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James Cregg out: Who are the top candidates to replace the OL coach at LSU?

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(Editor's note: Coaching bios from team websites.)

LSU parted ways with offensive line coach James Cregg on Wednesday, the school released in a statement.

Head coach Ed Orgeron said he will immediately begin a national search for Cregg’s replacement.

The Tigers are set to host five-star OL Julian Armella, five-star OL Kam Dewberry and four-star OL Kelvin Banks this weekend for official visits, but will be without an offensive line coach.

LSU will also be hosting its OL/DL camp on Saturday.

Let's take a look at a few names that surfaced late Wednesday night as potential top candidates to replace Cregg.

BEN WILKERSON, NY Giants assistant OL coach

Ben Wilkerson is in his sixth season as an NFL coach and third as the Giants' assistant offensive line coach.

In 2019, Wilkerson worked with an offense line that benefited from consistency and continuity. Left tackle Nate Solder and left guard Will Hernandez started all 16 games and center Jon Halapio and right guard Kevin Zeitler each started 15 games. The line helped Daniel Jones have the most productive season by a rookie quarterback in Giants history. Jones set franchise rookie records with 459 passes, 284 completions, 3,027 yards and 24 touchdown passes. That final figure led all rookie quarterbacks in 2019 and were the fourth-most by a rookie in a single season in NFL history. Only Baker Mayfield (27 in 2018), Peyton Manning (26 in 1998) and Russell Wilson (26 in 2012) had more.

The offensive line was also pivotal in helping Saquon Barkley rush for 1,003 yards in 13 games to become the first player in Giants history to rush for at least 1,000 yards in each of his first two seasons.

In Wilkerson's first year with the team in 2018, the offensive line overcame injuries and effectively blended veterans and young players into a cohesive unit that helped Barkley break numerous records and win the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award and Eli Manning complete 66.0 percent of his passes, the highest rate of his 15-season career.

Wilkerson began his coaching career at his alma mater, LSU, as an offensive graduate assistant in 2010, and then as an offensive administrative intern in 2011.

The Port Arthur, Texas native played in 32 games over three NFL seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals (2006) and Atlanta Falcons (2007-08) after entering the league as an undrafted free agent with the Bengals in 2005. He was also with the Florida Tuskers of the UFL (2009) before beginning his coaching career.

Wilkerson started 41 games at center for LSU over the course of four seasons (2001-04), as the Tigers compiled a 33-8 record during his career. As a senior, he was a co-recipient of the Rimington Trophy, awarded to the top center in college football. During his junior season, the Tigers captured the BCS National Championship as Wilkerson started all 14 games and was one of six finalists for the Rimington Trophy.

KEVIN MAWAE, Indianapolis Colts assistant OL coach

Kevin Mawae is in his first season with the Colts as assistant offensive line coach. He has four years of coaching experience, including one season in the NFL. Mawae most recently served as an offensive analyst at Arizona State (2018-20).

In 2020, Mawae helped the Arizona State offense rush for more than 200 yards in three games, and reach 70 points against Arizona, which was the second-most points in a single game in school history. In 2019, he served as the interim tight ends coach for the Sun Bowl, which the team won 20-14 against Florida State. In 2018, Mawae helped coach an offense that saw running back Eno Benjamin set the single-season school record in rushing yards with 1,642.

Mawae is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2019. Over his 16-year playing career, he appeared in 241 games (238 starts) in his time with the Tennessee Titans (2006-09), New York Jets (1998-2005) and Seattle Seahawks (1994-97). Mawae was a seven-time Associated Press All-Pro (1998-2002, 2004, 2008) and was voted to eight Pro Bowls (2000-05, 2009-10). During his NFL tenure, he blocked for a 1,000-yard rusher in 13 of his 16 seasons with five different running backs. Mawae was selected to the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s. His 238 starts ranked fifth among offensive linemen in NFL history.

Mawae appeared in 42 games (40 starts) at LSU (1989-93) and was a First Team All-SEC selection in 1991 and a Second Team All-SEC selection in 1992 and 1993.

Mawae attended Leesville (La.) High School and helped the team win the district championship in 1985, 1986 and 1987.

ALEX ATKINS, Florida State OL coach

Alex Atkins was named Florida State’s offensive line coach on Dec. 29, 2019.

