Former LSU coach Ed Orgeron addressed his possible return to coaching on Andy & Ari On3 Rebecca Warren-Imagn Images

Ed Orgeron makes intentions clear about college football return

Originally posted on CFB-HQ on SI | By Joe Cox | Last updated Oct 22, 2025 12:38 PM ET

As coach firings are piling up around college football, taking stock of some recent coaches is probably in order. Ed Orgeron was a gues on Andy & Ari On3 and made clear that he intends to return to the active coaching world. Orgeron won a national title at LSU, but has been out of coaching since 2021. He addressed his possible return.

Orgeron's comments

For me, I want a fit. I'm not going to take anything and not anybody's going to take me. It may be a head coach job, it may be a defensive line job with someone that I'll believe that can win a championship. I just think that when I do interview, if I do interview, I want them to want me as much as I want them. I'm a championship coach and I'm going to bring a winning program to the university. I can recruit, I can do those things. I'm proven to do it. I'm young, man, I'm 64 years young. I'm ready to go. Ed Orgeron

NEW: Ed Orgeron wants to be your head coach — or even your defensive line coach

“I'm not gonna take anything, and not everybody's gonna take me. So, it may be a head coach job. It may be a defensive line job with someone that I believe can win a championship.

...I'm a… pic.twitter.com/tilrOn0ciw
— On3 (@On3sports) October 22, 2025

Orgeron's history

Orgeron has always been a larger than life character. The big Louisianan with the easy to imitate, hard to replicate Cajun accent came to prominence as a defensive line coach at Miami from 1988 to 1992. A legendary recruiter, aside from a handful of All-Americans, Orgeron helped recruit Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson for the Hurricanes.

Orgeron was hired by Paul Hackett at USC in 1998 and then stayed on staff under Hackett's successor, Pete Carroll. Orgeron was USC's recruiting coordinator and was promoted to assistant head coach. He took the head coaching job at Ole Miss after the 2004 season and went just 10-25 in three seasons.

Orgeron then coached for the New Orleans Saints, Tennessee, and then USC. Oregon then moved to LSU, at first coaching the defensive line, but after Les Mile was fired, Orgeron became the iterim coach and then the full-time head coach. Orgeron was 51-20 at LSU, putting together a 15-0 season and a CFP title in 2019. But he was just 11-11 over the next two seasons and was fired.

Orgeron is often overlooked in the discussion of potential coaches, but as the college football firing epidemic grows, there are more and more opportunities coming into play. Given his interest in even working as a defensive line coach, Orgeron might be back on a college sideline sooner than many would expect.

This article first appeared on CFB-HQ on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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