Tosh Lupoi (born July 22, 1981) is an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

coach who is the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...

and

linebackers coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, associate and assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordina ...

at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

. He previously served as the defensive line coach for the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

in 2021, the defensive line and run game coordinator for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

in 2020, the defensive line coach for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

in 2019 and the defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

from 2017 to 2018.

Playing career

As a player, Lupoi was a defensive lineman for Cal from 2000-05. He led the Bears' defensive line in tackles in 2003 and earned Pac-10 All-Academic recognition in 2005.

Coaching career

California

In 2008, Lupoi was hired as a defensive line coach at his alma mater,

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. During his time as a Cal coach, Lupoi developed a reputation as an elite recruiter. In 2010, Lupoi was suspended for his role in instructing nose tackle Aaron Tipoti to fake an injury in a game against Oregon to try to slow down Oregon's fast, up-tempo offense. He left Cal amid controversy after he acted in bad faith by using his position as a Cal recruiter to convince elite recruits to commit to the University of Washington—where he intended to become a coach.

Washington

Following his departure from California, Lupoi served as the defensive line coach for

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

from 2012 to 2013. During his tenure, Lupoi was investigated and suspended for allegedly paying $4,500 to an associate of a recruit, though the matter was ultimately dismissed and deemed false. Head coach Steve Sarkisian elected not to rehire Lupoi when he left Washington to become the coach at USC. The new Washington head coach Chris Petersen also refused to hire him.

Alabama

Lupoi joined the Crimson Tide staff as a defensive analyst in 2014 and coached the outside linebackers in 2015. He added the title of co-defensive coordinator prior to the 2016 season and served as defensive coordinator in 2018. During his time at Alabama, the Crimson Tide qualified for the College Football Playoffs all five seasons, advanced to the National Championship game four times and captured two national titles (2015 and 2017). During his time as coordinator, Alabama led the nation in scoring defense in 2016 (13.0 ppg) and 2017 (11.9). The school also finished second in the nation in total defense in 2016 (260.4 ypg) and 2017 (261.8 ypg). Lupoi worked with several players who went on to be first-round picks in the NFL, including DE

Jonathan Allen Jonathan Allen (born January 16, 1995) is an American professional football defensive end for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, winning a national championship ...

, LB

Reuben Foster Reuben Foster (born April 4, 1994) is an American professional football linebacker. A consensus All-American in high school, Foster was regarded as the best linebacker prospect of his class before committing to Alabama, where he played from 20 ...

, S

Minkah Fitzpatrick Minkah Annane Fitzpatrick Jr. (born November 17, 1996) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

, NT

Daron Payne Daron Payne ( ; born May 27, 1997) is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he won national champions ...

and LB Rashaan Evans.

Cleveland Browns

On January 18, 2019, Lupoi was hired by the

as their defensive line coach under head coach Freddie Kitchens.

Atlanta Falcons

On January 11, 2020, Lupoi was hired by the

as their defensive line coach and run game coordinator under head coach Dan Quinn.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On February 11, 2021, Lupoi was hired by the

as their defensive line coach under head coach

Urban Meyer Urban Frank Meyer III (born July 10, 1964) is an American Sports commentator, sportscaster and former college football coach. He spent most of his coaching career at the collegiate level, having served as the head coach of the Bowling Green F ...

Oregon

On January 10, 2022, Lupoi was hired by the

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCA ...

as their defensive coordinator and linebackers coach under head coach

Dan Lanning Daniel Arthur Lanning (born April 10, 1986) is an American college football coach who serves as the head football coach at the University of Oregon. He was previously the defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach at the University o ...

References

External links

Oregon profile

Alabama profile

Cal player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lupoi, Tosh 1981 births Living people Alabama Crimson Tide football coaches Atlanta Falcons coaches California Golden Bears football coaches California Golden Bears football players Cleveland Browns coaches Jacksonville Jaguars coaches Oregon Ducks football coaches Washington Huskies football coaches De La Salle High School (Concord, California) alumni Coaches of American football from California