LSU Football Assistant Bypasses NFL Job to Stay on Lane Kiffin's Staff in Major Move

LSU Tigers safeties coach Jake Olsen will remain on Lane Kiffin's staff for the 2026 season after bypassing the opportunity to join the Washington Commanders, according to CBS Sports.

Olsen accepted a gig on the Commanders' staff last week, but Kiffin and Co. remained in communication with the fast-rising assistant coach with the program successfully retaining him amid NFL interest.

Olsen returned to LSU in January of 2024 after two years working alongside defensive coordinator Blake Baker at Missouri where he quickly elevated play in the defensive backfield spearheaded by Tamarcus Cooley and AJ Haulcy last fall.

A Louisiana native, Olsen has strong ties across the Bayou State where he has assisted in the program's recruiting efforts over the last two seasons where his second stint with LSU continues after making his decision to stay put in Baton Rouge.

Across the 2025 season, LSU surged into the Top-25 of total defense while also sitting among the Top-15 in turnovers gained with 21 in total over 12 games this fall.

LSU safeties coach Jake Olsen has now decided to stay put with the Tigers after initially being set to leave for a job with the #Commanders, sources tell @CBSSports.

Lane Kiffin and LSU worked hard to keep him after he initially accepted the job and now set to keep him at LSU. pic.twitter.com/O5kCm32MDd
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) February 17, 2026

LSU’s defense ranked in the top half of the SEC across the 2025 campaign after allowing 319.7 yards per game with Olsen playing a pivotal role on defensive coordinator Blake Baker's staff.

LSU also held teams to 18.3 points on average, which ranked fourth in the conference.

The LSU Bio: Jake Olsen Edition

"Another member of the LSU coaching staff with strong ties to Louisiana, Olsen previously spent the 2021 season with the Tigers as an analyst with his focus on the linebackers. Olsen has 10 years of Louisiana college football coaching experience.

"In his first season as LSU’s safeties coach in 2024, Olsen’s group featured five different starters, including true freshman Dashawn Spears, who started in wins over South Carolina, UCLA and South Alabama. Junior Jardin Gilbert led the group with 55 tackles, while senior Major Burns added 47 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and created three turnovers.

"Olsen coached the linebackers at Missouri for two years (2022-23) helping Mizzou to its best season in a decade in 2023 when the Tigers won 11 games and finished the year ranked No. 9 in the nation. Missouri capped the 2023 season with a 14-3 win over Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl as the Tigers held the Buckeyes without a touchdown for the first time since 2016.

LSU Tigers Football: Blake Baker. — Courtesy of Blake Baker's Instragram.

"In his previous season at LSU in 2021, Olsen assisted with the development of Damone Clark into an All-America selection. Clark, now a starter for the Dallas Cowboys, ranked No. 2 in the nation in tackles per game with 11.42 in 2023."

COACHING EXPERIENCE
2013 Valley City State (defense)
2014 Nicholls State (outside linebackers)
2015-16 Louisiana-Monroe (graduate assistant – safeties, defensive line)
2017-20 Northwestern State (linebackers, 2017; safeties, 2018; outside linebackers, 2019; safeties, special teams coordinator, 2020)
2021 LSU (analyst – linebackers)
2022-23 Missouri (linebackers)
2024-25 LSU (safeties)

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