In his first season with the Seminoles, Atkins led a young group that blocked for a top-20 rushing offense while featuring nine different starters making up six different starting lineups in nine games. Robert Scott, Jr., and Maurice Smith were both recognized among the best freshmen in the country as Scott earned True Freshman All-America honors from 247Sports and Smith was named a Freshman All-American by Rivals.

Florida State averaged 199.9 rushing yards per game, the program’s highest since 2016 and 20th nationally among teams that played at least nine games in 2020, and 5.11 yards per rush, 16th in the nation among teams with at least 350 carries and FSU’s most in a season since 2015. The Seminoles topped 400 yards of total offense in five of the last seven games, including more than 500 yards of total offense twice, and produced FSU’s first game with at least 250 yards rushing and passing since 2016.

From 2016-18, Atkins was Tulane’s assistant head coach and offensive line coach. He also added running game coordinator responsibilities his final season in New Orleans. In his first season with the Green Wave, he helped direct a remarkable turnaround from the 118th rushing team in the country in 2015 at 115.8 yards per game to the NCAA’s 26th-best rushing attack in 2016 with an average of 228.1 yards per game. The improvement continued in 2017 as Tulane averaged 231.5 rushing yards per game, 20th in FBS. In his last year at Tulane, the Green Wave won seven games and the Cure Bowl behind an offense that posted the 23rd-highest rushing average in the country at 218.2 yards per game.

Prior to Tulane, Atkins coached the offensive line at Georgia Southern for two seasons and helped lead the Eagles to back-to-back nine-win seasons. In 2014, as Georgia Southern was transitioning into FBS, the team finished 9-3 and averaged a Division I-best 381.1 rushing yards per game. The next season, the Eagles finished 9-4 after winning the first bowl appearance in program history and led all FBS schools with an average of 363.0 rushing yards per game.

Atkins began his coaching career at UT-Martin, his alma mater, serving as a graduate assistant in 2007 and coaching tight ends in 2008.

BRAD DAVIS, Arkansas OL coach

Brad Davis joins the Razorbacks as the offensive line coach from Missouri where he served as the Tigers’ offensive line coach each of the last two seasons. He helped the Tigers to a 6-6 season in 2019 with his offensive line paving the way for the offense to gain 374.3 yards per game, including 151.7 on the ground.

In 2018, he took over an offensive line that had been built for an offense that averaged 33.1 passes per game in a spread attack in 2017 and transformed the group into a unit that operated in a more balanced, ball control offense, including ranking 40th in the nation and sixth in the SEC in time of possession (30:53). A vast improvement from 2017 when the Tigers ranked next-to-last in the country. The 2018 offense finished the season 13th in the nation in total offense (481.8 ypg), 18th nationally in scoring (36.6 ppg) and 8-5 on the year.

Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms led Davis’ first Missouri squad, earning first-team All-SEC honors from the Associated Press to become Mizzou’s first offensive lineman to win first-team All-SEC accolades since 2013. Wallace-Sims became the 14th lineman tutored by Davis to earn all-conference honors in his career.

Davis joined Missouri after a year with the Florida Gators in 2017. With the Gators, he led a young squad that finished the season without any seniors among the team’s two-deep. Despite the youth up front, Florida ran for 165-plus yards in six straight games during the season, the longest such streak since 2009.

Prior to Florida, Davis spent single seasons at North Texas (2016), East Carolina (2015) and James Madison, where he also was the co-offensive coordinator for a Dukes team that finished 9-4 and earned a FCS Playoff berth.

Davis spent five seasons at Portland State (2009-13) as the offensive line coach and run-game coordinator for the Vikings. In his final season in Portland, Mitchell Van Dyk earned first-team All-Big Sky and third-team All-America honors as the Vikings led the Big Sky in total offense and ranked third in FCS in rushing and total offense. PSU set numerous school records that season with 6,486 total yards, 3,330 rushing yards, 277.7 rushing yards per game, 540.5 total yards per game and 36 rushing touchdowns. He worked with future FCS Rimington Award winner Cornelius Edison at PSU before Edison played in the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings.

Pittman has a deep connection with Davis dating back to Davis’ playing days at Oklahoma, where Pittman coached Davis for the Sooners in 1997-98. Pittman later brought Davis to North Carolina in 2008 as the offensive line graduate assistant.

A native of Baton Rouge, La., Davis is a 2003 graduate of Oklahoma. With the Sooners he was a part of two Big 12 championship teams and the 2000 national championship team. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Offensive Lineman in 2002.

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