| Lou Tepper | |
|---|---|
| Sport(s) | Football |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | September 7, 1945 |
| Place of birth | Keystone, Pennsylvania |
| Playing career | |
| 1965–1966 | Rutgers |
| Position(s) | Defensive back |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1967 1968–1969 1970–1971 1972–1975 1976–1977 1978–1982 1983–1985 1986–1987 1988–1989 1990–1991 1991–1996 1997–1999 2000–2005 2006–2010 |
Pittsburgh (GA) New Hampshire (RB/LB) New Hampshire (DC) William & Mary (DC) William & Mary (AHC) Virginia Tech (LB) Colorado (LB/DC) Colorado (AHC) Illinois (DC) Illinois (AHC) Illinois LSU (DC/LB) Edinboro IUP |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 101–75–2 |
| Bowls | 1–2 |
| Tournaments | 2–3 (NCAA D-II playoffs) |
| Statistics | |
| College Football Data Warehouse | |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 4 PSAC Western Division (2003–2006) | |
Lou Tepper (born September 7, 1945) is an American football coach and former player. He was the head football coach at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, a position he has held since the 2006 season. Previously, tepper served as the head coach at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1991–1996) and Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (2000–2005). He was the defensive coordinator at Louisiana State University from 1997 to 1999.
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Tepper played college football at Rutgers University. As a defensive back from 1965 to 1966, Tepper led the team in interceptions as a junior, and in tackles as a senior. Tepper graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education in 1967.
Tepper was named the head coach at the University of Illinois in the 1991 season. Hired by John Mackovic as defensive coordinator in 1988, Tepper was promoted to head coach when Mackovic accepted the head coaching position at the University of Texas. Tepper's first game as head coach was the 1991 John Hancock Bowl, which the Illini lost to UCLA by the score of 6–3. Tepper served as the head coach at Illinois for five more seasons, compiling an overall record of 25 wins, 31 losses, and 2 ties, for a winning percentage of .446. The Illini went to the Holiday Bowl in 1992, losing to Hawaii by the score of 27–17, and the Liberty Bowl in 1994, beating East Carolina, 30–0, for Tepper's only bowl victory.
Tepper's defensive squads as coordinator were generally strong, and the Fighting Illini continued to field able 3–4 defenses with Tepper as head coach. Tepper's defensive players as head coach included Butkus Award winners Dana Howard and Kevin Hardy, as well as National Football League standouts Simeon Rice and John Holecek. Tepper authored a book, Complete Linebacking, to teach his style of defensive play for the linebacker position.
Tepper was the first Illinois coach since Robert Zuppke to win or tie both of his first two meetings against Michigan.[1] The 1992 game, a 22–22 tie, ended Michigan's nineteen game conference winning streak.
Despite Tepper's abilities as a defensive coach, his teams were unable to match the moderate success of Mackovic's teams at Illinois, and the Illini got progressively worse over his tenure. They placed fourth in the Big 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 forgave Illinois for firing him.
Prior to coaching at Illinois, Tepper served as an assistant defensive coach at the University of Pittsburgh (1967, graduate assistant), the University of New Hampshire (1968–1971), The College of William and Mary (1972–1977), Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (1978–1982), and the University of Colorado at Boulder (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 for the 2011 IFAF World Cup.[2]
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois Fighting Illini (Big Ten Conference) (1991–1996) | |||||||||
| 1991 | Illinois | 0–1* | 0–0* | 5th* | L John Hancock | ||||
| 1992 | Illinois | 6–5–1 | 4–3–1 | 4th | L Holiday | ||||
| 1993 | Illinois | 5–6 | 5–3 | T–4th | |||||
| 1994 | Illinois | 7–5 | 4–4 | T–5th | W Liberty | ||||
| 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) | L NCAA Division II First Round | ||||
| 2004 | Edinboro | 9–3 | 5–1 | T–1st (West) | L NCAA 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–present) | |||||||||
| 2006 | IUP | 8–2 | 5–1 | T–1st (West) | |||||
| 2007 | IUP | 9–3 | 5–1 | 2nd (West) | L NCAA 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 | 20–25 | |||||||
| Total: | 101–75–2 | ||||||||
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