I’ll start with this. I’ve been a Sloan hater since day one. Not because I know him personally, but because I had sources, coaches and players, who gave me info going back to the bowl game after the 2023 season. In this post I’m just retelling what I was told and laying out the timeline.
Everything below is alleged. All of it was relayed to me. I didn’t see any of it myself and I’ve only spoken to Sloan maybe twice total for less than a minute. Also, I have said everything I am saying now as they happened if you would like to fact check me.
December 2023. The ego comes out. Before they officially announced Sloan and Hankton as co-offensive coordinators there was an ego fest leading up to and during bowl practice week. From what I heard, Joe Sloan was willing to step on or through anyone in his way to become offensive coordinator including Hankton. Instead of leading he was trying to show dominance and act like a know it all. Huge red flag.
January 2024. Sloan’s first move as OC. He fired the most experienced offensive analyst on staff, Terry Malone. A ten year NFL offensive line coach under Sean Payton and a national championship winning offensive coordinator. The guy wanted to coach at LSU to be near his kids and grandkids. He was key in developing Mason Taylor. Go watch Mason’s draft announcement and you’ll see he thanked Malone. Malone was Denbrock’s right hand man and helped with game planning. Sloan fired him his first day as OC. But he didn’t even do it himself. Then he makes Lou Holtz’s grandson, who had no major coaching experience, his main analyst.
May 2024. The Mason Taylor NIL situation. Mason was getting the bare minimum NIL, basically what the lowest-tier guys got. He went to BK asking for more and was told Sloan was handling those decisions. Sloan told him he’d bump it and the “bump” brought him to around four thousand or less per month. Total slap in the face to what was arguably your second or third best offensive player. There were 11-15 guys on offense making more than him, including three quarterbacks.
August 2024. Mismanagement of Mac Marway. Mac was your true inline blocking tight end that would have really helped the running game. Early in camp Sloan starts jerking him around. He’d put him on the field with freshmen and walk-ons during walkthroughs and install. That’s fine if you’re not planning to use him, but they were. They had specific packages for him. For whatever reason Sloan kept messing with the kid. Mac met with him, Sloan botched the meeting and the kid left. Not all on Sloan, but it still points to a coach making bad calls and not leading well.
Season 2024. In-season blunders.
1. Multiple reports of him not connecting with players. Guys weren’t buying in. Older players disrespected him. Coaches didn’t respect him either. I’ve talked to players who didn’t like him and coaches who straight up said he doesn’t have it. He can wow people on a whiteboard but has no feel for play calling and no leadership.
2. The week I attended practice they spent a ton of the practice period working on new plays, then did not run them one time in game. Talking with players this happened frequently.
November and December 2024. CJ Daniels transfer. One of the big reasons he left was Sloan. CJ loved Hankton and had a good relationship with Nuss but he didn’t want to do another year under Sloan. Mason Taylor got an offer to stay but felt so disrespected by Sloan that he threw back a ridiculous counter just to make a point. When Taylor announced he thanked multiple people, including Malone, but didn’t mention Sloan once.
After December 2024 I lost my two main coaching sources so I don’t have as much inside info this year. But from what I’ve heard there have been multiple attempts to help him simplify things and make it work. It just hasn’t happened. His message is flat and the players don’t believe he can put them in position to succeed. And it shows.
Joe Sloan is a lieutenant, not a general. When he had people in the building to check him he was fine. But once he got the power and authority that comes with being an OC at a big time program, it did him in. Being an offensive coordinator isn’t just about calling plays, it’s about getting your players to buy in and believe. Without that, nothing else matters.
