What Memphis football fans should expect from Lance Guidry's defense

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What Memphis football fans should expect from Lance Guidry's defense

What Memphis football fans should expect from Lance Guidry's defense

Jonah Dylan, Memphis Commercial Appeal · The Commercial Appeal

Thu, Mar 26, 2026 ·

3 min read

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Lance Guidry spent the 2025 season as an analyst at LSU . Now he's Memphis football's defensive coordinator.

His road to the Bluff City wasn't that simple, though. Guidry initially took a job at Oregon State , then spent a few weeks there before Jason Semore — who had been hired only a few weeks earlier — left his new job at Memphis for the defensive coordinator's job at Georgia Tech . That led new Memphis coach Charles Huff to call Guidry, who worked with him at Marshall in 2021 and 2022.

Guidry's family didn't mind the move.

"Memphis fits me," he said at a news conference on March 23. "It fits my family. I'm a Louisiana boy, straight down 55, straight into I-10, hook a right and go to Lake Charles or go left and go to New Orleans. It fits us. It fits me. And the food is really good here. And they have a crawfish fest? Are you kidding me?"

Memphis Tigers’ A. Noland (3) prepares for a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ head coach Charles Huff looks on during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ defensive coordinator Lance Guidry looks on during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ A. Noland (3) conducts a drill with M. Covey (28) during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ D. Hayden (7) conducts a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ A. Noland (3) conducts a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ I. Foster (0) conducts a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ M. Stokes (2) prepares to conduct a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ H. Tipton (0) prepares to conduct a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ D. Hayden (7) prepares to conduct a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ head coach Charles Huff yells during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ D. Hayden (7) looks on during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ offensive coordinator Kevin Decker yells during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ T. Chapman (1) looks on during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ T. Chapman (1) conducts a drill during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

Memphis Tigers’ D. Gardner (9) talks with offensive coordinator Kevin Decker during practice on March 25, 2026 at 1115 East Getwell Loop in Memphis, Tenn.
(Stu Boyd II-The Commercial Appeal)

While Guidry still has plenty of time to check out the local food spots, he also has to get to work molding the defense as the Tigers head into the 2026 season. They have an almost entirely new roster, and Guidry came in after the transfer portal had already opened and recruiting was well underway.

There's plenty of talent, especially with the players Huff brought with him from Southern Miss. Memphis has a building block at all three levels with defensive lineman J'Mond Tapp, linebacker Mike Montgomery and safety Ian Foster .

Guidry will play a 4-2-5 scheme, which is different than the scheme the Tigers ran under former defensive coordinator Jordon Hankins. The nickel corner in that scheme is critical, Guidry said, and he mentioned Foster as a candidate to play there.

"Ian Foster's a guy who's a really good football player," Guidry said. "You need a guy that can blitz off the edge, you need a guy that can play man to man and he's also tied into the safeties. He's got to know the defense to be able to adjust. It's a spot that shouldn't be overlooked. We try to get a very good tackling corner in that position."

Chauncey Logan Jr. started games for Memphis in 2025 before an injury meant a redshirt season, but he decided to stay after the coaching change. Huff mentioned former Munford star Jordan Bell as someone who has stood out during spring practices, and he could factor into the mix at safety.

There will be plenty of spots up for grabs throughout the spring and into the summer. After spending a year as an analyst, Guidry said he's ready to be a coordinator again. The former Miami ( Florida ) and Marshall DC worked under LSU defensive coordinator Blake Baker (who coincidentally had been a candidate to replace Ryan Silverfield as Memphis head coach) in 2025.

"I feel like I'm fresh again," Guidry said. "I'm excited about it. Our players, I really don't know what we're best at yet. But I have an idea."

Reach sports writer Jonah Dylan at jonah.dylan@commercialappeal.com or on X @thejonahdylan.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: What Memphis football fans should expect from Lance Guidry's defense

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What Memphis football fans should expect from Lance Guidry's defense

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