The Louisiana Ragin Cajuns are finally done completing their staff after the hiring of Zac Etheridge as the cornerbacks coach on Monday. Head coach Billy Napier wasted no time putting his mark on this program and he nailed it like a split hog.
With that in mind, let’s look at the hires that Napier made and grade the hires.
Rob Sale (Offensive Coordinator/O-Line) Grade: A-
Napier’s first hire as the head coach of the Cajuns may have been one of the best. Sale came with Napier from Arizona State and has some ties to the state of Louisiana as he played for LSU in the early 2000’s. One of the weak spots for the Cajuns last season was the offensive line, but that was largely due to injuries to the likes of Grant Horst and Sale could help this offensive line improve from last season and do a lot of good for this team in that aspect.
While Sale is the offensive coordinator, Napier will be doing the play calling and could be similar to what the Sun Devils did offensively during his one year as the offensive coordinator.
Ron Roberts (Defensive Coordinator) Grade: B-
The former Southeastern head coach was recently hired after their original defensive coordinator in Karl Scott left to go to the University of Alabama. It’s a solid hire that continues to fit the mold of hiring coaches with ties to Louisiana.
His defense performed fairly well last year outside of the season opener against the Cajuns. One of the good things is that you can expect the defense to be a little more simplified and that should help improve the talents of some of a defense that underwhelmed last year due to a lack of depth, especially at the linebacker position.
Michael Desormeaux (Assistant Coach) Grade: A-
This is just a smart move to keep aboard Desormeaux. Not only is he a former Cajun, but he knows the geography of high school football in the Acadiana area better than anybody else. The connections that he has to some of the better high schools in the area will be crucial for improving this program and getting more people in the stands.
Jabbar Juluke (RBs Coach) Grade: A
Speaking of recruiting the boot, Jabbar Juluke might be one of the best to do it, especially when it comes to running backs. Look at his track record with players like Leonard Fournette and Derrius Guice coming through the turnstiles at LSU.
The position at running back is pretty stacked already and you could expect that position to become even more talented with guys like Raymond Calais and Elijah Mitchell leading the way in 2018.
Tim Leger (WRs/Recruiting Coordinator) Grade: A+
Leger was one of the biggest reasons why UL Monroe’s recruiting class last year was one of the best. It’s a no-brainer that they would hire a Lafayette native that knows the landscape of the Acadiana area a lot like Desormeaux.
This, paired with Juluke and Desormeaux makes the Cajuns a recruiting machine and could help get the Cajuns back into the conversation in terms of the second-best team in the state of Louisiana. Looking forward to seeing what these three could do.
DJ Looney (Assistant O-Line) Grade: C
When you look at the Cajuns coaching staff, it’s interesting that Napier hired an assistant on the offensive line with an offensive line coach like Rob Sale at the helm. However, he’s worked under some of the best coaches in the country in Dan Mullen and Kirby Smart and that should be a crucial part of this offensive line improving.
Matt Powledge (Special Teams/OLBs) Grade: C
Powledge came with Leger and has some serious talent on special teams, especially on the return game with someone like Calais. The only thing that has me scratching my head is that he’s going to be the outside linebackers coach. While he has experience at the position since he played the position in high school, but he hasn’t spent any time coaching the position. However, with someone like Roberts taking the reins at defense, he can learn how to coach the position the right way quickly.
Rory Segrest (D-Line) Grade: B
Another assistant coach with power-five school ties and seems poised to help the defensive line improve based off of his experience in Arkansas. In the 2015 season, he helped the Razorbacks defense ranking 12th in the country in run defense.
It looks to be a good hire because of what Segrest has done in the past with high-caliber talent
Patrick Toney (Safeties) Grade: B+
His experience coaching safeties in Louisiana and Texas is going to be crucial for the Cajuns pass defense, which has been a sieve in recent years. Last season, the UTSA Roadrunners ranked seventh in the FBS in yards allowed per game and 19th in pass efficiency defense and that shows a lot of promise for the Cajuns going forward.
Matt Hocke (Strength and Conditioning) Grade: B
While the strength and conditioning coaching position isn’t as crucial as some of the positions listed above, his experience working with coaches like Jimbo Fisher, Nick Saban, and others makes the New Orleans native a good hire.
It’ll be interesting how much the workouts change with someone that’s worked with several of the top power-five program and how it will make better players.
Troy Wingerter (Director of Football Ops) Grade: A
Much like Desormeaux, this was a no-brainer as Wingerter has a ton of knowledge about the program and has a lot of contacts with high school in the state of Louisiana. If there’s any one that deserves this job, it’s him and hopefully he can keep it for a long time.
Zac Ethridge (Cornerbacks) Grade: C
The final piece of the puzzle when it comes to Napier’s coaching staff is a coach that was a defensive back with the Auburn Tigers when they won the national championship in 2010. He’s relatively young, but he’s going to helped with the experienced coaches in front of him and will really come into his own.
Overall Thoughts:
One of the first things that the Cajuns new head coach said was that he was going to put a special focus on the state of Louisiana when it comes to recruiting. It’s safe to say that the Cajuns coaching staff is sticking with that mantra and it will definitely pay off as they get closer to the home opener against Grambling.
-Clint Domingue