Orgeron earned the LSU job

When LSU fired Les Miles as its head football coach two months ago, Ed Orgeron was named the interim replacement by Director of Athletics Joe Alleva.

Most people believed that Orgeron would be nothing more than a stop-gap choice until some big-time coach made his way to Baton Rouge.

Well, Orgeron was quite the opportunist as he took advantage of his ‘live audition’ to impress LSU officials and put himself in position to become the permanent coach if the expected plans fell through.

That scenario played out. Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher was going to bring along too high a price tag – no surprise with Jimmy Sexton as his agent. Houston’s Tom Herman indicated that he is heading to Texas – no surprise considering his roots in the Lone Star state.

What Orgeron did in winning five of seven games as Tigers coach moved him ahead of all the other candidates. In actuality, Alleva and LSU officials had only two individuals on their wish list – Fisher and Herman – after doing significant leg work.

A deal could not be struck with Fisher or Herman, so Orgeron – the Louisiana guy with the Cajun accent – is the new LSU head football coach. Orgeron will be the first Louisiana native to run the Tigers football program since Jerry Stovall in the early 1980s.

Orgeron’s main strengths are well known – recruiter and communicator with his players. Orgeron was not successful as a head football coach – ten victories in three seasons at Ole Miss. Orgeron was ultra-successful as an interim coach – 6-2 at Southern California and 5-2 at LSU.

Orgeron will have two new responsibilities as a head football coach. First, he must now organize and run a program for 365 days a year. Second, he must hire a staff.

The offensive coordinator’s role is of utmost importance – a position that has not been filled adequately over a period of years since Fisher left Miles’ staff after the 2006 season. Lane Kiffin and Steve Sarkisian are expected to be at the top of Orgeron’s list. But, that situation will play out over the next few weeks.

One can expect Dave Aranda to remain as defensive coordinator under Orgeron – at least for the near future. It would be a surprise if Aranda is not on the LSU sidelines for the 2017 season. Of course, it is a surprise that Orgeron is now the Tigers’ permanent head coach.

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