LSU is open to Ed Orgeron returning as an assistant if Lane Kiffin takes the Tigers job

LSU is in hot pursuit of Lane Kiffin in the coaching search saga that continues to dominate the SEC news cycle. And should the Tigers secure Kiffin as their replacement for Brian Kelly, they already have their eyes on targets for their assistant coaching positions, including one name particularly familiar to those in Baton Rouge: Ed Orgeron. Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports It was reported that LSU is open to hiring its former head coach in a role on Kiffin’s staff.

Orgeron, who led LSU to the 2019 national championship as the highlight of his six-year tenure as the Tigers’ coach from 2016-2021, has been out of a job since his firing four years ago. He announced last month that he would be open to returning to coaching, especially to LSU.

“I love LSU” Orgeron said in October. “I still have my home in Baton Rouge. I loved when I trained with the coach [Les] Miles is the defensive line coach. I love tigers. And I’m back to training. I will definitely think about it. “No doubt.”

Orgeron would be a natural fit on Kiffin’s staff. Not only does he have strong ties to LSU as a former player and national title-winning coach, but his relationship with Kiffin goes back more than two decades and spans multiple schools.

Kiffin and Orgeron, both assistants at the time, first shared the staff at USC during the height of the Pete Carroll era. They reunited in 2009 when Kiffin, then Tennessee’s head coach, hired Orgeron as an assistant. The two returned to USC the following year when Kiffin took over as the Trojans’ coach, and after Kiffin was ousted in 2013, Orgeron took over as interim coach.

Before LSU can bring Orgeron back to Baton Rouge, it obviously has to first make a deal with Kiffin. That’s not a foregone conclusion, because at this point in a whirlwind process, there seems to be no telling whether the Ole Miss president will take the job, flee to Florida or stay with the Rebels. To add more drama this week, Kevin’s family made visits to Gainesville and Baton Rouge.

Ole Miss wants clarity in Kiffin’s decision-making process, and while he pushed back on the idea that the Rebels gave him an “ultimatum” to either stop suitors or pack his bags, the lack of finality seems to be getting more critical by the day. There may come a point where both sides have to decide whether to continue working or not College football Playoff preparations or in partial ways, and according to John Talty of CBS Sports, if Ole Miss is not convinced that Kiffin is committed to the Rebels long-term, it will not allow him to coach in the postseason.