5 reasons Ed Orgeron is a home run hire for LSU football
By John Buhler
The LSU Tigers wisely removed the interim tag to name Ed Orgeron full-time head coach in 2017. Here are five reasons this is an outstanding hire for LSU.
After wrangling their end of season rival Texas A&M Aggies on Thanksgiving Day 2016, the LSU Tigers removed the interim tag on Ed Orgeron to make him the full-time head coach in 2017.
Orgeron went 5-2 at LSU under the interim tag. He had big wins over rival Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Texas A&M. His two losses came to the two teams meeting in the 2016 SEC Championship Game in the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Florida Gators.
While LSU was in the Tom Herman sweepstakes, here are five reasons retaining Orgeron was an outstanding move by the LSU athletic department.
5. The ultimate players’ coach
It cannot be understated, but players love playing for Orgeron. He is a good defensive tactician in his own right, but Orgeron’s ability to relate to and get the most out of his 18 to 23-year-old players is a major reason LSU felt confident in giving him the job.
LSU is one of those football programs that recruits itself. It’s not difficult to land top-tier talent on the Baton Rouge campus. LSU has been a pro football factory for the last decade plus. The talent will find its way to the flagship university in Louisiana.
Being a players’ coach might end up serving Orgeron more than being a guy meticulous with the x’s and o’s. He’ll have a better understanding of his players’ minds to hopefully get the most out of his many four and five-star players.
Of the many elite jobs in the Power 5, LSU’s elite in-state talent might be the most conducive to having a strong players’ coach at the helm. Resentment between players and coaches is the only thing that will sink a blue-blood like LSU. Orgeron may not be the best in the film room, but his players will run through walls for him at LSU.