Jaguars new defensive line coach Tosh Lupoi excited for opportunity

The Jacksonville Jaguars are looking to re-shape their defensive line with the help of new position coach, Tosh Lupoi. Lupoi is still fairly new to the NFL side of things as he joins the Jaguars’ staff.

He has served as a defensive coach since 2008 and has spent the majority of his coaching career at the University of Alabama serving under head coach Nick Saban. He joined Alabama as a defensive analyst in 2014 before transitioning to a linebackers coach in 2016. In 2017, he was promoted to co-defensive coordinator and spent two years in that position. In 2018, Alabama’s defense ranked fifth in sacks.

Lupoi made his transition to the NFL in 2019 where he served as the defensive line coach for the Cleveland Browns. The Browns finished 2019 as the 20th ranked defense with 38 total sacks.

In 2020, he joined the Atlanta Falcons as their defensive line coach and run game coordinator. The Falcons finished as the 19th ranked defense in the league and were 23rd in sacks.

The Jaguars ended the 2020 season as the 31st ranked defense and were 31st in total sacks with 18. Lupoi is certainly taking on a tough task in transforming the Jaguars’ defensive line.

What will Tosh Lupoi bring to the Jaguars?

Lupoi has coached under Nick Saban and now he will coach under Urban Meyer—two of the most winningest college football coaches of all time. In an interview with Jaguars.com senior writer, John Oehser, Lupoi was excited for the opportunity to work with Coach Meyer after having worked with Coach Saban for some time and seeing the potential for a rebuild in Jacksonville.

Lupoi also expressed his excitement to work with new Jaguars defensive coordinator, Joe Cullen, who helped transform the Baltimore Ravens’ defensive line and defense altogether since 2016.

One aspect that stood out in Lupoi’s interview was his emphasis on using film to your advantage. He discussed the importance of studying film on your upcoming opponents every week and using that to come up with the best game plan for Sunday.

Lupoi has worked with Alabama defensive stars DE Jonathan Allen and S Minkah Fitzpatrick; Cleveland stars DE Myles Garrett and DT Larry Ogunjobi; and Atlanta’s DT Grady Jarrett. I’m excited to see what he can do with Jacksonville’s growing group of defensive linemen.