names to monitor.
Names to Monitor
Blake Baker DC Missouri - I told you guys in an update back in November, that Brian Kelly has been in contact with Blake Baker. He was a name to watch for DC. Since that update and others afterward he has signed a contract extension with Missouri. I do not yet know the details of that contract extension and depending on the verbiage of what's laid out in that contract it could keep LSU from pursuing Baker. We know that Baker has interest in returning to Louisiana. He was gunning for the Tulane vacancy after Fritz left for UH. Baton Rouge would be a nice landing spot if he were to make a move to return to Louisiana. His wife is a former soccer player at LSU and as we've said multiple times now, he has desire to return to Louisiana. I reached out to our Missouri publisher to see what he's heard and with school being shutdown etc, he hasn't had his public records request filled yet. So not sure what's in his new extension verbiage wise, and that could ultimately determine whether or not he'd be a candidate. But given the contact from Kelly during the season, I'll say he's a name to monitor for now.
Lance Guidry DC Miami - Guidry was another name I heard starting back in November. The most interesting thing about his name being dropped was there were some position coaches' names that came in connection with it. I was also told that if Guidry ended up being the guy at DC he would likely coach Safeties. Not knowing the layout of Bakers recently signed extension, Guidry may be the most likely of the two.
Corey Raymond - He wasn't retained by current Florida head coach Billy Napier. He's a name we've been hearing time and time again. Definitely a name to watch for the cornerbacks position. His name was mentioned in connection with Guidry's in the conversations I've had. But doesn't necessarily have to be a package deal. He could realistically come in as a plug and play recruiter/coach from day one no matter what DC you bring in. I know there's been a lot of chatter on his work ethic and commitment, but his Louisiana ties are as deep as you can get and he's got a history of elite level recruiting. I was told that he still has a house in Baton Rouge, may already be back in Baton Rouge at this point. He too wanted to return to Louisiana and as previously mentioned in The Situation Room, he's only four years away from a Louisiana retirement and that's something we were told he wants. He's a guy that could come in and coach CB's but could also manage both CB's and Safeties. May require both, or a creative title to make it work financially for LSU. But logistically I think he'd be an ace hire especially if you just bring him in to coach CB's.
Bo Davis current DL Coach for Texas - Another name that was dropped when we first started talking about a defensive staff shakeup was Texas DL coach Bo Davis. He was another name mentioned in connection with Guidry, but his pedigree wouldn't require a package deal with Guidry either. I will say that if LSU wants to make a splash with Davis, it's going to cost some money. He's already making $1.3M at Texas, so LSU would likely have to make him one of the highest paid defensive line coaches to bring him back and I'm not sure that Texas is willing to let him walk that easy, so it could get expensive. May have to get creative with the title here too to make it work financially. This is another plug play recruiter/coach that would be an ace hire for Kelly if he can make it work.
Bob Diaco Special Team/Outside Linbackers LSU - Diaco is an interesting name that has worked with Kelly at four different stops now. Has a strong pedigree as both a DC and linebackers coach. Worked with Kelly as a DC at Central Michigan, Cincinatti and Notre Dame. He's a guy that Kelly trusts and given their history together should absolutely be a name to keep an eye on going forward. Especially if LSU misses on some of the other names on the list.
There's a few more names I've heard in connection this afternoon, but I think the majority of it is speculation and chatter. Still trying to weed out what's legitimate and what's not. So I'm going to be on the phones, doing some digging to see what we can come up with. We'll obviously update you with anything new, but knowing how Brian Kelly operates, I'm expecting information to be pretty limited, so I'll have to work sources elsewhere most likely. If I hear anything from the agent side of things, I'll probably share it with you but I'm going to specify it's agent chatter because I don't trust those guys. They deliberately create stuff all the time, I've seen it time and time again.
The Buyout - According to Yahoo! Sports' Ross Dellenger LSU is on the hook for a $5.4M buyout for the coaches they let go.
