ANN ARBOR, Mich. — J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Football Coach Sherrone Moore announced Friday (March 29) the hiring of Lou Esposito as the team’s defensive line coach. Esposito brings 21 years of collegiate coaching experience to Ann Arbor.
“I am excited to welcome Lou to our Michigan Football family and look forward to having his leadership and experience directing our defensive linemen,” said Moore. “Lou is a great defensive mind that has developed outstanding players and produced top units at the line of scrimmage throughout his coaching career. He will be a great asset and mentor for the young men in our program.”
Esposito joined the University of Memphis as co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach this offseason after having spent the prior 14 seasons in the state of Michigan. Most recently, Esposito served as defensive coordinator and defensive line coach at Western Michigan for seven seasons (2017-23), working with the defensive line (2017-19) and ends (2020-23). It was his second stint with the Broncos where he first coached the defensive line from 2010-12.
Across 10 years on the WMU staff, Esposito helped players achieve 32 All-MAC honors including seven first-team accolades and 12 second-team honors. Standout performers included future NFL players Paul Hazel (2010), Freddie Bishop (2012), Robert Spillane (2017), A.J. Thomas (2021), Zaire Barnes (2022), Braden Fiske (2022), 2019 All-American linebacker Treshaun Hayward (142 tackles; third, NCAA), and 2021 MAC Defensive Player of the Year Ali Fayad (13.0 sacks). He also mentored all-conference performers in defensive linemen Ralph Holley, Marshawn Kneeland and Andre Carter.
Esposito improved the defense’s production, especially in the trenches. The Broncos averaged 2.0 sacks per game before Esposito’s arrival but averaged at least 2.3 per game in five of his last six seasons including 3.34 (fourth nationally) in 2021. He improved the defense’s TFL production from ranking 81st in the country before his arrival to fifth in 2020 (5.08 per game), with the Broncos finishing five of the last six seasons in the top 35 nationally. The 2019 Broncos’ defense featured four players with at least 4.5 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss and six total defenders with 60-plus tackles.
The Broncos participated in four bowl games during his tenure, playing in the 2011 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, 2014 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, 2019 First Responder Bowl and 2021 Quick Lane Bowl.
Prior to his time in Kalamazoo, Esposito was the first head coach in Davenport University’s program (2014-16). He recruited more than 125 student-athletes in two years to build a program from the ground up and oversaw a multi-million-dollar fundraising campaign for a football facility. At Davenport, the Panthers posted a 6-5 record during their inaugural season in 2016.
Esposito was the defensive coordinator at Ferris State University in 2013. Under his leadership, the Bulldogs led the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) in total defense, rushing defense and pass efficiency defense. The unit was 13th in rush defense prior to his arrival. The program ranked top 25 in two of the national polls with a defense that finished top five in many GLIAC statistical categories in 2013. Esposito developed a pair of NFL performers, mentoring linebacker Brady Sheldon, a four-year NFL veteran, and defensive tackle Justin Zimmer who was a seven-year NFL performer after being named a two-time All-American.
In his first stop in Kalamazoo, Esposito coached the defensive line for the Broncos (2010-12). He coached the 2011 MAC Defensive Player of the Year, Drew Nowak, who led the conference in sacks. Nowak went on to be named an All-American.
Esposito spent six years at Division II Saint Joseph’s (Ind.) College before accepting a position at WMU. He was defensive coordinator in 2004 before assuming the head coaching duties for the next five seasons (2005-09). At Saint Joseph, Esposito was the Great Lakes Football Conference (GLFC) Coach of the Year in 2006 and 2009 after leading the program to a pair of league titles in both of those seasons. The program compiled a 30-25 record during his tenure and recorded a 100 percent graduation rate for four-year athletes in his years leading the program.
Esposito coached 23 All-GLFC student-athletes in 2009, ranking first in both rushing offense and defense. The Pumas also had the top-ranked red zone offense in the GLFC, boasted the 2009 GLFC Offensive Player of the Year, and had an unblemished record in league action.
As a collegiate player, Esposito was a four-year letterman along the offensive line at the University of Memphis. He was selected as a team captain in 1999 and 2000. Esposito graduated with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Memphis in 2002.
He signed a professional contract with the Arena Football League’s Memphis Xplorers in 2001. A year later he joined the coaching staff as the offensive and defensive line coach and special teams coordinator during the 2002 and 2003 seasons.
Esposito and his wife, Brooke, have four children: Louis J. Esposito IV, Emilia Rose, Anthony and Mason.
