Michael Desormeaux
Michael John Desormeaux is an American college football coach and former player. He is the head football coach at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, a position he has held since the final game of the 2021 season. He previously served in various assistant coaching roles at Louisiana from 2016 to 2021, most recently as the co-offensive coordinator and tight ends coach in 2021.
Desormeaux played college football at Louisiana as a quarterback and defensive back from 2004 to 2008, where he ranks in the all-time top ten for passing yards, passing touchdowns, and rushing yards. Desormeaux signed as an undrafted free agent with the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League and played for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League. Prior to his tenure at Louisiana, he held various assistant coaching positions at Catholic High School in New Iberia, Louisiana and Ascension Episcopal School in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana.
Playing career
College
Desormeaux started playing for the Cajuns in his redshirt freshman year in 2005, going 2–2 as a starter. Following his first season, Desormeaux was one of three freshmen to be named to the All-Sun Belt team and was named to the teams Champion Award at the postseason banquet for his outstanding performance in both throwing and rushing in his first season. Going into his second season, Desormeaux played 12 games on special teams, while also seeing time at quarterback, wide receiver, and defensive back. He was named the Cajuns Special Teams Player of the Week in the losing effort against eighth-ranked LSU where he recovered two fumbles. He was named the Cajuns Offensive Player of the Week in the losing effort against Texas A&M where he scored the lone touchdown in an eight-yard rush. Following the season, Desormeaux was named the recipient of the Robert E. Trahan Achievement Team Award for an individual who achieves many accomplishments with the help of his teammates.In his junior and senior years, Desormeaux became the starting quarterback after Jerry Babb's departure. Desormeaux would soon become one of the most famous Cajuns players in history, tying and breaking numerous records, including ranking third for 1,000+ rushing yards in history and finishing 20th for most rushing yards by a quarterback in NCAA history. Throughout his time, Desormeaux was named to numerous lists, including 2005 First-team All-Sun Belt Team, 2006 and 2007 Second-team All-Sun Belt Team, 2005–06, 2006–07, and 2007–08 Sun Belt Conference Commissioner's List.