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Michigan officially hires Lou Esposito as defensive line coach

Anthony Broomeby:Anthony Broome•03/29/24•

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Lou Esposito
(Photo by Michigan athletics)

The Michigan Wolverines have found their new defensive line coach, hiring Lou Esposito from Memphis to fill the role. The hiring comes a little less than two weeks after the OWI arrest of previous hire Greg Scruggs, and eight days after his resignation.

Esposito comes over from Memphis, where he was hired this offseason as the team’s defensive line coach and co-defensive coordinator. In the first two weeks of spring ball, graduate assistant LaTroy Lewis and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale helped coach the guys up front.

“I am excited to welcome Lou to our Michigan Football family and look forward to having his leadership and experience directing our defensive linemen,” head coach Sherrone Moore said in a statement on Friday evening. “Lou is a great defensive mind that has developed outstanding players and produced top units at the line of scrimmage throughout his coaching career. He will be a great asset and mentor for the young men in our program.”

Michigan is projected to have one of the best defensive lines in the country, led by junior tackles Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham, junior EDGE Derrick Moore and senior EDGE Josaiah Stewart.

Esposito, a Memphis alum, comes to Ann Arbor after coaching the last seven seasons at Western Michigan as its defensive coordinator. Esposito’s other stops along the way include Davenport College, WMU and Ferris State.

Michigan and Moore had to flip the entire defensive coaching staff this offseason after defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, defensive line coach Mike Elston and defensive backs coach/co-defensive coordinator Steve Clinkscale joined Jim Harbaugh’s staff with the Los Angeles Chargers. Replacing them in those roles are Martindale, linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary, defensive backs coach Lamar Morgan, and now Esposito.

“I wish all of them nothing but luck and love, still talk to them all,” Moore recently said. “So happy for their opportunity and it creates an opportunity for someone else here. Really, just ready for anything to happen at any point and not being too caught off guard with anything.”

Michigan’s inaugural staff under Sherrone Moore

Head coachSherrone Moore
Offensive coordinator/QBs coachKirk Campbell
Running backs coach/run game coordinatorTony Alford
Wide receivers coach/pass game coordinatorRon Bellamy
Tight ends coachSteve Casula
Offensive line coachGrant Newsome
Defensive coordinatorDon “Wink” Martindale
Defensive line coachLou Esposito
Linebackers coachBrian Jean-Mary
Defensive backs coachLamar Morgan
Special teams coordinatorJ.B. Brown

With Michigan’s staff now fully set, the work can continue in building toward the 2024 season. Spring practice runs through April 20, concluding with a split-squad scrimmage at the Big House.

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