EASTON, Pa. – Lafayette head football coach John Troxell continues to assemble his coaching staff after his appointment on Dec. 14. Troxell has added Meade Clendaniel and Jeff Sejour, whom he brought with him from his previous stop, and has retained defensive line coach Andrew Seumalo who just completed his fourth season on College Hill.
 
Clendaniel spent the last three seasons on Troxell's staff at Franklin and Marshall and the past two as the program's defensive coordinator. He will coach the Leopards outside linebackers. Prior to F&M, Clendaniel coached for six seasons at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio where he was the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach. That followed a 13-year stint at Davidson.
 
"Meade brings a ton of experience to our defensive staff. He has coordinated at multiple levels, including 13 years at the Division I level," Troxell said. "His knowledge will be valuable to our staff and to our players."
 
At Davidson, Clendaniel helped guide three players to I-AA Mid-Major All-America first-team status and coached a two-time Academic All-American. From 2002-05, he mentored four consecutive Pioneer League South Defensive Player of the Year honorees. In his first season there in 2000 as the defensive coordinator, Clendaniel helped guide the team to its first undefeated (10-0) season in the program's history.

His first Division I coaching experience came from 1998-00 at Princeton where he coached the safeties, outside linebackers and special teams while also serving as head coach of the junior varsity squad.

Clendaniel's first coaching foray came at his alma mater West Chester University from 1995-97 when he was an assistant coach working with the secondary, special teams, running backs and recruiting efforts. Clendaniel played fullback from 1992-95 at West Chester, helping capture PSAC East Division titles in 1992 and 1994 and finishing with a degree in biology with a focus in ecology.

Sejour, a 2006 Lafayette graduate, spent the 2021 season on the staff at Franklin and Marshall as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach. Prior to joining that staff he served as the head coach and defensive coordinator at Flint Hill School in Oakton, Virginia.

"It is great to have Jeff come back home! He was a part of championship teams here at Lafayette and understands what it will take to win," Troxell explained. "Our players will love being coached by him."
 
He coached at VMI from 2018-19, working with the linebackers and secondary while also serving as the video coordinator. That followed stops at Howard University in 2017 as the linebackers coach and Bridgewater College (Va.) in 2016 as the secondary and junior varsity coach. He also spent time coaching football, track and field and basketball at Fairfax, T.C. Williams and James Madison high schools.

At Lafayette, Sejour was a dual-sport athlete, competing in football and track. He played defensive back for a pair of Leopard Patriot League championship teams (2004 and 2005). Sejour was also captain of the track and field team and secured a Patriot League title in the triple jump before competing professionally in track and field for three years. He earned his bachelor's degree in neuroscience.

Seumalo will begin his fifth season as the team's defensive line coach and will assume recruiting coordinator duties. During his tenue he has presided over seven All-Patriot League selections. He oversaw the development of Malik Hamm '22 into one of
the top defensive players in the conference and the nation, selected to the All-Patriot League time four times.

In 2021, Hamm led the team in sacks for the third time in his career, ending the season with 5.5 sacks and 23.5 for his career (second all-time at Lafayette). Hamm started 35 of 37 career games and served as a team captain in 2021 when he ranked second in tackles (64) and tackles for loss (7.5). Joining Hamm with 2021 All-Patriot League recognition was senior Ian Grayson who made 23 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss in 2021 and will return for the Leopards front line along with Damon Washington a 2021 Spring All-Patriot League honoree.

"Andrew really impressed me from the first time we got to talk. He will be a great asset to our program as we navigate through this staff transition," Troxell said. "Drew comes from a football family and I am thrilled he will remain part of the Lafayette football family."

Seumalo came to Lafayette by way of Nebraska where he was a graduate assistant under Mike Riley in 2017. He worked with the Huskers' defensive line and helped guide a transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4 scheme.
Prior to Nebraska, Seumalo spent the 2016 season as a graduate assistant coach at Arizona State and served in a similar role at his alma mater, Oregon State, in 2015. He was a student coach in 2014 in the final season under Riley.
Seumalo also played for Riley at Oregon State. Originally a walk-on with the Beavers, Seumalo was a four-year letterwinner at OSU from 2009 to 2012, earning a scholarship as a senior, when he also served as a team captain. Seumalo ended his career with 23 straight starts.

He was honorable-mention All-Pac-12 as a senior and was also named to the Pac-12 Academic Second Team after twice earning honorable mention status. He graduated in 2012 with a bachelor's degree in finance.