Lou Tepper

Lou Tepper brings more than 45 years of experience as a college football coach to Complete Linebacking. Since 2012, Tepper has served as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at the University of Buffalo. As head coach, Tepper has won over 100 games, with stints at the University of Illinois (1991-96), Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (2000-05), and Indiana University of Pennsylvania (2006-10).

He took the Illini to three bowl games, including a win in the 1994 Liberty Bowl. At Edinboro, Tepper led his teams to three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) titles and two NCAA Division II playoff appearances. He was twice named PSAC West Coach of the Year. At Indiana University of Pennsylvania, he led the Crimson Hawks to an NCAA playoff appearance and was named PSAC West Coach of the Year for the third time.

In compiling an impressive 101-75-2 overall record as head coach, Tepper is well known for his genius on the defensive side of the ball. Tepper held the positions of defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Louisiana State University (1997-99); defensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Illinois (1988-91); linebackers coach, defensive coordinator, and assistant head coach at the University of Colorado (1983-87); and linebackers coach at Virginia Tech (1978-82).

In his career, Tepper mentored three Butkus Award winners—Colorado’s Alfred Williams and Illinois’ Dana Howard and Kevin Hardy—and developed more than 20 NFL linebackers, including Simeon Rice, John Holecek, nad Khalil Mack, fifth overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. In recognition of his accomplishments and decade of service to the school, the University of Illinois endowed the Lou Tepper Football Scholarship to benefit linebackers in 2006.