LSU exodus continues with Dave Aranda taking Baylor job

The LSU Tigers’ mass exodus after winning the national title continues. Defensive coordinator Dave Aranda will be the next head coach of the Baylor Bears.

Last one out turn the lights off.

And the mass exodus from the LSU Tigers football program continues. Days after winning the 2019 National Championship, LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda is leaving Baton Rouge to become the next head coach of the Baylor Bears.

The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman was the first to report this. Aranda will replace Matt Rhule in Waco, who left the Big 12 after three seasons to become the next head coach of the Carolina Panthers in the NFL. Should LSU be happy Aranda is getting his first head-coaching opportunity? Or should LSU be concerned with so many key players and coaches leaving the program already?

Of course, LSU should be happy for Aranda to finally getting his opportunity to be a head coach. He has been Ed Orgeron’s defensive coordinator in 2016. Aranda had previously been the defensive coordinator for the Wisconsin Badgers (2013-15), the Utah State Aggies (2012) and the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (2010-11). At 43-years-old, he’s ready to take over a good situation in Baylor.

Rhule was able to reclaim an awful Baylor program from the ashes Art Briles had left the program before him. In three years, Rhule took a one-win team all the way to the Big 12 Championship game, coming up one play short of reaching the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history. Baylor is not the best job in the Big 12 but is one where Aranda can succeed at.

As for LSU, this departure has to hurt. There is no other way around it. In a matter of days, LSU has lost arguably its two most important assistant coaches for bigger promotions. Rhule has hired former LSU passing game coordinator Joe Brady to be his offensive coordinator with the Panthers. Coincidentally, Aranda has the tall task of filling Rhule’s shoes at Baylor.

And it’s not just coaches who will be leaving LSU days after winning a national title. Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow has exhausted his eligibility and is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. Key contributors such as running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire and safety Grant Delpit are opting to leave school early to turn pro.

Overall, seven underclassmen from the 2019 National Championship team have declared for the upcoming NFL Draft. In short, it’s going to be so incredibly difficult for LSU to repeat as national champions next year. It’s possible LSU won’t even win its own division next year. That being said, Orgeron recruits unlike any other. LSU should still be one of the better teams in the country.

As for Aranda, it’ll be interesting to see how one defensive-minded head coach replaces another. Rhule was able to take a downtrodden program to win with defense and timely offense in the pass-happy Big 12. Aranda inherits a good program coming off one of its best seasons in school history. Recruiting to Waco is hard, but Aranda now has his chance to lead a Power 5 program.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.