Ed Orgeron Reveals Story Behind USC Trojans Job, Path to Joining LSU Football

Ed Orgeron remains in headlines this fall as he eyes a return to the sidelines after a multi-year hiatus following his time with the LSU Tigers.

Orgeron spearheaded the Bayou Bengals' pursuit of a National Championship across the 2019 season with the program led by Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson, and Ja'Marr Chase, among several iconic Tigers.

But after the LSU administration relieved Orgeron of his duties in 2021 - two years removed from a National Championship win - he's now eyeing a return to football.

Across the 2025 season, Orgeron has traveled to make appearances on podcasts and other media outlets with a recent stop on "Bussin' With The Boys" to discuss his career.

The college football icon broke down his time at USC after taking over as the interim following Lane Kiffin being fired all the way to making it to LSU.

“Let’s backtrack to USC, okay, we beat, I think Arizona, we go to Notre Dame, and we lose to Notre Dame,” Orgeron said. “Okay, well, Pat Haden was a Notre Dame fanatic … Well, when I ran off that field, I took that job at USC like I was going to be the interim coach for a little bit.

"Okay, when I left that field, I said, You know what? F-that. I’m gonna be the head coach from now on. And we won on tear man, we won like, five games in a row, and the Friday before the UCLA game, he brings me and my wife in, shows me the contract.

LSU Tigers Football. — Nov 27, 2021; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Ed Orgeron looks on during the second half against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

"It a $12 million contract back then for four years. He tells my wife to stay. We have a press conference on Tuesday. He’s going to hire me. Okay? My kids come, man, but we lose to UCLA, which is, I understand, we didn’t play well.

“My kids get on the plane crying. My wife stays with me. He never calls me on Sunday … He told me he’s gonna call me Sunday night, full time … The call never came …

"Next morning, told my wife, I said, get us a plane, we’re going to go take care of some business. Me and him had a meeting. I slammed that door and I told him, I said, beside the day my father died, this is the worst day of my life.”

Orgeron Nears the Move

“So anyway, so we get on a plane. This is my ex wife and so she goes ‘Why are you so sad,’” Orgeron said. “We got the USC job pulled off. ‘God has a better plan.’ It better be good. We just lost the USC job baby … That was a great time in my life man. I always wanted to be the head coach at LSU or USC, and that was a hard deal for me to lead that place. So I took a year off of coaching, but that year off of coaching, I got to see my sons play football, and I never watched them play football.

“Cody’s the quarterback, Parker’s the receiver. We went to the semifinals. It was just a wonderful year. I coached with my kids man, it was good. It was really a year that I needed. And then I went to LSU with Les Miles.”

Orgeron Joins LSU - Opportunity Awaits

Orgeron became the interim head coach after LSU lost to Auburn and fell to 2-2 in 2016. He took over and went 6-2 the rest of the way after Les Miles was relieved of his duties.

“We lost the game, and I like coach Miles is great, but I’m like, this is weird,” Orgeron said. “Okay, so I’ll go on the bus. ‘Meet me at the such and such station when y’all get off the plane.’ Okay, I go to a place. We stayed there til six o’clock in the morning, they gave me the blueprint.

"Here’s what needs to be done, here’s how it has to be done, here’s what we expect. And there was nothing about anybody officially from LSU, right? I mean, it was just like T Boy and his cousin. So I go to work the next day … So we get a staff meeting. We sit down there. Nobody knows anything except me, it was weird as hell.”

Now, all eyes are on Orgeron as he prepares for the next chapter of his coaching career with a goal of returning to the sidelines for the 2026 season.

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