On Tuesday, LSU football announced its newest hires: Jake Peetz as offensive coordinator and DJ Mangas as passing game coordinator.
Peetz was the quarterbacks coach for the Carolina Panthers in 2020 while Mangas worked as an offensive assistant for the same team. Mangas is returning to Baton Rouge after coaching at LSU with Joe Brady, the team’s former passing game coordinator, in 2019. The pair left for the NFL after their National Championship win with the Tigers.
Peetz will make $1.2 million annually, The Athletic reported, and Mangas will earn $400,000 per year. Those figures are slightly less than what LSU paid its previous top-two offensive coaches, Steve Ensminger and Scott Linehan, in 2020.
Both Peetz and Mangas worked under Brady this past season for the Carolina Panthers. Ed Orgeron reportedly called Brady before beginning interviews for the positions, asking him who he can recommend to run his acclaimed offense. Orgeron then met with Peetz and Mangas at Brady’s suggestion and hired them both, adding a couple feathers to the cap of Brady, who is on a meteoric rise up the coaching ranks.
After reinvigorating LSU’s offense as passing game coordinator and winning a national championship, Brady left for the NFL after one season in Baton Rouge. He led the Panthers offense in 2020 as offensive coordinator and is reportedly interviewing for several NFL head coach jobs. After Orgeron’s two hires, Brady can now claim what perhaps no other 31-year-old coach ever has before: a coaching tree.
Orgeron spoke highly of both Peetz and Mangas and what they will add to the team.
“Both Jake and DJ come highly recommended from one of the premier and innovative offensive coaches in the game in Joe Brady,” Orgeron said. “Jake brings 10 years of NFL experience with him to our staff. He spent a season coaching alongside and learning from Joe [Brady], so we couldn’t be more excited about Jake joining our staff. His knowledge of football, combined with the players we have on our roster, will make for a dynamic offense for LSU in 2021.”
“We are very happy to bring DJ back to LSU,” Orgeron said. “He did a tremendous job in his one season with us in 2019 working alongside Joe [Brady] to produce one of the most explosive and productive offenses in college football history.”
Orgeron still has yet to hire a defensive coordinator. His reported top choice, former Cincinnati defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman, spurned LSU for Notre Dame, signing to run the Irish’s defense beginning in 2021. Still, Orgeron can celebrate two hires on the offensive side of the ball.
“We are excited about the opportunity that Coach O has given us to move our family to Baton Rouge and be a part of the LSU football program,” Peetz said. “Dealing with Coach O and Scott Woodward through this process has shown me the commitment made to winning more national championships, and I am grateful to be a part of that. We can’t wait to get to work.”
“I’m beyond excited for the opportunity to be back in Baton Rouge and coaching for LSU and Coach Orgeron,” Mangas said. “I was fortunate enough to be a part of the 2019 team and see exactly what this offense and these players are capable of. It fires me up to see the potential we have for the 2021 offense. I can’t wait to meet with the rest of the staff, coaches and players and get to work.”