Ed Orgeron returns to LSU: Ex-Tigers coach joins Lane Kiffin’s staff as special assistant

Ed Orgeron is back in Baton Rouge.

LSU announced Wednesday night that Orgeron, who won the 2019 national championship at the school, is returning as a special assistant to recruiting and defense. 

Orgeron has been out of football since being fired from LSU in 2021 following a 51-20 record over six seasons. He’ll forever be remembered for that 15-0 LSU team, that has an argument as college football’s best, which featured quarterback Joe Burrow and receivers Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase. 

Beyond the obvious connection to LSU, Orgeron has deep ties to first-year LSU head coach Lane Kiffin. 

Orgeron and Kiffin first worked together as part of Pete Carroll’s USC staff in 2001, winning two national championships together. When Ed Orgeron left after the 2004 season to become Ole Miss head coach, he even tried to hire Kiffin as his offensive coordinator. Kiffin would later arrive in Oxford as Ole Miss head coach for the 2020 season, spending six seasons as the Rebels’ coach before leaving for LSU last December. 

Kiffin hired Orgeron as his recruiting coordinator and defensive line coach for the infamous one-season experience at Tennessee. Orgeron was a brilliant recruiter, enforcer and motivational speaker as Kiffin’s top lieutenant in Knoxville. For the quieter, more analytical Kiffin, the boisterous and aggressive Orgeron is a nice counterbalance, especially when it comes to getting a team fired up before a game. The stories of Orgeron ripping off his shirt and getting the team fired up have followed him every step of his coaching journey. It’s part of his charm, and his players love him for it. 

Orgeron went with Lane back to USC for three-and-a-half seasons and succeeded him as the interim head coach after Kiffin was famously fired at a Los Angeles-area airport tarmac. He went 6-2 in 2013 as Kiffin’s replacement but was upset when he didn’t get the permanent job and left the program. 

While Orgeron’s title is ambiguous, recent NCAA rule changes allow for him to get out on the road and recruit for the Tigers if Lane wants him to — which he obviously should. Coach O knows and loves LSU and can authentically sell its merits to both Louisiana natives and others around the South. Lane has mastered the art of transfer portal recruiting as the “Portal King” but could use someone like Coach O. Orgeron’s bread-and-butter was going into family homes and selling parents and grandparents, a critical skill in a state like Louisiana.

“I’m excited to bring Coach Orgeron back to LSU,” Kiffin said. “He brings us tremendous value with his ability to recruit elite players nationally, but especially the impact he can have for us recruiting the great state of Louisiana. Coach O understands my expectations and commitment to being a championship program. I look forward to seeing him with recruits and his intensity working with our defensive players.”