Ed Orgeron reveals where his relationship with LSU stands after firing

Two years removed from winning a national championship, LSU was looking for a new head coach. Ed Orgeron was fired after the 2021 season after following up a title with records of 5-5 and 6-7. The lifeblood of the program at times, some have asked Orgeron if he is mad at the school.

Quite the opposite, actually. Orgeron still has love for LSU in his heart. He also admitted results were not good enough following the magical 2019 run, a combined losing record over a two-year stretch. Still getting paid certainly helps but Orgeron understood the move being made.

“The standards at LSU, I get it,” Orgeron said via Barstool’s Pardon My Take. “We weren’t meeting the standards that we were supposed to be. Okay, give me $17 million to walk out the door, good luck. I’m still getting paid by LSU. People ask ‘Coach, you mad at LSU?’ No, I love LSU, I do. It was a great opportunity for us and it was a great time.”

Even if Orgeron was upset, the public likely would never know. His thought process on how to deal with adversity was later explained, wanting to fight through. The goal for Orgeron is to look ahead to the future, not showing the outside his real emotions.

“I’m a positive guy,” Orgeron said. “I’m never going to let people know they got me. Deep down inside, I might be hurt, I might be burning. We don’t show it. We have a saying — big chest and big eyes. We look forward, we work through adversity, and we keep on going.”

To this point, Orgeron has not gotten back into coaching. He might be getting the itch soon though, also discussing the possibility on Pardon My Take. Maybe not directly as somebody leading a program but Orgeron was widely considered a great defensive line coach throughout the year. An assistant role might suit him best.

Checks will continue to flow in from LSU until then. No anger or ill-will toward the Tigers might warm some fans’ hearts. After all, there likely will never be a season as special as the one in 2019, led by Orgeron and quarterback Joe Burrow.

However, Orgeron did not reveal whether or not he is still directly cheering for the Tigers. A critical season is ahead of Brian Kelly in Baton Rouge, needing to find a way to get at least close to the heights Orgeron did.