MONROE, La. – ULM head football coach Matt Viator announced today the addition of four coaches to his staff. Joining the Warhawks are Chris Hampton (defensive backs), Tim Leger (wide receivers/recruiting coordinator), Manny Michel (defensive line) and Rob Sale (offensive line).
“We've got four guys who want to be here,” said Viator. “They are very familiar with me, how we want to coach and what our expectations are. It is exciting for me to get some guys that have experience and are good coaches, yet we already have a relationship and they definitely know what I am about and I understand what they're about.”
“Chris is a very, very talented coach that played at South Carolina and has experience at the position. Our secondary guys at McNeese were really good and sound in terms of what we wanted to do. Tim has done a really good job with us coaching receivers and he coached quarterbacks at one time. I also think he's done a tremendous job recruiting. I've had a great five or six years with Manny. He is a great coach and a first-class guy, and he is excited about coming back to Monroe. Rob spent three seasons with me at McNeese and I lost him to Georgia last season. He is a quality offensive line coach and I feel that he's excited to return to his hometown.”
Hampton makes the move to north Louisiana after spending the last four years as the defensive backs coach at McNeese State.
Following the 2015 season, a total of three Cowboy defensive backs earned All-Southland Conference honors, including Defensive Player of the Year and First Team selection Wallace Scott. In addition to conference honors, Scott was named to the AFCA's FCS All-America Team while earning Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Louisiana honors from the Louisiana Sports Writer's Association.
In 2014, Hampton helped coach free safety Aaron Sam to First Team All-Southland Conference and All-Louisiana honors as well as fellow safety Brent Spikes who led the team in both tackles and interceptions. Spikes set a new McNeese, Southland Conference and Louisiana single game record with 148 interception return yards on three picks at Incarnate Word on Oct. 25. Those three interceptions tied a school single-game record. In 2013, he coached Guy Morgan to First Team All-Southland Conference and All-Louisiana honors as well as Third Team All-America honors by The Sports Network.
Hampton began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Arkansas State in 2008 and followed that up with two seasons as a graduate assistant at Georgia Tech (2009-10). He then spent one season as the safeties coach at Central Arkansas (2011) before joining the McNeese State staff.
Hampton played collegiate football at South Carolina where he was a four-year letterwinner and a two-year starter as a safety for the Gamecocks. He also earned the team's Harold White award which is given to the player with the highest grade point average.
Leger joins the Warhawk staff after spending the last nine seasons as the offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at McNeese State.
In 2015, the Cowboy offense averaged just under 400 yards per contest while scoring 30.2 points per game. Following the season a total of seven offensive players earned All-Southland Conference honors and three earned All-Louisiana honors.
During his tenure in McNeese he coached a pair of Southland Conference award winners. In 2009, he tutored Derrick Fourroux was the league's Player of the Year and in 2014, Cody Stroud, who broke several school records, was named the conference's Offensive Player of the Year.
Leger began his coaching career as a student assistant coach at McNeese State in 1999 and served as a graduate assistant during the 2000 season. He then joined the staff at St. Thomas More High School where he served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 2001-06. During his time at St. Thomas More, the squad won six district titles and reached the state semifinals four times.
Leger was drafted in the fourth round by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1992 MLB First Year Player Draft and he played three seasons in the Pirate organization. After his baseball career ended, he began his collegiate football career as a quarterback at McNeese State.
He was four-year letterwinner for the Cowboys from 1995-98, Leger was an All-Southland Conference quarterback in 1996 after leading the conference in passing and setting the school record for total offense per game. He played on league championship teams in 1995 and 1997 and the 1997 squad advanced to the FCS National Championship game.
Leger is married to the former Ashley Hebert and the couple have one son, Gunner, who was a standout baseball player at Barbe High School and helped lead his 2014 team to the High School Baseball National Championship. Gunner, now a pitcher at UL Lafayette, was named the Sun Belt Conference's Freshman of the Year following a strong 2015 campaign.
Michel returns to ULM after spending the last seven seasons as the defensive line coach at McNeese State.
In back-to-back seasons, Michel had a total of three defensive lineman earn All-Southland Conference honors. Last season, Isaiah Golden was a First Team All-Southland Conference selection, while Cameron Smith and Jammerio Gross were also honored by the conference following the season. Golden was also named First-Team All-Louisiana.
In 2014, Kevin Dorn garnered First Team honors, while Everett Ellefsen and Brian Hine were also recognized by the league. Ellefsen went on to get selected by the Winnipeg Tiger-Cats in the 2015 Canadian Football League Draft. In 2013, he coached Ellefsen to First Team honors by the league and the Louisiana Sports Writer's Association, and Dorn to honorable mention honors.
Michel began his collegiate coaching career as a graduate assistant at Tennessee Tech in 1984. He then entered the high school ranks as an assistant coach at Cumberland County (Tenn.) High School during the 1985 season.
Michel joined the staff at John Curtis Christian School as a defensive line coach and he helped coach the squad to four state titles during his nine seasons. He then joined the staff at Nicholls State and served as the team's defensive coordinator and defensive line coach from 1995 to 1998.
Michel's first stint with ULM began in 1999 as the program's defensive line coach, a position he held for 10 seasons. During the 10-year stretch with the Warhawks, he coached such All-Sun Belt Conference performers Donald Malveaux (2001), John Thompson (2002), Brandon Guillory (2004, 2005), David Cooper (2007) and Aaron Morgan (2007). The 2007 team led the Sun Belt Conference in rush defense.
Michel played prep football at John Curtis and was part of the school's first two state championship teams. He played collegiately and was a four-year starter at Tennessee Tech.
Michel and his wife Marge have one daughter, Hannah.
Sale returns to his hometown after spending the 2015 season as the offensive line coach at Georgia.
The Bulldog offensive line paved the way for more than 190 rushing yards per game in 2015 and allowed the offense as a whole to tally more than 375 yards of total offense per game. At season's end, offensive tackle John Theus was named First Team All-SEC.
Before joining the staff at Georgia, Sale was part of Viator's staff at McNeese State from 2012-14. During the 2012 and 2013 seasons, he served as the offensive line coach before being promoted to co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach for the 2014 season. In 2014, the McNeese offense averaged 32.4 points per game, 396.5 total yards per game, 221.9 yards per game rushing and 174.6 yards per game passing.
Sale constructed an offensive line in 2013 into one of the best in the league despite having two players switch from the defensive side. Three of the five starting linemen earned All-Southland Conference honors - Arinze Agada (First Team), Quentin Marsh and Nick Gorman (Honorable Mention). Agada was named the Southland Conference's Offensive Lineman of the Year, earned Southland Conference All-Academic honors, was named a FCS ADA Academic All-Star, earned First Team All-Louisiana honors, and was named to four postseason All-America teams (Associated Press, Sports Network, College Sports Madness, Beyond Sports Network).
Sale began his coaching career in the high school ranks as the offensive line coach at Catholic High of Pointe Coupee in 2006. He then made his way to Alabama serving as a strength and conditioning assistant and offensive analyst (2007-11) before joining the staff at McNeese State.
Sale was a four-year letterwinner and two-time All-State selection (junior and senior seasons) as an offensive lineman at Neville High School. He played collegiately at LSU where he appeared in 35 career games with 25 starts, including 13 at right guard as a senior in 2002. As a junior he saw starting action at both center and guard when the Tigers won the SEC title. During his sophomore season, he appeared at left guard where started the final five games of the regular season as well as the Peach Bowl.
Sale and his wife Amanda have two sons, Tripp and Briggs.
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