New Defensive Coordinator

brewer · Post by **brewer** » Tue May 10, 2005 7:07 am

...is apparently John Lovett who was recently hired at La Tech as their DC. He has some very interesting experience.

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbc ... 001/SPORTS

He could have chosen to love it but instead he chose to leave it for Greener pastures.

Louisiana Tech defensive coordinator John Lovett, who had been in Ruston for just a couple of months, has accepted the same position with Bowling Green. The loss of the former Ole Miss, Clemson and Auburn coordinator caught Tech head coach Jack Bicknell by surprise.

Schadenfreude · Post by **Schadenfreude** » Tue May 10, 2005 7:19 am

Here's another story on Lovett's decision to leave from the Monroe, La. paper:

http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... 00340/1006

And this is more of a bio piece on Lovett, from the April 16 edition of the Monroe paper:

http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... 60338/1006

Sounds like he has a heck of a lot of experience.

He's been in the South a long time. Hopefully, he can recruit, too.

Flipper · Post by **Flipper** » Tue May 10, 2005 7:30 am

Odd fact...Lovett replaced Tim Rose at La Tech when Rose took the DC job at Toledo

Schadenfreude · Post by **Schadenfreude** » Tue May 10, 2005 7:31 am

Flipper wrote:Odd fact...Lovett replaced Tim Rose at La Tech when Rose took the DC job at Toledo

I'm sure a Rocket fan will be here any minute accusing us of copying them.

Jacobs4Heisman · Post by **Jacobs4Heisman** » Tue May 10, 2005 8:01 am

from reading the bio, this sounds like a fantastic hire for us. I didn't figure we could land an experienced and talented SEC D-coordinator this late in the off-season. I hope this guy can take our defense to the level where we need it to win a MACC this year and years beyond. The article mentioned he runs a 3-4 but stuck with La Tech's 4-3. Coaches who are willing to mold themselves to fit a team's system are few and far between. I would think that he would stick w/ the 4-3 here also. I didn't think it was possible for me to get more excited for this year but.....

hammb · Post by **hammb** » Tue May 10, 2005 8:59 am

Jacobs4Heisman wrote:from reading the bio, this sounds like a fantastic hire for us. I didn't figure we could land an experienced and talented SEC D-coordinator this late in the off-season. I hope this guy can take our defense to the level where we need it to win a MACC this year and years beyond. The article mentioned he runs a 3-4 but stuck with La Tech's 4-3. Coaches who are willing to mold themselves to fit a team's system are few and far between. I would think that he would stick w/ the 4-3 here also. I didn't think it was possible for me to get more excited for this year but.....

As has been discussed in here a few times our personnel group is probably more conducive to a 3-4 than a 4-3, IMO.

orangeandbrown · Post by **orangeandbrown** » Tue May 10, 2005 9:03 am

On paper, this looks like a great hire and a signal that our program is committed to getting better. If he can bring the D around even a little, we are going to be very hard to beat.

UK Peregrine · Post by **UK Peregrine** » Tue May 10, 2005 9:19 am

Oh man, I bet Terry Bradshaw is just simmering that Lovett left La Tech for someplace named Bowling Green. I mean how could he!

Warthog · Post by **Warthog** » Tue May 10, 2005 9:40 am

Schadenfreude wrote:
Flipper wrote:Odd fact...Lovett replaced Tim Rose at La Tech when Rose took the DC job at Toledo
I'm sure a Rocket fan will be here any minute accusing us of copying them.

Let them try. Rose's best Def Coor job was at Minnesota, not exactly a football power. Lovett has a much better resume. I think this is great that we were able to snag this guy.

Flipper · Post by **Flipper** » Tue May 10, 2005 9:59 am

Man...I don't know if we're all that well suited to be a 3-4, hammb. We may have the athleticism at LB, but our DT's are too small and our DE's are the athletic, high motor types rathere than the bigger two gap run stoppers.
We definitely don't have the jabba the hutt sized NT to anchor the middle of the dline.

04forheisman · Post by **04forheisman** » Tue May 10, 2005 10:24 am

This is what this defense needed, some new blood running the show. Welcome to BG!!!

hammb · Post by **hammb** » Tue May 10, 2005 10:29 am

Flip,

We lack a HUGE NT...that would be our major weakness with a 3-4.

What you're missing is the shifting of positions. Most of our DTs are very good size/quickness for a 3-4 DE. Most of our DEs would fit the mold of the pass rushing OLBs. Devon Parks, specifically, was built to be a pass rushing 3-4 OLB.

These moves would give us a large abundance of LBs, many of whom are too small for the 3-4, but I think in a couple recruiting seasons you could get that cleared up. This is something Option's been saying for years. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the 3-4, but with our personnel, with their sizes and skillsets, seem to be more in line with a 3-4 in a lot of instances.

We would be lacking a big hulking NT, however.

Given that the new DC missed spring ball it would still shock me to no end if we completely switched to a 3-4 this season.

Flipper · Post by **Flipper** » Tue May 10, 2005 10:34 am

But then you don't rally gain anything if you just move guys around and call them different names. You can zone blitz and move guys around like we do now and accomplish the same thing within the existing system.

Eh, maybe it's just six of one thing vs a half dozen of the other, but I would be really hesitant to try and install any scheme that deviates too much from what we're running now. Maybe if we had made the switch at the outset of the spring....

Warthog · Post by **Warthog** » Tue May 10, 2005 10:50 am

Derrick Markray = big, hulking nose tackle.

BGBreeze · Post by **BGBreeze** » Tue May 10, 2005 11:06 am

I am sorry I am not as enthusiastic about this guy as much as most of you are. I am sure he is a good coach but for a guy to be somewhere for a few weeks and bolt is not the kind of stability that MAC teams need. Don't contracts mean ANYTHING anymore. If a BCS conference team gives him a call in August is he going to bolt from Bowling Green..... you bet he will. How long will he stick around....one and done is my bet. I would have rather them promote someone from within who has paid his dues and who is ready for a promotion. Promotions are good for the coaching morale on any team