If you can't defeat him, then bring him aboard.
In Texas A&M's three football seasons in the Southeastern Conference, the Aggies have averaged a sparkling 41.3 points per game. Against LSU's defenses that were coordinated by John Chavis, however, the Aggies averaged just 15.3 points and lost all three meetings.
Thus the luring of Chavis to College Station from Baton Rouge this past winter was not the result of extensive research on behalf of Aggies head coach Kevin Sumlin.
"We knew what we were looking for when we made the change," Sumlin said on a recent conference call. "We started off with a list, and the potential here at Texas A&M brought forth a lot of candidates. In my dealings with John professionally and on the football field, I have a lot of respect for him and how he's done things, whether at Tennessee or at LSU or points before that.
"It was a great fit for us and a great fit for him, and I think the vibe from our defensive players and entire football team has been great."
Texas A&M has mostly been a defensive disaster in the SEC. The Aggies allowed 28 or more points 10 times during the 2013 season and another eight times last season, which was topped by the surrendering of 59 points at Alabama.
Chavis is entering his 21st season as an SEC defensive coordinator, having spent 14 seasons under Phillip Fulmer with the Volunteers and the past six under Les Miles. He will inherit sophomore defensive end Myles Garrett, arguably the most talented player in the league, and a signing class that had a focus on the secondary.
"What wouldn't be appealing?" Chavis said at his introductory news conference. "A&M has invested in its program. Look at the stadium. It's a place where you can recruit. There's a wealth of talent in Texas. Why wouldn't you want to be a part of this program?
"We are building to win championships. I want to be part of a championship program, and there is no question that you can win them here at Texas A&M."
The Aggies have not won a conference championship since upsetting Kansas State in the 1998 Big 12 title game. Chavis has coached in six SEC championship games, with three wins, and was coordinating UT's defense in '98, helping the Volunteers to a second straight SEC title and their first national championship since 1951.
Chavis, who will be overseeing A&M's linebackers, developed All-America linebackers in three consecutive years at Tennessee: Leonard Little (1997), Al Wilson ('98) and Raynoch Thompson ('99).
His stint at LSU was highlighted by winning the Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant in 2011, when the Tigers allowed just 261.5 yards and 11.3 points per game in their 13-1 season. In 2013, LSU became the first school in the history of the NFL draft to produce six defensive players within the first three rounds.
LSU was paying Chavis a little more than $1.3 million annually when Texas A&M swooped in and hired him for $1.5 million this season, $1.55 million in 2016 and $1.6 million in 2017. In early March, Chavis and LSU filed lawsuits against one another over a $400,000 buyout that LSU believes Chavis owes the university.
Under the SEC scheduling format that has been mapped out for the next decade, the Aggies and Tigers will vie at the conclusion of each regular season, so this year's matchup may not be lacking for spice.
"He's certainly a fine defensive coordinator and a quality person, and I have no issues there," Miles said. "The only thing I can tell you is that we like Kevin Steele and we like how we'll run the defense. We'll be as productive as we've been, and it will just make it a little more competitive when you're looking across the way and see a guy who's been on your staff for a few years."
The Aggies lost their three leading tacklers from last season - safety Howard Matthews, cornerback Deshazor Everett and linebacker Justin Bass - but return 10 defenders with starting experience. Last year's defense allowed an average of 450.8 yards and 28.1 points per game and was shaky right through the 45-37 win over West Virginia in the Liberty Bowl.
"I think a little bit of it is confidence," Chavis said. "We've got talent, there's no question about that. They are good enough to play and win in the SEC. Sure, they had some struggles, but that was last year. We aren't going to talk about last year.
"We've got some core principles that we believe in, and we have applied those. We are going to be very competitive, but we've got a lot of work to do."
That work started this spring with building around Garrett, a 6-foot-5, 255-pounder from Arlington, Texas, whose freshman season included 53 tackles, 14 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks.
"Hopefully we can get a couple more sacks out of him to where he can lead the country," Sumlin said. "Myles is a really, really good player, and the ability for him to really get up the field right now has helped him and the growth of Daeshon Hall. You've got guys now who can attack the game. Daeshon for the first time went through spring football without any surgeries or those kinds of things, and now he is physically where he needs to be.
"We've got two guys at defensive end right now who have big-play ability, and I think the scheme John has brought has really allowed them to get up the field and be the type of pass-rushers that we need."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.