Here's what we've known and some reminders on what I've previously shared here in The Quad and some other notable names to monitor.
Names to Monitor
Blake Baker DC Missouri - I told you guys in an update back in November, that Brian Kelly has been in contact with Blake Baker. He was a name to watch for DC. Since that update and others afterward he has signed a contract extension with Missouri. I do not yet know the details of that contract extension and depending on the verbiage of what's laid out in that contract it could keep LSU from pursuing Baker. We know that Baker has interest in returning to Louisiana. He was gunning for the Tulane vacancy after Fritz left for UH. Baton Rouge would be a nice landing spot if he were to make a move to return to Louisiana. His wife is a former soccer player at LSU and as we've said multiple times now, he has desire to return to Louisiana. I reached out to our Missouri publisher to see what he's heard and with school being shutdown etc, he hasn't had his public records request filled yet. So not sure what's in his new extension verbiage wise, and that could ultimately determine whether or not he'd be a candidate. But given the contact from Kelly during the season, I'll say he's a name to monitor for now.
Lance Guidry DC Miami - Guidry was another name I heard starting back in November. The most interesting thing about his name being dropped was there were some position coaches' names that came in connection with it. I was also told that if Guidry ended up being the guy at DC he would likely coach Safeties. Not knowing the layout of Bakers recently signed extension, Guidry may be the most likely of the two.
Corey Raymond - He wasn't retained by current Florida head coach Billy Napier. He's a name we've been hearing time and time again. Definitely a name to watch for the cornerbacks position. His name was mentioned in connection with Guidry's in the conversations I've had. But doesn't necessarily have to be a package deal. He could realistically come in as a plug and play recruiter/coach from day one no matter what DC you bring in. I know there's been a lot of chatter on his work ethic and commitment, but his Louisiana ties are as deep as you can get and he's got a history of elite level recruiting. I was told that he still has a house in Baton Rouge, may already be back in Baton Rouge at this point. He too wanted to return to Louisiana and as previously mentioned in The Situation Room, he's only four years away from a Louisiana retirement and that's something we were told he wants. He's a guy that could come in and coach CB's but could also manage both CB's and Safeties. May require both, or a creative title to make it work financially for LSU. But logistically I think he'd be an ace hire especially if you just bring him in to coach CB's.
Bo Davis current DL Coach for Texas - Another name that was dropped when we first started talking about a defensive staff shakeup was Texas DL coach Bo Davis. He was another name mentioned in connection with Guidry, but his pedigree wouldn't require a package deal with Guidry either. I will say that if LSU wants to make a splash with Davis, it's going to cost some money. He's already making $1.3M at Texas, so LSU would likely have to make him one of the highest paid defensive line coaches to bring him back and I'm not sure that Texas is willing to let him walk that easy, so it could get expensive. May have to get creative with the title here too to make it work financially. This is another plug play recruiter/coach that would be an ace hire for Kelly if he can make it work.
Bob Diaco Special Team/Outside Linbackers LSU - Diaco is an interesting name that has worked with Kelly at four different stops now. Has a strong pedigree as both a DC and linebackers coach. Worked with Kelly as a DC at Central Michigan, Cincinatti and Notre Dame. He's a guy that Kelly trusts and given their history together should absolutely be a name to keep an eye on going forward. Especially if LSU misses on some of the other names on the list.
There's a few more names I've heard in connection this afternoon, but I think the majority of it is speculation and chatter. Still trying to weed out what's legitimate and what's not. So I'm going to be on the phones, doing some digging to see what we can come up with. We'll obviously update you with anything new, but knowing how Brian Kelly operates, I'm expecting information to be pretty limited, so I'll have to work sources elsewhere most likely. If I hear anything from the agent side of things, I'll probably share it with you but I'm going to specify it's agent chatter because I don't trust those guys. They deliberately create stuff all the time, I've seen it time and time again.
