Lou Tepper (born September 7, 1945) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

coach. He served as the head football coach at the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

from 1991 to 1996, the

Edinboro University of Pennsylvania PennWest Edinboro is a campus of Pennsylvania Western University, a multi-campus public university in Pennsylvania. Located in the town of Edinboro, the campus has more than 4,600 enrolled students. History Edinboro University was founded ...

, from 2000 to 2005, and

Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a public research university in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. As of fall 2021, the university enrolled 7,044 undergraduates and 1,865 postgraduates, for a total enrollment of 9,009 students. The univ ...

from 2006 to 2010, compiling a career

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

coaching record of 101–75–2. Tepper was the defensive coordinator at

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

(LSU) from 1997 to 1999 and the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo, commonly called the University at Buffalo (UB) and sometimes called SUNY Buffalo, is a public research university with campuses in Buffalo and Amherst, New York. The university was founded in 1846 ...

from 2012 to 2014.

Playing career

Tepper played

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

. As a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

from 1965 to 1966, Tepper led the team in

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...

s as a junior, and in tackles as a senior. Tepper graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in

physical education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorati ...

in 1967.

Coaching career

Tepper was named the head coach at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

in the 1991 season. Hired by

John Mackovic John Mackovic (born October 1, 1943) is an American football coach. He is currently the head coach of the Italy national American football team, which was formed to compete in the EFAF European Championship. Previously, Mackovic served as the ...

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...

in 1988, Tepper was promoted to head coach when Mackovic accepted the head coaching position at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. Tepper's first game as head coach was the 1991

John Hancock Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. ...

, which the Illini lost to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

by the score of 6–3. Tepper served as the head coach at Illinois for five more seasons, compiling an overall record of 25–31–2, for a winning percentage of .446. The Illini went to the

Holiday Bowl The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played in San Diego since 1978. San Diego County Credit Union has been the game's title sponsor since 2017, and the bowl has b ...

in 1992, losing to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

by the score of 27–17, and the

Liberty Bowl The Liberty Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in late December or early January since 1959. For its first five years, it was played at Philadelphia Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia before being held at Atlantic City ...

in 1994, beating

East Carolina East Carolina University (ECU) is a public research university in Greenville, North Carolina. It is the fourth largest university in North Carolina. Founded on March 8, 1907, as a teacher training school, East Carolina has grown from its orig ...

, 30–0, for Tepper's only bowl victory. Tepper's defensive squads as coordinator were generally strong, and the

Fighting Illini The Illinois Fighting Illini () are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The university offers 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports. The University operates a number of athletic faci ...

continued to field able 3–4 defenses with Tepper as head coach. Tepper's defensive players as head coach included

Butkus Award The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football. The award, named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame ...

winners

Dana Howard Dana Cortez Howard (born February 27, 1972) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears. He played college football at the University of Illinois. Early years Howard wa ...

and Kevin Hardy, as well as

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

standouts

Simeon Rice Simeon James Rice (; born February 24, 1974) is a former American football defensive end. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals third overall in the 1996 NFL Draft. In his 12-year NFL career, Rice recorded 122 sacks, forced 25 fumbles, recov ...

and

John Holecek John Francis Holecek (born May 7, 1972) is a former professional American football player and nationally recognized football coach. He played linebacker for eight seasons in the NFL for the Buffalo Bills, the San Diego Chargers, and the Atlanta ...

. Tepper authored a book, ''Complete Linebacking'', to teach his style of defensive play for the

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

position. Tepper was the first Illinois coach since

Robert Zuppke Robert Carl Zuppke (July 2, 1879 – December 22, 1957) was an American football coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign from 1913 until 1941, compiling a career college football record of 131–81 ...

to win or tie both of his first two meetings against

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. The 1992 game, a 22–22 tie, ended Michigan's 19-game conference winning streak. Tepper was involved in a series of controversial moves associated with the

recruitment Recruitment is the overall process of identifying, sourcing, screening, shortlisting, and interviewing candidates for jobs (either permanent or temporary) within an organization. Recruitment also is the processes involved in choosing individual ...

of blue-chip quarterback

Chris Redman Chris James Redman (born July 7, 1977) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League for nine seasons. He played college football at the University of Louisville and was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in ...

in 1994 and 1995. Redman stated that he had committed to Illinois based on the recruiting efforts of Illini offensive coordinator and former NFL

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

quarterback

Greg Landry Gregory Paul Landry (born December 18, 1946) is a former American football player and coach who played quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) from 1968 to 1981, and again in 1984. He played for the Detroit Lions, Baltimore Colts and C ...

. Tepper ignited a controversy when he unexpectedly fired Landry the day after Redman signed his

letter of commitment {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 :''This article uses the word engagement in a legal sense.'' An engagement letter defines the legal relationship (or engagement) between a professional firm (e.g., law, investment banking, consulting, advisory or ...

(LOC). Tepper denied any attempt to deceive Redman about Landry's future at Illinois and eventually released Redman from his commitment. It would later emerge that Landry had allegedly been soliciting an NFL job behind Tepper's back. The departures of Landry and Redman and the manner in which they left had damaged Tepper's reputation among fans and media. The

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

decided to void the LOC based on the unusual circumstances, allowing Redman five full years of eligibility and no transfer restrictions. Tepper hired former Ball State head coach and veteran

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

assistant

Paul Schudel Paul Schudel (born July 2, 1944) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Ball State University from 1985 to 1994 and at Central Connecticut State University from 2001 to 2003, compiling a career col ...

as Landry's replacement. The hiring of Schudel marked the fourth time in six years that the Illini had made a change at offensive coordinator. Despite Tepper's abilities as a defensive coach, he only put together only two winning seasons in his six years in Champaign. His teams were unable to match the moderate success the Illini had enjoyed under Mackovic and Mike White, and the Illini got progressively worse over his tenure. They placed fourth in the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

in Tepper's first full season, 1992, and finished in fourth, fifth, seventh, and ninth in his remaining years. Tepper was fired after the 1996 season, when the Illini went 2–9 with a 1–7 conference record. Tepper later said that he had forgiven Illinois for firing him. Prior to coaching at Illinois, Tepper served as an assistant defensive coach at

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

(1967, graduate assistant),

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

(1968–1971),

William and Mary William and Mary often refers to: * The joint reign of William III of England (II of Scotland) and Mary II of England (and Scotland) * William and Mary style, a furniture design common from 1700 to 1725 named for the couple William and Mary may ...

(1972–1977),

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

(1978–1982), and

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

(1983–1987). Tepper's contract at IUP was scheduled to expire in June 2011, however, in December 2010 the university announced he would depart effective at the end of the year. In February 2011 he was named defensive coordinator of the

United States national American football team The United States national American football team represents the United States in international men's American football competitions. It is currently ranked no.1 in the IFAF. It is currently controlled by USA Football and is recogn ...

for the 2011 IFAF World Cup. From 2012-14, Tepper was named defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Buffalo.

Head coaching record

coached the first 11 games of the season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tepper, Lou 1945 births Living people Buffalo Bulls football coaches Colorado Buffaloes football coaches Edinboro Fighting Scots football coaches Illinois Fighting Illini football coaches IUP Crimson Hawks football coaches LSU Tigers football coaches New Hampshire Wildcats football coaches Pittsburgh Panthers football coaches Rutgers Scarlet Knights football players Virginia Tech Hokies football coaches William & Mary Tribe football coaches