Leslie Michael Jasper (born October 8, 1986) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach and former player. He is the head football coach for

Stetson University Stetson University is a private university in DeLand, Florida, United States. Established in 1883 as DeLand Academy, it was later renamed John B. Stetson University in honor of John B. Stetson. The university's main campus in DeLand spans 175 ...

. Jasper was selected by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) in the seventh round of the

2011 NFL draft The 2011 NFL draft was the 76th installment of the annual National Football League draft, NFL draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Rad ...

. He played

at Bethel as a

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

and

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative (Netherlands), Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tende ...

. Jasper, during his college career, was extremely large even by defensive tackle standards, weighing approximately 450 pounds; he reduced his weight to 375 pounds at the behest of Bills coach

Chan Gailey Thomas Chandler Gailey Jr. (born January 5, 1952) is a former American football coach. Most recently in 2020, he was the offensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). Gailey has previously served as the hea ...

. As of the

2025 NFL draft The 2025 NFL draft was the 90th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Lambeau Field and its adjacent Titletown District in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on April 24–26, 2025 ...

, Jasper remains the most recent NFL draft selection from the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for higher education, colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic schola ...

(NAIA).

Professional career

Buffalo Bills

Jasper was released prior to the start of the 2011 season in final cuts and was placed on the

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

. The Bills activated Jasper on December 27, 2011 when tight end Mike Caussin was placed on the injured reserve list. He was waived again by the Bills on August 13, 2012.

Tennessee Titans

Jasper was signed by the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

on August 15, 2012 but was waived shortly thereafter.

Omaha Nighthawks

The Nighthawks signed Jasper in September 2012, where he played both ways as a starter on the offensive line and as a nose tackle in the goal-line package on 3rd and 1 situations.

New York Giants

The Giants signed Jasper to a future contract for 2013. On August 25, 2013, he was cut by the Giants.

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers signed Jasper to their practice squad on September 11, 2013 and then signed him as a free agent on January 14, 2014.

Coaching career

From 2016 to 2018, Jasper was the offensive line coach at his alma mater, Bethel University. On January 24, 2019, he was named Bethel's head football coach. On December 20, 2024, Jasper was hired as the head coach for the

Stetson Hatters The Stetson Hatters are composed of 18 teams representing Stetson University in intercollegiate athletics. The Hatters compete in the Division I FCS, NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) and are primary members of the Atlantic ...

Head coaching record

References

External links

Bethel coaching profile

Bethel playing profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jasper, Michael 1986 births Living people American football offensive guards American football defensive tackles Bethel Wildcats football coaches Stetson Hatters football coaches Bethel Wildcats football players Buffalo Bills players Tennessee Titans players High school football coaches in New York (state) High school football coaches in Tennessee People from Mount Juliet, Tennessee Sportspeople from Wilson County, Tennessee Coaches of American football from Tennessee Players of American football from Tennessee African-American coaches of American football 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen Omaha Nighthawks players New York Giants players Carolina Panthers players