BATON ROUGE — Lance Thompson, a member of the Georgia Tech coaching staff last season, has been named the defensive line coach at LSU, head coach Nick Saban announced on Monday.
Thompson replaces Pete Jenkins, who retired from coaching last week.
“We are really pleased to have Lance Thompson join our staff,” Saban said. “He’s an excellent teacher and has had a tremendous amount of success as a recruiter at Georgia Tech as well as in the SEC at Alabama. It’s difficult to replace a good coach like Pete Jenkins, but we feel we have found an excellent fit with Lance Thompson.”
Last year at Georgia Tech, Thompson coached a defensive line which recorded 21 sacks for the Yellow Jackets, including 10 by All-American defensive end Greg Gathers. Georgia Tech completed last season with an 8-5 overall record, which included a 24-14 victory over 11th-ranked Stanford in the Seattle Bowl.
Thompson spent the 1999 and 2000 seasons coaching the defensive line at Alabama, where he helped the Crimson Tide to the Southeastern Conference title in 1999.
Prior to his two-year stint at Alabama, Thompson was a part of the Georgia Tech staff for 11 years. During his 11-year stay with Georgia Tech, Thompson was defensive line coach in 1998, defensive ends coach in 1996 and 1997 and tight ends coach in 1995. Thompson served as the Georgia Tech’s recruiting coordinator from 1995-98 and then again in 2001.
Prior to serving as an on-field coach for the Yellow Jackets, Thompson held the position of Director of Football Operations at Georgia Tech from 1992-94.
Thompson got his start in coaching in 1989, serving as a graduate assistant for two years at Georgia Tech followed by two more years as a volunteer assistant in 1990 and 1991. Georgia Tech won the national championship in 1990.
As a player, Thompson was a four-year letterwinner at The Citadel. He graduated with from The Citadel in 1987 with a bachelor’s degree in education/math.
A native of Riverdale, Ga., Thompson is married to the former Stacy Cambron of Henderson, Ky., and the couple has three daughters Alexandra, Christina, and Lane.
The Lance Thompson File
Full Name: James Lance Thompson
Hometown: Riverdale, Ga.
Birthdate: June 4, 1964
Alma Mater: The Citadel (1987)
Playing Experience: Outside linebackers at The Citadel (four-year letterwinner)
Coaching Experience:
1988-91 Georgia Tech (1988-89, graduate assistant; 1990-91, volunteer coach)
1992-94 Georgia Tech Director of Football Operations
1995-98 Georgia Tech (1995, tight ends/recruiting coordinator; 1996-97, defensive ends/recruiting coordinator; 1998 defensive line/recruiting coordinator)
1999-00 Alabama (defensive line)
2001 Georgia Tech (defensive line/recruiting coordinator)
2002 LSU (defensive line)