Leslie Michael Jasper (born October 8, 1986) is an

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 and former player. He is the head football coach at his alma mater, Bethel University in

McKenzie, Tennessee McKenzie is a city at the tripoint of Carroll, Henry, and Weakley counties in Tennessee, United States. The population was 5,310 at the 2010 census. It is home to Bethel University and the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at McKenzie. ...

, a position he has held since the 2019 season. Jasper was drafted by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

of the

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 ...

(NFL) in the seventh round of the

2011 NFL Draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York C ...

. He played

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 ...

at Bethel as a

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

and

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

. Jasper, during his college career, was extremely large even by defensive tackle standards, weighing approximately 450 pounds; he reduced his weight to 375 pounds at the behest of Bills coach

Chan Gailey Thomas Chandler Gailey Jr. (born January 5, 1952) is a former American football coach. Most recently in 2020, he was the offensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). Gailey has previously served as the head ...

. As of the

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

, Jasper remains the most recent NFL draft selection from the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA).

Professional career

Buffalo Bills (2011)

Jasper was released prior to the start of the 2011 season in final cuts and was placed on the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

. The Bills activated Jasper on December 27, 2011 when tight end

Mike Caussin Michael Caussin (born February 26, 1987) is a former American football tight end. He was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in 2010. He played college football at James Madison University, James Madison. He also played ...

was placed on the injured reserve list. He was waived again by the Bills on August 13, 2012.

Tennessee Titans (2012)

Jasper was signed by the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...

on August 15, 2012 but was waived shortly thereafter.

Omaha Nighthawks (2012)

The Nighthawks signed Jasper in September 2012, where he played both ways as a starter on the offensive line and as a nose tackle in the goal-line package on 3rd and 1 situations.

New York Giants (2013)

The Giants signed Jasper to a future contract for 2013. On August 25, 2013, he was cut by the Giants.

Carolina Panthers (2014)

The Panthers signed Jasper to their practice squad on September 11, 2013 and then signed him as a free agent on January 14, 2014.

Coaching career

From 2016 to 2018, Jasper was the offensive line coach at his alma mater, Bethel University. On January 24, 2019, he was named Bethel's head football coach.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Bethel coaching profile

Bethel playing profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jasper, Michael 1986 births Living people American football offensive guards American football defensive tackles Bethel Wildcats football coaches Bethel Wildcats football players Buffalo Bills players Tennessee Titans players High school football coaches in New York (state) High school football coaches in Tennessee People from Mount Juliet, Tennessee Coaches of American football from Tennessee Players of American football from Tennessee African-American coaches of American football African-American players of American football 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American sportspeople