WATCH: LSU coach Ed Orgeron responds to UCLA heckler
LSU head coach Ed Orgeron responded to a heckler from UCLA by calling the Bruins’ blue a “sissy” color while walking into the stadium on Saturday. The Tigers fiery coach had no time for the fans as they look to begin their 2021 season.
Ed Orgeron mocks UCLA heckler
“Bring your ass on, in your sissy blue shirt,” shouted coach Ed Orgeron as UCLA fans heckled him from above as he entered the Rose Bowl stadium on Saturday.
LSU’s coach seems ready for their game following a difficult week for the Tigers that forced them to remain away from home as Louisiana deals with recovery from Hurrican Ida.
The Tigers spent the week in Houston to continue practicing ahead of their opening game. As LSU traveled to Houston, evacuation traffic significantly slowed down the trip. After the team’s 9:30 p.m. departure last Saturday night, it arrived in Houston at 8 a.m. the following morning. The team buses were on the road for over 10 hours on what is usually a trip that takes four hours, according to Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger.
LSU enters the game ranked 16th in the nation, while UCLA is riding high off their success from the previous week. The Bruins won their first opening week game under head coach Chip Kelly since he took over the program in 2018.
Orgeron is entering his fourth year as LSU’s head coach (excluding his stint as interim head coach in 2016). Over those four years LSU has a 39-12 record with two bowl wins and a national championship.
LSU visits the Rose Bowl
In a game where LSU fans have shown up in force, Orgeron and his team are looking to make a statement in their first game of the season. In LSU’s first ever trip to the historic Rose Bowl to play UCLA, over 15,000 fans are expected to show up in purple and gold.
“LSU sold its allotment to the #UCLA game within a matter of days, requested more and sold those,” tweeted Dellenger. “I believe at least 10,000 tickets have been sold through the school. Officials in Baton Rouge expect the amount of LSU fans here to top 15,000.”
While UCLA will be the home team, Tigers fans want to put their stamp on the game. As their team attempts to return to glory, they’ll have plenty of support from their faithful in Pasadena.
On3’s Stephen Samra contributed to this article.