Miami football: 5 unrealistic options to replace Manny Diaz

3. Ed Orgeron

Former Miami players and coaches make up the majority of this list and that continues with LSU’s current, but soon to be former, head coach Ed Orgeron. The man known as Coach O was a defensive line coach for the famed Miami Hurricanes of the late 80’s and early 90’s. Famously he coached eight All-American defensive linemen including Warren Sapp, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Cortez Kennedy, and Russell Maryland.

Unfortunately, like his tenure at LSU, the end of Orgeron’s journey with Miami was a choice made out of what the school considered a necessity. The Hurricanes fired Orgeron after two reports of violence were made against the coach. Luckily for Orgeron, he credits that dismissal with a turnaround in his life.

Once back in football Orgeron bounced around the NCAA landscape. His current position as the head coach of the LSU Tigers is coming to an end after this season. The coach and school have agreed to part ways following 2021. According to many inside and outside of the Baton Rouge school, it was time for both coach and team to go their separate ways. 

Despite his connection to the Miami Hurricanes program, it is hard to imagine them bringing in a coach that has off-the-field concerns. The university has made tremendous progress distancing itself from scandal in recent years. Bringing Orgeron in would thrust them back into those uncomfortable conversations quickly.