LSU names John Chavis defensive coordinator

Jan 5, 2009 - 10:45 PM BATON ROUGE, Louisiana (Ticker) -- John Chavis is going from Rocky Top to Death Valley.

After spending the past 14 years at Tennessee, Chavis officially was named as Louisiana State's defensive coordinator Monday.

"John Chavis is a tremendous coach who has had a great deal of success over a long period of time in the SEC," LSU coach Les Miles said. "You look back at what he's been able to accomplish defensively at Tennessee over the past 14 years, and it's hard not to be impressed."

Chavis, 52, coached 24 All-SEC defensive players at Tennessee, where he was a trusted assistant of Phillip Fulmer.

But Chavis was ousted along with Fulmer following a dismal 2008 campaign in which the Volunteers went 5-7.

At LSU, Chavis will be charged with rebuilding a once-proud Tigers defense that ranked 11th in the 12-team SEC in terms of opponents scoring (25.9 points per game). The Tigers also allowed 326.5 yards per game.

"Year in and year out, his defenses at Tennessee have been among the best not only in our conference, but nationwide," Miles said. "He's going to bring to LSU a style of coaching and an ability to relate to our players that will breed success."