| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1945-09-07)September 7, 1945 (age 80) |
| Playing career | |
| 1965–1966 | Rutgers |
| Position | Defensive back |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1967 | Pittsburgh (GA) |
| 1968–1970 | New Hampshire (RB/LB) |
| 1971 | New Hampshire (DC) |
| 1972–1975 | William & Mary (DC) |
| 1976–1977 | William & Mary (AHC) |
| 1978–1982 | Virginia Tech (LB) |
| 1983–1985 | Colorado (DC/LB) |
| 1986–1987 | Colorado (AHC) |
| 1988–1989 | Illinois (DC) |
| 1990–1991 | Illinois (AHC/DC/ILB) |
| 1991–1996 | Illinois |
| 1998–1999 | LSU (DC/LB) |
| 2000–2005 | Edinboro |
| 2006–2010 | IUP |
| 2012–2014 | Buffalo (DC/LB) |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 101–75–2 |
| Bowls | 1–2 |
| Tournaments | 2–3 (NCAA D-II playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 4PSAC Western Division (2003–2006) | |
Louis A. Tepper (born September 7, 1945) is an American formerfootball coach. He served as the head football coach at theUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from 1991 to 1996, theEdinboro University of Pennsylvania, from 2000 to 2005, andIndiana University of Pennsylvania from 2006 to 2010, compiling a careercollege football coaching record of 101–75–2. Tepper was the defensive coordinator atLouisiana State University (LSU) from 1997 to 1999 and theUniversity at Buffalo from 2012 to 2014.
Tepper playedcollege football atRutgers University. As adefensive back from 1965 to 1966, Tepper led the team ininterceptions as a junior, and intackles as a senior. Tepper graduated with aBachelor of Science degree inphysical education in 1967.
Tepper was named the head coach at theUniversity of Illinois in the 1991 season. Hired byJohn Mackovic asdefensive coordinator in 1988, Tepper was promoted to head coach when Mackovic accepted the head coaching position at theUniversity of Texas. Tepper's first game as head coach was the 1991John Hancock Bowl, which theIllini lost toUCLA 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 theHoliday Bowl in 1992, losing toHawaii by the score of 27–17, and theLiberty Bowl in 1994, beatingEast Carolina, 30–0, for Tepper's only bowl victory.
Tepper's defensive squads as coordinator were generally strong, and theFighting Illini continued to field able3–4 defenses with Tepper as head coach. Tepper's defensive players as head coach includedButkus Award winnersDana Howard andKevin Hardy, as well asNational Football League standoutsSimeon Rice andJohn Holecek. Tepper authored a book,Complete Linebacking, to teach his style of defensive play for thelinebacker position.
Tepper was the first Illinois coach sinceRobert Zuppke to win or tie both of his first two meetings againstMichigan.[1] 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 therecruitment ofblue-chip quarterbackChris Redman in 1994 and 1995. Redman stated that he had committed to Illinois based on the recruiting efforts of Illini offensive coordinator and former NFLPro Bowl quarterbackGreg Landry.[2] Tepper ignited a controversy when he unexpectedly fired Landry the day after Redman signed hisletter of commitment (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.[3] TheNCAA decided to void the LOC based on the unusual circumstances, allowing Redman five full years of eligibility and no transfer restrictions.[4] Tepper hired formerBall State head coach and veteranBig Ten assistantPaul Schudel 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 andMike White, and the Illini got progressively worse over his tenure. They placed fourth in theBig Ten Conference 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 atPittsburgh (1967, graduate assistant),New Hampshire (1968–1971),William and Mary (1972–1977),Virginia Tech (1978–1982), andColorado (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 theUnited States national American football team for the2011 IFAF World Cup.[5]
From 2012-14, Tepper was named defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Buffalo.
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois Fighting Illini(Big Ten Conference)(1991–1996) | |||||||||
| 1991 | Illinois | 0–1* | 0–0* | 5th* | LJohn Hancock | ||||
| 1992 | Illinois | 6–5–1 | 4–3–1 | 4th | LHoliday | ||||
| 1993 | Illinois | 5–6 | 5–3 | T–4th | |||||
| 1994 | Illinois | 7–5 | 4–4 | T–5th | WLiberty | ||||
| 1995 | Illinois | 5–5–1 | 3–4–1 | T–7th | |||||
| 1996 | Illinois | 2–9 | 1–7 | T–9th | |||||
| Illinois: | 25–31–2 | 17–21–2 | *John Mackovic coached the first 11 games of the season. | ||||||
| Edinboro Fighting Scots(Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference)(2000–2005) | |||||||||
| 2000 | Edinboro | 5–6 | 2–4 | T–4th(West) | |||||
| 2001 | Edinboro | 4–6 | 3–3 | T–3rd(West) | |||||
| 2002 | Edinboro | 5–6 | 2–4 | 5th(West) | |||||
| 2003 | Edinboro | 9–3 | 5–1 | T–1st(West) | LNCAA Division II First Round | ||||
| 2004 | Edinboro | 9–3 | 5–1 | T–1st(West) | LNCAA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 2005 | Edinboro | 8–2 | 5–1 | T–1st(West) | |||||
| Edinboro: | 40–26 | 22–14 | |||||||
| IUP Crimson Hawks(Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference)(2006–2010) | |||||||||
| 2006 | IUP | 8–2 | 5–1 | T–1st(West) | |||||
| 2007 | IUP | 9–3 | 5–1 | 2nd(West) | LNCAA Division II Quarterfinal | ||||
| 2008 | IUP | 8–2 | 5–2 | T–2nd(West) | |||||
| 2009 | IUP | 5–6 | 1–6 | 7th(West) | |||||
| 2010 | IUP | 6–5 | 3–4 | T–4th(West) | |||||
| IUP: | 36–18 | 19–14 | |||||||
| Total: | 101–75–2 | ||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
